Learn how to create a plan, set your goals, and measure your fitness to kickstart your training in a safe and healthy way.

  • Duration

    3 weeks
  • Weekly study

    2 hours
  • 100% online

    How it works
  • Included in an ExpertTrack

    Course 1 of 3
  • Get full ExpertTrack access

    $39/monthFind out more

Create a fitness plan with Federation University Australia

If you’re thinking about training for an endurance event, it’s important you do your research well in advance.

On this first of three online courses from Federation University Australia, you’ll gain the background information and basic training you need to safely and successfully kickstart your endurance training programme. You’ll create a fitness plan, learn to monitor your performance, and identify the training method that best suits you.

Master the principles of training and periodisation

Periodisation training involves adjusting variables during workouts to set your body new challenges and take your fitness further. It can help you track and optimise your performance, while preventing overtraining.

In Week 1 of the course, you’ll master the basics of goal-setting and periodisation to help you plan a roadmap for your endurance training.

Gain an introduction to anatomy and physiology for fitness

Grasping the basics of anatomy and physiology will make it easier for you to achieve your fitness goals without putting your body at risk.

In the second week of the course, you’ll explore how the human body functions and responds to stimuli during training. You’ll gain a comprehensive introduction to physiological determinants of endurance performance and human endurance systems.

Find the training method that works for you

Once you’ve mastered the fundamentals of training, you can begin defining your own training style. You’ll review a wide range of endurance training methods, weighing up their advantages and disadvantages in relation to your needs and goals.

By the end of the course, you’ll be fully prepared to kickstart your endurance training.

Skip to 0 minutes and 0 seconds (upbeat music)

Skip to 0 minutes and 14 seconds Welcome to Strength and Conditioning for the Endurance Athlete. I’m Dr. Scott Talpey, I’m a senior lecturer in strength and conditioning at Federation University, and I’m excited to go on a journey with you through our courses that will help you prepare your own training as an endurance athlete or prepare the training for an endurance athlete that you coach. Endurance athletes come in all shapes and sizes. Some people could be getting on a bike to train for their own 100K bike ride. Others could be training for their first 5K ever. However, there’s certain principles that underline the design of any training program, whether you’re an elite athlete or you’re helping an elite athlete, or you’re helping someone just kickstart their endurance journey.

Skip to 0 minutes and 50 seconds We’re gonna go through each of those principles. We’re gonna help you outline how to plan and periodize and set goals for these endurance athletes to keep them performing at their optimal level and also keep them healthy, happy, injury free, and enjoying their training. Kickstart Your Endurance Training is a course where we focus on goal setting. We look to set appropriate training goals for both long-term and short-term needs. We also look at appropriate training plans and periodization for the endurance athlete.

Skip to 1 minute and 18 seconds Ultimately, the goal is for you to be able to write appropriate goals and plan an appropriate training program that gets you or the athletes you coach at the highest level possible while also keeping them injury free and healthy and happy. Measuring your endurance training success is gonna help you utilize all those tools and that technology that you have on your bike or on your wrist to make sure that you’re using that information to inform your training program.

Skip to 1 minute and 43 seconds We use that data that we collect to measure how we’re tracking towards our goals, but also to make sure that we’re planning appropriate rest and recovery and adequate stress to our body to make sure that we’re performing at our highest level while also mitigating any risk of injury that may occur as a result of all the training that we’re doing for your endurance event. Sustaining your endurance training, we take a deep dive into how we stay motivated and how we balance out the stress and fatigue that’s associated with all the training that you’re doing along with the stress associated with your everyday life. We also look at the differences in different types of athletes.

Skip to 2 minutes and 18 seconds We look at older athletes compared to younger athletes and why we train them differently. Now let’s get moving with your endurance training.

Syllabus

  • Week 1

    Principles of training and periodisation

    • Introduction to endurance training

      Over the next few steps, you will be looking at an overview of the course and reflecting on your understanding of fitness. We will also look at goal setting and the importance of utilising them to help in motivation and evaluation

    • Goal setting and the principles of training

      In this activity, we outline the importance of using goals to help motivate and evaluate athletes' fitness progression. Likewise, we identify the importance of allowing for recovery in a training program.

    • Bringing it all together

      Using what we've learnt so far, we compile the techniques and skillsets into the foundation of a training program that learners will use for themselves and those they coach.

  • Week 2

    Physiological determinants of endurance performance

    • The human body - how does it work?

      In week 2 of 'Kick-start your endurance training', we look at how the human body is designed and what limitations apply. Understanding the human body will allow you to tailor training to maximise results.

    • Understanding the human body and systems

      Explore anatomy and physiology and the impact of training on these systems. Through understanding these key components, more ideal results can be achieved while minimising the risk of injuries being sustained.

    • Bringing it all together

      We look at using what we've learnt about human physiology and anatomy to better understand how a training plan could be designed for individual athletes.

  • Week 3

    Endurance training methods

    • Introduction to endurance training methods

      For this week, we look at the different types of training and methods available to endurance athletes and coaches. Each type and method of training will help in promoting a specific adaptation in the human body and systems.

    • Endurance training methods; which one is best for you?

      We analyse the different types of training and their benefits, and downsides, and identify where they are most applicable for endurance athletes.

    • Crossing the finish line

      For this activity, we bring together everything we've learnt over the past three weeks and review how far we've travelled in our endurance journey.

Prove you're job ready

Highlight the new, job-relevant skills you’ve gained and supplement existing qualifications with a hard-earned, industry-specific digital certificate – plus one for every course within your ExpertTrack.

  • Learn the latest in your chosen industry or subject.
  • Complete each course and pass assessments.
  • Receive certificates validated by the educating organisation.
  • Impress employers with learning outcomes you can add to your CV.
  • Make your career dreams a reality.

Download a PDF

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Describe the principles of training.
  • Describe how the human body functions and responds to stimuli.
  • Identify the best exercises and strategies to achieve established goals.
  • Describe how different levels of training can be used to achieve results.
  • Apply tailored plans for endurance training.
  • Create, develop and refine a training plan to meet individual athletic/physical requirements, goals, and objectives.
  • Apply principles to endurance training.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for amateur athletes hoping to expand their knowledge of sports science and personal training in preparation for an endurance event, or for aspiring coaches looking to develop the necessary expertise.

Whether you’re just starting out or a veteran competitor, you’ll gain the understanding you need to optimise your performance and hit new fitness goals in a safe and sustainable way.

What software or tools do you need?

A PDF viewer is recommended for learners to access non-essential resources provided for their benefit. Learners will not need any specialised software to complete this course.

Who will you learn with?

Who developed the course?

Federation University

Federation University Australia is a premium dual-sector university that has been educating the leaders, innovators and thinkers of regional Australia for over 150 years.

  • Established

    1870
  • Location

    Ballarat, Berwick, Gippsland, Wimmera

About this ExpertTrack

Explore sports science, sports psychology, and safe training strategies to step up your training for your next endurance event.

Start learning today - free 2-day trial

After your free trial you can:

  • Pay $39 per month to keep learning online
  • Have complete control over your subscription; you can cancel any time
  • Work at your own pace and set your own deadlines at every stage
  • Only pay while you’re learning; the subscription will cancel automatically when you finish
  • Complete online assessments to test your knowledge and prove your skills
  • Earn digital course certificates and a final award that you can share online, with potential employers, and your professional network
  • Keep access to the content of courses you complete even after your subscription ends

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

Do you know someone who'd love this course? Tell them about it...