Changing exercises frequently simply for the sake of change can lead to training time being unnecessarily wasted on teaching exercises which, in many cases, have little bearing on actual success or failure on the field. That time may be better spent on training other qualities, or even recovering.
If the coach assesses that there are “imbalances” – either side-to-side or front-to-back – which may be problematic, either in sport form or for injury purposes, then a simple alteration in intensity or volume of exercises already performed may be all that is necessary to correct the problem, rather than needlessly prescribing exercises, or altering current ones, to make them more complicated than is necessary.
It is a necessity of training to introduce new stimuli to the trainee, however, exercise rotation is only one option.
Variables which can be manipulated include (but are not limited to):
- Intensity (load)
- Speed of execution
- Volume
- Exercise order
- Frequency
By manipulating any of the above variables to suit the needs of the athlete, a coach may continually introduce a novel stimulus (to the extent one is necessary) to the athlete. It must be remembered that the only exercise(s) which must be performed during training is the competition exercise(s). All other aspects are up for debate (so long as they contribute to improved sport results).
