Supercompensation and recovery

Fatigue, recovery, supercompensation and the Banister model: why the next session must come at the right time.

The outline, topic by topic

Each topic is weighted the way the exam weighs it.

Supercompensation: what is it?
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After a load and enough recovery, the level temporarily exceeds the starting level.
The next session should fall in this window.
A week before the championships, the coach cuts volume but keeps intensity. Why?
- It is tapering: fatigue drops and fitness stays
- It is a final overload: intensity still builds fitness
- It is detraining: fitness falls before the race
- It is specificity: only race intensity counts
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It is tapering: fatigue drops and fitness stays
Performance emerges when fatigue clears.
Acute fatigue: what is it?
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The temporary drop in capacity right after the load.
It is normal and necessary.
Why does a session too soon after the previous one lower the level?
- It falls at the peak of supercompensation
- It falls during the fatigue phase, before supercompensation
- It falls after the return to the starting level
- It clears the fatigue left by the previous session
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It falls during the fatigue phase, before supercompensation
Loading during fatigue adds fatigue before adaptation has happened: timing matters as much as content.