A coach opens a blank calendar in August. There are about forty weeks ahead. There are match dates, school breaks and a few weeks nobody can train. The coach knows what to coach. The question is how to arrange the weeks.
Periodization answers that question. It gives the year a shape, so each week has a job. The words that come with it are what put most coaches off. This article explains them in plain terms.
The Short Version
A season can be split into five levels. Each level sits inside the one above it.
- Year. The whole plan, from the first session to the last.
- Phase. A long part of the year with one main goal.
- Block. A group of weeks with the same training direction.
- Week. A set pattern of sessions that repeats.
- Session. One training session.
You plan from the top down. First the year, then the phases, then the blocks. Weeks and sessions come last.
Why the Names Are Confusing
The technical names are macrocycle, mesocycle and microcycle. The microcycle is the week. The trouble is the other two.
Some texts use macrocycle for a block of three to four weeks. Others use it for the whole season. Mesocycle can mean the block in one source and a middle layer in another. The same word can mean four weeks in one place and a year in another.
This is a naming habit, not a mistake by either side. What matters is the structure, not the word.
For your own staff, pick one set of names and write them down. The plain names in this article (year, phase, block, week, session) are a safe choice. Use the technical names only when you need to match a course or an exam.
Level 1: Phases
The year divides into three phases: preparation, competition and transition.
Preparation builds the base. Competition is when the matches or events happen. Transition is the planned break after the season.
These can be split into smaller parts, called subphases:
- General preparation
- Specific preparation
- Precompetition
- Competition
- Transition
General preparation uses broad work. Specific preparation moves closer to the sport. Precompetition is the final step before the first match.
A subphase can be very short or very long. A transition may last one week. A long general preparation may last 24.
Level 2: Blocks
A block is a group of weeks with the same direction. One block might focus on building a base. The next might focus on speed.
Blocks usually run two to six weeks. Most are three or four weeks.
A common pattern is to build for three weeks and lighten the fourth. The lighter week is a regeneration week. Volume drops so the athlete can recover and absorb the work.
A block can also be short. A two-week block before competition is often called a taper block. It reduces load so the athlete arrives fresh.
Level 3: Weeks
A week is a repeating pattern of sessions. It can run from 5 to 14 days. Most are seven days, so they match the calendar.
The week is where the plan meets real life. A match day, a school exam or a travel day all change it. Two athletes in the same block may have different weeks.
The weekly pattern sets which sessions are hard, which are light, and where recovery sits.
Level 4: Sessions
A session is one unit of training, with any pauses kept short.
The session is the last thing to plan. Its content comes from the week, the week comes from the block, and the block comes from the phase. A session planned alone has no link to the season.
Planning and Programming
The work splits in two. Planning is the top of the ladder: the year, the phases and the subphases. Programming is the bottom: the blocks, the weeks and the sessions.
Planning decides the shape. Programming fills it with content. A coach who has only done the second part has sessions but no season.
How Many Peaks?
Not every season has the same shape. Plans can be grouped by the number of main competitions.
One peak. One main competition period. Distance running, rowing, cross-country skiing and road cycling are common examples. This is a one-cycle plan.
Two peaks. Two main competition periods. Examples are track and field with indoor and outdoor seasons, or swimming with winter and summer championships. This is a two-cycle plan.
Three peaks. Three main competitions. Boxing and wrestling are examples. This is a three-cycle plan. Each cycle is short, so it helps to make the first one longer. That leaves time for the basics.
The more peaks a year has, the shorter each preparation phase becomes.
Team Sports With Long Seasons
Some coaches say periodization only fits sports with a long preparation and a short competition period. Team sports often have the opposite. Preparation is short and the match season is long.
The structure still works. You can design as many plans as the situation needs. A plan that splits the year into smaller parts is still a periodized plan.
A college basketball season shows how. Early preparation, in July and early August, uses general methods. From late August, sport-specific work takes priority ahead of the competition phase.
The same logic applies to other team sports. The phases are shorter, and the competition phase carries more of the year.
What the Evidence Covers
This is a planning framework that coaches have used for decades. It is not a set of tested rules.
The block lengths in this article, such as three or four weeks, are working conventions. They are not numbers proven in trials. The framework also grew mostly out of strength and individual sports. Direct research on team sports is thinner.
Treat the structure as a starting point. Adjust it to your calendar and your athletes.
Where to Start
Start with the dates you cannot move. Then work down the ladder.
- Write down the main competitions or the first and last match.
- Mark the phases around them: preparation before, competition during, transition after.
- Split each phase into blocks of three or four weeks.
- Make the last week of each block lighter.
- Plan the weeks inside the first block only. Leave the rest until you see how the athletes respond.
The first version of a season plan will be wrong in places. It is easier to change a plan that exists than to start from nothing.
References
Bompa TO, Buzzichelli CA. Periodization Training for Sports. 3rd ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics; 2015. ISBN: 978-1-4504-6943-2
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