VOLUME
Distance — Units: Kilometers, Miles, Yards
Total distance provides a good macro representation of volume of exercise (walking, running) and is also a simple way to assess an individual’s contribution relative to a team effort. Typically, during a 90-minute soccer game, a top athlete will cover between 5.5 and 7 miles.
Sprint Distance — Units: Meters or Yards
Sprinting is defined as running speeds above five meters per second or about 5.5 yards per second. Greater amounts of sprinting signify a high level of game or sport fitness. During soccer matches players regularly exceed 1,000 meters of sprinting.
Power Plays — Units: Simple count
A power play is defined as a significant action (such as acceleration or a high speed running event) in which your power output is above 20 watts per kilogram of body weight. Counting power plays gives you an indication of the number of intense actions you were involved in, which are more physically demanding.
Energy — Unit: Calories (Kcal)
A measure of how much energy is expended during a game or training session. The calculation is based on the player’s weight, and typically this is 1,500 kcal per game for a professional soccer player.
Impacts — Unit: A simple count
Accelerometry data measured at 400 times per second in each of three axes is used to detect impacts that rate above 5g (49 m/s2). As such, impacts are considered significant events that exclude footsteps during walking and running. This count usually correlates to the number of large hits a player experiences during a contact game (typically collisions and tackles in football).
Note it is imperative that the PLAYERTEK vest needs to fit tightly to avoid erroneous impact data.
INTENSITY
Top Speed — Units: Meters per second (m/s), Miles per hour (mph), Yards per minute (yd/min), Kilometers per hour (km/h)
PLAYERTEK measures your players top speeds as the maximum speed sustained for at least half a second.
For most sports and players, 19 mph is considered fast. Usain Bolt regularly exceeds around 25 mph.
Distance per Minute — Units: Meters per minute (m/min), Miles per minute (miles/min), Yards per minute (yd/min).
Distance per minute gives an overall good representation of how hard and intensely you have worked. Professional players will reach between 110–130 yd/min in a typical game.
Power Score — Unit: Watts per kilogram (w/kg)
Power Score measures the power output used per kilogram of your weight. It is a useful tool to gauge the intensity of training drills where high work-rate within a small area is evident. Small-sided games are considered intense when the power score is above 10 w/kg. In amateur soccer, values of 7–8 are normal.
Work Ratio — Unit: Percentage (%)
Defined as the percentage of time during which the player was performing some work. Work is defined as walking or running at speeds higher than 1.5 m/s (moderate to slow walk for most of us). Work ratio therefore indicates the amount of time a player is working compared to resting during a game or training period.
PlayerLoad — Unit: Accumulated value
PlayerLoad uses tri-axial accelerometry data to calculate the load or activity level of the player, and is the number one metric used by performance coaches in professional and collegiate sport. Research has shown that PlayerLoad is a valid and reliable measure and can provide important insights into player activity. Player Load is calculated using an established algorithm based on the 400hz accelerometer (smoothed to 100hz).