Exercise Physiology

Exercise Physiology is the science of how the body responds to exercise. The role of the Exercise Physiologist at Somerset College is to apply scientific knowledge to improve sporting performance of the Spartan athletes.

Regular physiological testing and assessments are conducted in order to track changes in fitness, allowing coaches and sport staff to monitor an athletes progression. Another key aspect of the physiology role is to monitor athlete training load and wellness using the Smartabase athlete monitoring system. 

Various technologies such as heart rate monitors and GPS devices are used with a number of Spartan Sports Programmes, to analyse the physiological demands of training and competition. This provides valuable information which can be used to guide training practices. This also provides Spartan athletes with an opportunity to use the latest sport technologies to monitor and evaluate their performance and gain a greater understanding about the requirements of their sport. 

In addition to testing and monitoring, the physiology role also has an educational component through the delivery of workshops in the areas of recovery, heat and hydration, to ensure Somerset Spartans are well prepared to train and perform at their best.