Sleep, Fatigue, Stress & Soreness…..Notes from TTi Sports Science

October 30th 2019

As part of a philosophy of ”putting the person first” when it comes to athletic development, understanding how a player may be feeling going into a training session can help a coaching staff make more informed conclusions when evaluating training or games.

Sleep is touted as the best legal performance enhancement tool and is vital for physical development in young players.  Getting 8-10 hours of sleep for teenagers might seem impossible, but the results of consistent sleep are well documented, not only on the field but in the classroom.

There are a multitude of aspects to each players life that can impact their performance; school, homework, social, travelling, diet and families are just some of the potential disruptions that can influence performance.  A player “stressed” about homework but having to go to training will be unlikely to perform at their best and potentially lead to compounding stress.

A player should also feel comfortable enough with their coaches to be able to voice concerns of being tired or feeling sore from previous sessions or workouts.  Double sessions is unlikely to solve a problem of fitness, since a player was nearly running on empty anyway.  As fatigue increases, as does the potential risk of injury as players move with less quality, intent and/or thought.

At TTi, we use a 1-5 system both pre and post session for players to rate their sleep, stress, fatigue and soreness with the aim being to potentially gain insight into the ”why” a player may perform as they did as much as focusing on what they did.