WORKSHOP INTRODUCTION PAGE

Cross to the workshop control page and lectures by clicking here	Click here to listen to introductory remarks about the workshop
Workshop Description: Coaching effectiveness is largely affected by the quality of decisions made to accommodate the needs of individuals. Observing individuals within a group to discern important symptoms of training responses and behavioral trends, needs, and variations is usually unreliable, inaccurate, and incomplete. This workshop describes practical and accurate assessment tools that can be used in training and competitive settings without appreciably increasing the workload of the coach. They are designed to provide reliable coach-usable information that should influence program and interactional decisions concerning individual athletes. Employing these devices is proposed as a means of increasing the capability and effectiveness of coaches. This workshop is designed for coaches. Topics cover training responses, competition preparations and analysis, and coaching behaviors. Format: The workshop involves listening to lectures and taking notes in the supplied workshop manual. The writing of notes is crucial to understanding and retention. As much as possible throughout the workshop, the user should translate examples given in the lectures to his/her sport and record them as such. Because there are so many sports, it is not possible to provide examples for all. It is the user's responsibilitly to perform that translation function. There are two forms of communication associated with this workshop, personal recording and auditory lectures. They have been designed to allow participants to progress at their own pace. Individuals who have difficulty in directing their own study might find it difficult to complete this experience. If you have attended workshops and clinics associated with your sport, and enjoyed the experience, then one should expect to successfully complete this workshop. To access lectures and to download the workshop manual click on the link that is highlighted above. The manual should be downloaded first, and then lectures activated within each topic.	All audio files are in .mp3 format. The default audio player on your computer must be able to play that file format. The volume of the audio files should be adjusted to a level that is comfortable for the listener. Availability: This workshop is offered as a free service of San Diego State University and Sports Science Associates. Required Materials and Resources: The computer used to participate in this experience will need to have a browser with and .mp3 player and Adobe Acrobat Reader or a compatible .pdf file reader plug-in capability. Before accessing lectures, a copy of the workshop manual will need to be downloaded by using Adobe Acrobat Reader or a compatible .pdf file reader. Optional Texts: The contents of this workshop are available in more extended forms in several books. They are: Rushall, B. S. (2008). Mental skills training for sports [Fourth Electronic Edition]. Spring Valley, CA: Sports Science Associates. Rushall, B. S. (1994). The assessment of coaching effectiveness. Spring Valley, CA: Sports Science Associates. Rushall, B. S. (2002). Foundational principles of physical conditioning. Spring Valley, CA: Sports Science Associates. [Programmed instruction text].
Time Estimates The following are the lecture durations (minutes:seconds) for workshop topics. Topic 1 lectures (20:10) Topic 2 lectures (2:19) Topic 3 lectures (3:26) Topic 4 lectures (2:18) Topic 5 lectures (2:28) Topic 6 lectures (14:45) Topic 7 lectures (11:30) Topic 8 lectures (11:25) Topic 9 lectures (18:35) Topic 10 lectures (5:10) Topic 11 lectures (18:30) Topic 12 lectures (9:45) Topic 13 lectures (4:41)	Workshop Topics Prescribing training intensities and obtaining ratings of perceived exertion Estimating the level of discomfort caused by exercise Estimating the level of mental concentration during an exercise Rating the stress of a week's (microcycle's) training load Rating training speed Rating preparedness to train Rating what an athlete feels How and what factors are affecting an athlete before competing How an athlete feels immediately before competing Understanding an athlete's reaction to a competitive effort The Practice Session Coaching Performance Assessment Form The Coach Observation Schedule The Coach Evaluation Questionnaire
Progress Through the Workshop: Topics should be studied in the order provided. Follow the steps below. Listen to the lectures, interpret the information, and record your reactions in the downloaded workbook. Replay lecture content when needed. Complete the replay before progressing to new material. Continue to review, read, and listen until the material is fully understood. Progress through the workshop until the experience is completed.	The information in this workshop is that of Brent S. Rushall and is fully copyrighted. It is solely for the participant's personal use. No portion of this workshop experience can be reproduced without the express permission of the copyright holder. Coaching Science Abstracts is a web site that contains further information on this and many other important coaching topics.