Outline of common questions asked in HSC examinations and how to tackle them.

4. • How does training affect performance? (Energy Systems,
Types of Training, Principles of Training, Adaptations to
Training)
• How can psychology affect performance? (Motivations)
• How can nutrition and recovery strategies affect
performance? (Carb Loading, supplements, recovery
strategies)
• How does the acquisition of skill affect performance?
(Stages of skill acquisition, characteristics of learners,
nature of skills)

5. • Examine the relationship between body temperature
regulation and fluid intake 2002, 2005, 2009,2011,2012
• Evaluate how both rates of skill acquisition and the
learning environment affect physical performance. 2007,
2008, 2010
• Analyse the physiological adaptations that occur when an
untrained individual undertakes a 20 week aerobic
training program 2003, 2005, 2009,2010,2011 trial
• Explain how FOUR of the principles of training can be used
to develop aerobic fitness. 2005, 2007, 2009,2010
• Analyse the psychological strategies athletes could employ
to enhance performance 2003, 2004, 2007,2012

6. For highly active people, in hot weather, fluid loss can
increase significantly. Too little fluid intake can impact
perspiration (heat loss) and can leads to overheating & heat
related physiological damage (heat stress, heat cramps, heat
rash, dizziness, heat stoke, fainting).
What about in the COLD: We lose a lot of fluid in cold
weather through respiration (breathing out). Our bodies are
working hard carrying the weight of layers of clothing and
sweat evaporates quickly. As it is not hot, we don’t FEEL
thirsty. And therefore do not replenish our fluid levels as
regularly leading to dehydration.
Examine the relationship between body temperature regulation
and fluid intake

7. If you don't drink enough, you will become dehydrated and
your body's total blood volume will drop. Because the heart
has access to less blood, it has to pump faster to circulate the
same amount of blood - and your heart rate will rise. If you
don't replace the lost fluids by drinking, your heart rate will
increase, and your ability to perform will decrease rapidly.
So drinking fluids during exercise has several benefits:
• Fights dehydration
• Offsets body temperature increase (regulates
temperature)
• Minimises cardiovascular stress
Examine the relationship between body temperature regulation
and fluid intake

8. WHAT ARE YOUR HYDRATION
RECOOMENDATIONS?

9. Stages of Skill of Acquisition
Evaluate how both rates of skill acquisition and the
learning environment affect physical performance.
Cognitve: mental processing of information, requires visual
cues & demonstrations, lots of mistakes
Associative: connecting ideas, learnt skill but requires
practice, smaller errors, requires feedback
Autonomous: in full control of actions, automatic. Execution
is sequenced and instinctive. Practice that simulates
competition environment is essential.

10. The learning environment can refer to:
• The nature of skill: closed v open, gross v fine, discrete,
serial, continuous , self-paced v external paced
• Performance elements: Game-centre approach, decision-
making, strategy & tactic
• Practice Method: Massed v Distributed, Whole v Part
• Feedback: internal v extrinsic, concurrent v delayed, KR v
KP
Can you match these to the stages of acquisition??

11. Analyse the physiological adaptations that occur when an
untrained individual undertakes a 20 week aerobic training
program
When an athlete begins participates in regular aerobic
training the body begins to adapt physically to the demands
placed upon it.
These adaptations allow the body to function more
comfortably at existing levels of stress and respond more
efficiently to new levels of stress.
This makes the body more efficient and capable of more
work. Many of the changes occur in the cardiorespiratory
system and lead to an improved ability to deliver oxygen to
working muscles.

12. Factor` Description
Increase or
decrease Reason
Resting Heart
Rate
• measured in beats per minute
•At rest, delivers blood to body
•Amount of oxygen needed is determined by BMR
•Your resting heart rate will fall as your body adapts to the
training program.
•Heart rate will be lower during sub max work
•Main reason for the fall is due to higher stroke volume
•This allows more blood to be pumped every beat... Therefore,
more oxygen is delivered with fewer beats.
•Interestingly, athletes often have lower max HR Decrease
•Trained athlete has more efficient
cardiovascular system
•Some pro athletes have resting
HR as low as 35 per min.
Stroke Volume
and Cardiac
Output
•Stroke Volume Amount of blood that leaves the left ventricle in
1 beat
•Body needs oxygen rich blood to muscles during exercise
•The more blood that a person pushes out, the more work they
can do because of more oxygen
•Person could exercise faster and longer
•Untrained person – 15-20L per min, Trained – 22-30L per min
•Cardiac Output is the amount of blood pumped in 1 min Increase
•Trained person physically has
more blood in body.
•Ventricles are more powerful and
elastic to pump more/faster
Oxygen Uptake
and Lung Capacity
•Oxygen uptake is the amount of oxygen absorbed into the
blood stream during exercise.
•Oxygen uptake is measured in litres per minute
•If more oxygen reaches the working muscles, the muscles can
work harder and longer.
•Lung Capacity is the amount of air that can move in and out of
the lungs during a single breath. Increase
•Number of breathes can be
increased
•Max breathing rates increase
from 40-50 per min
•Size of the lungs significantly
increase, allowing for more
oxygen
•Total amount of air breathed in
during exercise increases
•Number of capillaries will
increase with training allowing
more oxygen to be absorbed.

13. Factor` Description
Increase or
decrease Reason
Haemoglobin
Level
•Haemoglobin is the protein of blood carrying the oxygen in
red blood cells
•Its main function is to absorb oxygen into blood stream
•Plays a role in removing Co2 also.
•Haemoglobin levels can be increased with altitude training.
Increase
•When training occurs, body
becomes short of oxygen
•Body adapts to this by
producing more blood cells
Muscle
Hypertrophy
•Refers to the increase of diameter of muscle. Muscle length
stays the same, but muscle enlarges.
•Muscle atrophy is the opposite to hypertrophy (gets smaller) Increase
After training, muscles are
able to contract with a greater
force. This improves strength
and power related sports.
Effect on
Slow/Fast twitch
Fibres
•Slow twitch are red – they contain large number of
capillaries and produce large amounts of ATP slowly. Good
for sports such as marathons
•Fast Twitch are white – contain few capillaries and rapidly
generate ATP anaerobically. Good for sports such as
weightlifting and sprinting.
Depends on
training
•Endurance training
encourages slow twitch fibres
to develop because it allows
body to make more
capillaries, allowing for more
oxygen to be transported
around the body.

14. Explain how FOUR of the principles of training can be
used to develop aerobic fitness.

15. Principles of Training
Principles of
Training
Progressive
Overload
The principle of
progressive overload
implies that a training
effect is produced when
the system or tissue is
worked at a greater
level that it is normally
accustomed to working
Reversibility
Principal of
training
states that
the effects of
training are
reversible
Warm up & Cool
down
Warming up and cooling
down are important
components of all training
and performance sessions.
The warm up aims to
prepare the body in
readiness for the activity
Variety
The principle of
variety states that
athletes need to be
challenged by not
only the activity but
also by the
implementation of
the activities
Training Threshold
The principle of
training thresholds
relates to levels of
exercise intensity
that are sufficient to
produce a training
effect.
Specificity
The principle of specificity implies
that the greatest gains are made
when activity in the training
program replicates the
movements in the game or
activity.

16. Explain how FOUR of the principles of training can be
used to develop aerobic fitness.
• Choose 4 principles that relate to aerobic training
• Give specific examples of activities
• Must enhance aerobic capacity
• Relate to physiological adaptations

17. Analyse the psychological strategies athletes could
employ to enhance performance
Concentration: ability to focus on task
at hand
Mental rehearsal: picturing
performance before executing it
Relaxation techniques: techniques to
control the body’s response to stress
Goal setting: targets that direct effort
(must be SMART)

18. But how do they enhance performance?
Concentration: allows you to be ‘in the zone’, clears distractions,
allows you to focus on execution (doing)
Mental rehearsal: provide clear idea of what is to be done,
heightens concentration, narrows thoughts on task
Relaxation techniques: allows athlete to reach optimal arousal eg.
meditation, self-talk, centred breathing.
Goal setting: provides focus, can be measured, gives feedback.

19. • Describe recovery strategies used to improve
performance?
• Discuss the effectiveness of the use of
supplementation to improve performance?
• Analyse the use of feedback to improve an athlete’s
performance?
• Outline the features of the alactacid (ATP/PC) and the
lactic acid energy systems