This course is for the recreational to elite endurance runner, running coaches, health professionals, and students who wants to learn how to design training programmes to maximise performance and reduce the risk of injury. Individuals who want to learn how to incorporate a series of fitness components into a training plan will benefit from this course. Previous experience and knowledge is not required.

Key target groups

1. Recreational runners who are looking for scientifically designed training programmes to optimise performance and decrease the risk of injury.
2. Running coaches who want to understand exercise physiology & training principles and methods behind programme design.
3. Fitness professionals who want to train endurance runners.
4. Students who want to learn about exercise physiology & the training principles and methods behind endurance running.
5. Advanced and elite athletes who want to understand the science behind their training.

Testimonials

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Fantastic course and gain valuable knowledge to not only help myself but also clients I am currently working with. Affirms the basics! Really great to go through this well-structured course. I do hope that there will be more on endurance training - perhaps for advanced levels of coaching. Thank you very much

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I am a recreational-5-times-Comrades-finisher looking to improve my time on marathons and earn a Bill Rowan medal one day. This training course is definitely going to help me to achieve that goal. Thank you very much for this helpful online course!

1. Have access to nine endurance running training programmes designed by sport scientists.
2. Learn the scientific principles behind writing training programmes & learn how to build your own.
3. See the best resistance training exercises for endurance runners via video demonstrations and word documents as well as recommended set and repetitions.
4. Understand the concepts of lactate threshold, running economy, and VO₂ max and see the protocol for how to test these key variables.
5. Access to sample surveys coaches can use to evaluate athletes as well as medical screening forms based on the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines.
6. Access to how sport scientists categorise endurance athletes into beginner, intermediate, or advanced.
7. Learn about altitude training and how to use it to maximise your performance.
8. Learn the science behind taper and how to create the one that will maximise your performance the most.
9. Learn about exercise physiology as it relates to endurance exercise training.

Each module will have four multiple choice questions. Students will have unlimited attempts to answer these questions. A certificate of completion will be issued once all of the assessments have been completed.

This course is for the recreational to elite endurance runner, running coach, health professional, and student who wants to learn how to design training programmes to maximise performance and reduce the risk of injury. We begin by teaching you the core training principles and methods that are key to writing the best training programmes. We then provide an applicable exercise physiology overview of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and how they respond to exercise training. 

Next, we dive into the exciting and much talked about issues of lactate threshold, running economy, VO₂ max, taper, altitude training, and how to evaluate an athlete. We provide video demonstrations for: how to conduct a VO₂ max test on a treadmill; nine resistance training exercises to benefit endurance runners as well as sample sets and repetitions to perform; specific quality run workouts; and an interview with renowned coach and sport scientist, Professor Andrew Bosch. We provide nine sample run training programmes at the beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels for the 10-km, 21-km, and marathon distances. The course is broken down into six organised modules that you can work through at your own pace. Join the professionals at the Sports Science Institute of South Africa for an educational, fun, and practical course from the comfort of your own home!

No previous experience and knowledge is required. However, if the learner is familiar with endurance sports- particularly running- they will benefit more from the course.