This week on the Pacey Performance Podcast, Rob is speaking to Dr. Shaun McLaren about all things RPEs and subjective measures. RPE is no doubt the most used tool for coaches to understand an athlete's response to training. But just asking an athlete for a number to rate how hard a session was has lots of moving parts. When do you ask them? How do you ask them? Do you provide the scale on paper so they can see it? What scale are you using? Is the scale valid? How these questions are answered can have significant impact on the quality of data we get. And we all want to maximise data quality and not waste our or our athlete's time. In this episode, Shaun gives some great recommendations how we can make the "right" decisions when setting up a system to collect RPEs and other subjective measures. But before he does that, Shaun gives us a great overview of why he thinks RPEs are so valuable and the science behind their being. The type of scale used has sparked a number of Twitter debates about the type of scale that is used. So we dive into that black hole and Shaun explains why using a valid scale is so important and some of the downfalls coaches make when using non-validated options. If you want to maximise the RPE and subjective data that you are collecting, press play on the episode with Shaun on your chosen podcast player. Main topics - What does this data really tell us? Effort, fatigue etc? What common mistakes do people make when collecting RPEs which lead to them removing it Recommendations for collecting good data The importance of using validated scales The impact of using colours, different descriptors and emojis on scales How can those with minimal budget get an idea of their athlete's training status by using RPE/sRPE? How can they maximise their time investment? How well do athletes rate what we are asking them to rate?

On this week's Pacey Performance Podcast, Rob is speaking to Dan Baker, Lachlan Wilmot and Jonathon Weakley. This episode was originally recorded in 2020 as a Live roundtable but because the information on velocity based training (VBT) was so incredible, we decided to release it as a podcast. Dan, Lachlan and Jonathon are most certainly authorities in this area from both a practical and academic perspective. All three of these guys know this area inside out. Firstly we start by tackling a few misunderstandings when it comes to VBT and then chat through why each of the guests decide to implement VBT in their different environments. There seems to be a disconnect between the science of VBT and its application. On paper it looks great but implementing it in practice seems to be a barrier to some coaches. Is it the technology available, is it athlete buy-in, is it friction when it comes to programming? Jonathon gives his view here given his recent review of this area in his paper, Velocity-based training: From theory to application. If you are interested in this area and haven't read this article, its free to download on Researchgate. We finish off this episode with a quick fire round of questions, tackling some of the common issues when interpreting the science and translating that into practice. If you're looking for in-depth information on velocity based training, listen to three experts in this area on this episode of the podcast. Main talking points - What is velocity based training? Why is it misunderstood? When VBT shouldn't be implemented with a programme? Why is there a disconnect between VBT science and application? Is bar path really an essential metric to track using VBT technology? What metrics to focus on to maximise bang for buck How can we help coaches successfully implement VBT in an applied setting Using velocity loss

Luke Vella, Lead S&C coach at the Melbourne Rebels, dives deep into tendon health and innovative training techniques. He outlines the symptoms of tendinopathy and effective management strategies, including the use of isometric training and blood flow restriction. Vella shares insights on how tailored loading strategies and personalized training protocols can significantly improve pain relief and performance in athletes. His expertise sheds light on the intersection of research, practice, and athlete care.

In the week's episode of the Pacey Performance Podcast, Rob talks to Nathan Heaney, The Conditioning Consultant. The topic of the discussion is one that often spills over into arguments on social media and that's maximal aerobic speed (MAS) versus tempo running. In this episode Nathan clarifies what MAS actually is and isn't as well as giving us an insight into the different ways of getting MAS data. That is followed up with him giving us a great insight into how he individualises aerobic training based on MAS. The second half of the episode has Nathan giving the other side of the argument and explaining the pros and cons of tempo training. Although not Nathan's preferred choice, he explains the adaptations that coaches may be seeking by using tempo running (vs MAS) and why this actually goes against much of the literature on aerobic training with elite athletes. Talking points - Importance of aerobic fitness for team sport athletes What MAS is and isn't • Different types of HIIT and when each one may be used Common misconceptions and over focus on certain methods (Eurofit) How can we use MAS to prescribe conditioning sessions for team sport athletes Where does anaerobic speed reserve fits in What do we mean by tempo running? What adaptations are practitioners looking for when employing tempo running and what are the realities? Its use for track athletes, endurance athletes and team sport athletes Why would a practitioner live in one camp (MAS or tempo) or the other?

Jurdan featured on episode #266 of the Pacey Performance Podcast. This #bitesize episode takes a great clip from that episode where she discussed - Why hamstring injury rehab has been fixated on knee flexor strength Why sprint mechanics need more attention The role of the trunk in hamstring injuries Check out the full episode with Jurdan here - https://www.sportsmith.co/listen/pacey-performance-podcast-266-jurdan-mendiguchia/ This episode is supported by RockDaisy, the only FREE AMS on the market. AMS Lite features reporting capabilities, questionnaires and forms, alerts and communication, data sharing, data visualisation and calendar views.

This week's episode of the Pacey Performance Podcast is with Pete Burridge, Mike Young and John Wagle talking about all things eccentric training and testing. This was originally recorded last year as part of the Sportsmith Live series where we get three experts to chat about one area and coaches can tune in to ask their own questions. It is available on Sportsmith but the information is so good that we wanted to put it out as a podcast. We all know the benefits of eccentric focused training. However, how do we fit it within our programme due to the negative responses athletes often feel with this type of training? John gives us a great overview here. Mike then dives into flywheel training, a method of training which has been around for a long time but is really starting to give coaches incredible information due to advancements in technology. So what options do we have and what are the benefits and limitations of this type of eccentric training? If you don't have flywheels or budget for any fancy equipment, how can coaches use other eccentric methods to overload their athletes? Pete dives into this area to explain how you can manually overload and incorporate accentuated eccentric loading (AEL) into a programme. Talking points -  • The benefits of eccentric focused training and links to dynamic performance  • Fitting eccentrics into the wider programme • Flywheel training - benefits and limitations • Flywheel tech options • Other ways to load eccentrically • Manually overloaded and accentuated eccentric loading (AEL)

This week on the Pacey Performance Podcast sees Rob speaking to Speed and Rehab Coach at the Brisbane Broncos, Nathan Kiely.   Nathan recently wrote a piece for Sportsmith on the ”knees over toes” movement which he dives deeper into in this episode. Why has this gained so much momentum, particularly on Instagram and how we can be better at being critical when other things like this come along. He also gives his views and recommendations when it comes to cross training and how you can use it effectively during rehab and also with athletes who need off feet options in season. Main talking points -  Knees over toes (KOT) What is it? Nathan's opinions on it KOT split squat - the claims Transfer to sports performance? Link to acceleration?  Cross training Equipment choices - rower vs Watt Bike Where does it fit in the calendar? Benefits of cross training Focus of extensive vs intensive - reasons Creating benchmarks Example sessions Speed training in rugby What has worked for you in rugby What hasn't worked as well as you thought

Dawn featured on episode #256 of the Pacey Performance Podcast. This #bitesize episode takes a great clip from that episode where she discussed - Why Dawn chose to pursue menstrual cycle monitoring How they did it during the World Cup What results they saw and what interventions that were able to implement because of it Check out the full episode with Dawn here - https://www.sportsmith.co/listen/pacey-performance-podcast-256-dawn-scott/ This episode is supported by RockDaisy, the only FREE AMS on the market. AMS Lite features reporting capabilities, questionnaires and forms, alerts and communication, data sharing, data visualisation and calendar views.

This week's guest on the Pacey Performance Podcast is Men's Strength and Conditioning Coach for England Cricket, Phil Scott. Phil comes on the podcast to discuss why he turned to the anaerobic speed reserve to enable him to better inidividualise aerobic training. So what is the anaerobic speed reserve? Phil gives us a great overview of what it is and what questions were left unanswered before he was introduced to it. But its not only about what it is but how its used in practice and Phil is living it everyday with the men's national cricket team here in England. We dive into the details of how a profile is built, how he segmented his athletes into three profiles; aerobic, speed and mixed. That then leads us into a discussion around what each profiles characteristics are and how they are best trained. If you're wanting to know more about how you can better individualise training using the anaerobic speed reserve, press play on your chosen podcast player. Today's talking points - How physical preparation has changed in cricket An introduction to the anaerobic speed reserve What question does the anaerobic speed reserve answer with how you condition athletes? How to conduct an ASR profile Using data to individualise training Creating your own cut offs and how others can do the same in their sport Aerobic profile - what training looks like Mixed profile - what training looks like Speed profile - what training looks like

Tom and Alistair featured on episode #381 of the Pacey Performance Podcast. This #bitesize episode takes a great clip from that episode where they discussed - Why change of direction testing has become less fashionable in recent years Why there is a need for testing change of direction ability  What are the most suitable tests to use Check out the full episode with Tom and Alistair here - https://www.sportsmith.co/listen/change-of-direction-ability-testing-developing-physical-qualities-and-maximising-on-field-transfer/ This episode is supported by RockDaisy, the only FREE AMS on the market. AMS Lite features reporting capabilities, questionnaires and forms, alerts and communication, data sharing, data visualisation and calendar views.