Sports Medicine Handbook - NCAA

Athletic performance training is often
divided into separate segments:
preparation segment, competitive
segment and offseason segment. The
NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook
Guideline 1a notes that the studentathlete
should be protected from
premature exposure to the full rigors
of sports. Optimal readiness for the
first practice and competition is often
individualized to the student-athlete
rather than a team as a whole.
However, there is a lack of scientific
evidence to set a specific number of
days of sport practice that is needed
for the first sport competition.
It is commonly accepted that
student-athletes should participate
in at least six to eight weeks of
preseason conditioning. Gradual
progression of type, frequency,
intensity, recovery and duration of
training should be the focus of the
preparation segment. In addition to
these areas warranted for
progression, 10 to14 days are
needed for heat acclimatization
when applicable (see Guideline 2c).
The fall sport preseason period is
often challenging as August
presents added heat risks for sports
and there is a lack of time limits for
practice activities (with the
exception of football).
Changes to practice opportunities
or the preseason period should be
accompanied by an educational
campaign for both coaches and
student-athletes as to the
expectations for the sport season.
GUIDELINE 1i
Preseason
Preparation
July 2011
Specifically, student-athletes should
know that the designated preseason
practice period might be considered
part of the competitive season and
therefore a time when they may
practice at contest-level intensities.
A shortened preseason period based
only on time spent on campus or
coach expectations for contest-level
intensities during the preparation
period often increases the time
spent practicing sport-specific skills
without ample opportunity for
preparatory conditioning exercises
and can lead to injury and
overtraining. If this is the
expectation for the preparatory
on-campus experience, athletes
should be encouraged to improve
fitness through a progressive
training and conditioning program
at least four weeks before starting
the preseason segment.
The preparatory and preseason
phases provide ample time to
improve fitness and skill; however,
performing novel exercise or
actively doing too much too soon
can result in a disparity between
workload and load tolerance, thus
increasing risk for injury. In
addition, a student-athlete’s
psychological well-being can be
Practice Injury Rates for Fall Sports
(2004-05 to 2008-09 NCAA Injury Surveillance)
Preseason In-Season
Football
Women’s Field Hockey
Men’s Soccer
Women’s Soccer
Women’s Volleyball
4.7
3.2
3.3
3.0
3.6
7.8
3.2
6.5
8.2
8.9
8.7
9.6
0 2 4 6 8 10
Injury rate (per 1,000 athlete-exposures)
23