Purpose: To investigate changes in self-reported physical fitness, performance, and side effects across the menstrual cycle (MC) phases among competitive endurance athletes and to describe their knowledge and communication with coaches about the MC. Methods: The responses of 140 participants (older than 18 y) competing in biathlon or cross-country skiing at the (inter)national level were analyzed. Data were collected via an online questionnaire addressing participants’ competitive level, training volume, MC history, physical fitness, and performance during the MC, MC-related side effects, and knowledge and communication with coaches about the MC and its effects on training and performance. Results: About 50% and 71% of participants reported improved and reduced fitness, respectively, during specific MC phases, while 42% and 49% reported improved and reduced performance, respectively. Most athletes reported their worst fitness (47%) and performance (30%) and the highest number of side effects during bleeding (P < .01; compared with all other phases). The phase following bleeding was considered the best phase for perceived fitness (24%, P < .01) and performance (18%, P < .01). Only 8% of participants reported having sufficient knowledge about the MC in relation to training, and 27% of participants communicated about it with their coach. Conclusions: A high proportion of athletes perceived distinct changes in fitness, performance, and side effects across the MC phases, with their worst perceived fitness and performance during the bleeding phase. Because most athletes indicate a lack of knowledge about the MC’s effect on training and performance and few communicate with coaches on the topic, the authors recommend that more time be devoted to educating athletes and coaches.

Many female athletes perceive that symptoms related to the menstrual cycle such as dysmenorrhea, premenstrual symptoms, amenorrhea or side-effects of hormonal contraceptives negatively impact their training, performance, and general well-being. Knowledge and communication about female athletes’ health is therefore important in the sport community. The aims of this study were to explore the level of knowledge and communication about menstrual cycle issues and use of hormonal contraceptives in the athletic community and to describe the kinds of medical support offered to female athletes. A total of 1086 Swedish and Norwegian athletes from 57 different sports responded to a web-based questionnaire. Of these, 58% (n = 627) practiced team sports and 42% (n = 459) individual sports. Twenty-six percent (n = 278) of the athletes perceived their knowledge about female athlete health to be poor/very poor and the knowledge was most often acquired from medical staff. Fifty-three percent (n = 572) of the athletes perceived the knowledge acquired of their coaches as poor/very poor, even though a significantly (p < 0.001) higher proportion of athletes with a female coach (30%, n = 31) rated their coach’s knowledge as very good/good, compared to athletes with a male coach (5%, n = 31). Only 11% (n = 116) of the athletes discussed female health issues with their coach. The majority (81%, n = 842) of the athletes partly to strongly agreed that female athlete health is considered a taboo topic in the athletic community. Forty-seven percent (n = 510) of the athletes had access to a physiotherapist, while only three percent (n = 29) had access to a gynecologist. Low perceived knowledge, lack of communication and support demonstrate the need for a multi-professional medical team and enhanced educational efforts focused on female athlete health in the athletic community.

In short-term studies, block periodization of high-intensity training (HIT) has been shown to be an effective strategy that enhances performance and related physiological factors. However, long-term studies and detailed investigations of macro, meso, and micro-periodization of HIT blocks in world-class endurance athletes are currently lacking. In a recent study, we showed that the world’s most successful cross-country (XC) skier used two different periodization models with success throughout her career. One including extensive use of HIT blocks, namely BP, and one using a traditional method namely TRAD. In this study, we compare BP with TRAD in two comparable successful seasons and provide a detailed description of the annual use of HIT blocks in BP. The participant is the most-decorated winter Olympian, with 8 Olympic gold medals, 18 world championship titles, and 114 world cup victories. Training data was categorized by training form (endurance, strength, and speed), intensity [low (LIT), moderate (MIT), and HIT], and mode (running, cycling, and skiing/roller skiing). No significant difference was found in the total endurance training load between BP and TRAD. However, training volume in BP was lower compared to TRAD (15 ± 6 vs. 18 ± 7 h/wk, P = 0.001), mainly explained by less LIT (13 ± 5 vs. 15 ± 5 h/wk, P = 0.004). Lower volume of MIT was also performed in BP compared to TRAD (13 vs. 38 sessions/year), whereas the amount of HIT was higher in BP (157 vs. 77 sessions/year). While BP included high amounts of HIT already from the first preparation period, followed by a reduction toward the competition period, TRAD had a progressive increase in HIT toward the competition period. In BP, the athlete performed seven HIT blocks, varying from 7 to 11 days, each including 8–13 HIT sessions. This study provides novel insights into successful utilization of two different periodization models in the worlds best XC skier, and illustrates the macro, meso and micro- periodization of HIT blocks to increase the overall amount of HIT.

Objective: In this scoping review, we aimed to 1) identify and evaluate existing research that describes the long-term development of training characteristics and performance-determining factors in male and female endurance athletes reaching an elite/international (Tier 4) or world-class level (Tier 5), 2) summarize the available evidence and 3) point out existing knowledge gaps and provide methodological guidelines for future research in this field. Methods: This review was conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology for scoping reviews. Results: Out of 16772 screened items across a 22-year period (1990-2022), a total of 17 peer-reviewed journal articles met the inclusion criteria and were considered for further analysis. These 17 studies described athletes from seven different sports and seven different countries, with 11 (69%) of the studies being published during the last decade. Of the 109 athletes included in this scoping review, one quarter were women (27%), and three quarters were men (73%). Ten studies included information about the long-term development of training volume and training intensity distribution. A non-linear, year-to-year increase in training volume was found for most athletes, resulting in a subsequent plateau. Furthermore, 11 studies described the development of performance determining factors. Here, most of the studies showed improvements in submaximal variables (e.g., lactate/anaerobic threshold and work economy/efficiency) and maximal performance-indices (e.g., peak speed/watt during performance testing). Conversely, the development of VO2max was inconsistent across studies. No evidence was found regarding possible sex differences in development of training or performance-determining factors among endurance athletes. Conclusion: Overall, a low number of studies describing the long-term development of training and performance-determining factors is available. This suggests that existing talent development practices in endurance sports are built upon limited scientific evidence. Overall, there is an urgent need for additional long-term studies based on systematic monitoring of athletes from a young age utilizing high-precision, reproducible measurements of training and performance-determining factors.

Purpose: The concept of training quality reflects that the effect of training is dependent on more than the mere product of training load (eg, duration, intensity, frequency). The aims of this commentary are to (1) propose a practice-oriented framework to describe training quality and its general and context-dependent characteristics and (2) discuss how athletes and coaches can work to improve training quality. Conclusions: Training quality can be viewed from different perspectives. The holistic dimension includes the entire training process (goal setting, gap analysis, application of training principles and methods, etc), while a narrower dimension encompasses the specific training sessions and how they are executed in relation to the intended purpose. To capture the varying contexts, we define training quality as the degree of excellence related to how the training process or training sessions are executed to optimize adaptations and, thereby, improve overall performance. Although training quality is challenging to quantify, we argue that identification and assessment of quality indicators will increase our scientific understanding and consequently help coaches and athletes to improve training quality. We propose that the physical, technical, and psychological factors of training quality can be improved through an individualized learning process of systematic planning, execution, and debriefing. However, assessment tools should be identified and scientifically validated across different training sessions and sports. We encourage further interventions to improve training quality.

Background: Elite sport is continuously evolving. World records keep falling and athletes from a longer list of countries are involved. Purpose: This commentary was designed to provide insights into present and future trends associated with world-class endurance training based on the perspectives, experience, and knowledge of an expert panel of 25 applied sport scientists. Results: The key drivers of development observed in the past 10–15 years were related to (1) more accessible scientific knowledge for coaches and athletes combined with (2) better integration of practical and scientific exchange across multidisciplinary perspectives within professionalized elite athlete support structures, as well as (3) utilization of new technological advances. Based on these perspectives, we discerned and exemplified the main trends in the practice of endurance sports into the following categories: better understanding of sport-specific demands; improved competition execution; larger, more specific, and more precise training loads; improved training quality; and a more professional and healthier lifestyle. The main areas expected to drive future improvements were associated with more extensive use of advanced technology for monitoring and prescribing training and recovery, more precise use of environmental and nutritional interventions, better understanding of athlete–equipment interactions, and greater emphasis on preventing injuries and illnesses. Conclusions: These expert insights can serve as a platform and inspiration to develop new hypotheses and ideas, encourage future collaboration between researchers and sport practitioners, and, perhaps most important, stimulate curiosity and further collaborative studies about the training, physiology, and performance of endurance athletes.