Training Loads and Bugs
Whew. It's been an interesting last few days to say the least.
Usually, SoccerPulse has around 5-10 crashes per day. Yesterday, we experienced nearly 1k crashes in a single day (our crash reporting looked like a graph of GameStop's stock price). This was due to a bug in the calendar that was triggered when the date moved beyond January 26.
Luckily, the bug has been patched and with it we released our new feature for iOS called Training Load.
Training Load is contained on the Squad Status screen, where we have combined Readiness, Training Load, and Team Form into one easy to see view. Before we jump into what training load is, please see below for a known bug and how to fix it
If you haven't added an event in the last 28 days, all reports will appear as if they haven't been submitted yet. (As a temporary workaround while we get this patched, simply add any type of event in the last 28 days and wellness reports will reappear.)
Training load is essentially how much work the player has performed. It is calculated by multiplying the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) x the number of minutes played. If a player plays a 90 minute game and they rate it as a 10/10, the Training Load is considered to be 900 (90 x 10).
This training load is factored into the acute (7 day) exponentially weighted moving average, and chronic (28 day) EWMA. The EWMA applies greater weight to events that occurred more recently than ones that occurred longer ago.
What we care about as coaches is the ratio of acute to chronic, which can be found in the top left corner of the player's icon.
An ideal ratio is between 0.8 and 1.3. This means that the player is not doing too much too soon, while also ensuring that they are not "detraining" and losing fitness. If the ratio is greater than 1.5, studies have shown that the player could be at greater risk of injury. This is why we always want to gradually build up our players fitness levels while also avoiding tournaments or multiple game days until the end of the season, when players are fitter then they would be at the start of the season.
Training load calculations will also include any individual events players perform on their own, such as running, lifting, or training and playing with another team. This should help coaches plan their individual periodization for individual players.
Training Load for coaches is currently only on the iOS platform but it will be on Android in the near future!
If you are looking to renew your SoccerPulse subscription for the 2021 spring season, use the code MATT_BA at checkout to receive 10% off your subscription. You can use this code ONLY at soccerpulse.app