Athletes' Experience of an Individualised, Supervised Strength-Training Programme

The aim of the present study was to explore and describe volleyball players’ experience of an individualised, supervised strength-training programme aimed at physical performance and injury prevention. The purpose was also to use the players’ observations to obtain an understanding of the role of a physical coach. The study comprised nine participants (age 19) who had been involved as an experimental group in a strength-training intervention study. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews conducted by one independent interviewer. The transcribed interviews were analysed using qualitative conventional content analysis. From the analysis, three overarching themes describing the content of the text emerged: being in an enjoyable, relaxed situation, interaction between coach and athlete, mental and physical achievements. In conclusion, strength training could be used to improve self-esteem among young females. When designing strength-training intervention studies, it also seems to be important to be aware of the fear and feeling of uncertainty that could exist among the participants. From the athlete’s perspective, the performance in strength training is dependent on many factors, such as team spirit, individual goal-setting and bonding with the coach, where bonding and communication seems to be the fundamentals of coaching.