Figure 1: Four sections of the Beyond Pulse Session Summary Email.

While the Beyond Pulse Dashboard App is the coach’s go-to for an extensive, deeper data analysis, the Session Summary Emails offer a quick, informed review of session data. There are four sections that the Session Summaries are broken down into:

1. Heart Rate
2. Active Participation (AP)
3. Distance
4. Workload

At a glance, coaches and players can review player metrics, and averages, and even look at how the metrics played out across 10-minute blocks, offering a structured framework to trace and reflect upon the session’s progression from start to finish. 

Figure 2: This graphic displays the intervention strategy deployed by our DAoD team. For a particular player we plot their top speed reached each week throughout training and or games. In an optimal week players should reach at least 95% of their maximum speed. With the knowledge that weekly training can vary with travel/preparation of a busy university schedule, top speed was monitored and intervention was recommended when individuals dipped below 90% of their maximum speed on any given week. This graphic shows two areas of intervention for a player - the first occurring on the week of 8-28 and the second on 10-2. Immediately after intervention, we see Xavier staff was able to extract more from this player through on-field work.

"We initially tried integrating high-speed drills towards the end of our sessions," Katy shared, "but soon found it more effective to tackle them right after warm-ups."

The high-speed training endorsed by DAoD was not only effective but also efficiently structured. Katy implemented drills that emphasized short, intense bursts of activity rather than prolonged exercises. 

An example she provided was a sprint drill consisting of 4-6 repetitions. This included variations like dead start acceleration over 30 yards and rolling starts, where players jog for 10 yards before sprinting for 20 yards. Sometimes sprints were also performed from a jogging start, where players jog for 10 yards before sprinting for 20 yards.

These exercises were designed for short, intense bursts of speed, with substantial rest periods of 3-4 minutes between each sprint. The total active running time was kept to around 90 seconds, with the rest period cumulatively extending to about 20 minutes, ensuring athletes could consistently achieve and maintain their top speeds. This strategy underscored the importance of speed in creating more play opportunities for athletes, aligning with the team's broader athletic goals.

“Beyond Pulse emails individual reports and provides a personal dashboard in the app, making the feedback more intimate and directly accessible to each player,” Katy explained.

She felt this contributed to their fitness-positive culture, effectively removing any stigma or shame that might arise from direct coaching interventions. It empowered players with a sense of ownership over their fitness journey.

Katy emphasized the physical aspect of the game and how Beyond Pulse supported this focus: “Physical fitness is a defining factor for us, and Beyond Pulse enhances this aspect.” At XUWS, coaches participate in running and lifting sessions alongside players, further demonstrating the collective commitment to fitness. 

“Player activity tracking, for us, isn’t about surveillance. It’s about fostering a culture where fitness is about collective improvement, not punishment. Beyond Pulse tracking supports this ethos by providing a healthy, and accessible tool for individual players.”

Figure 3: This graphic shows a DAoD graph tracking a player's Acute:Chronic workload ratio. The goal is to maintain the line within the “Sweet Spot” for optimal range. In this case, the player experiences underloading in late August, indicated by a dip below the green zone, followed by an overcorrection leading to a brief entry into the high-risk red zone. While the red zone signals a higher injury risk, it's not a certainty of harm but rather an indicator to discuss the athlete's wellbeing, sleep quality and stress levels. Staying in the red zone for too long increases injury risk.

“This detailed analysis allowed us to compare across position groups,” Katy explained. “Having the entire season’s data — individual players, practices, and games — visually laid out was incredibly useful for strategic planning.

For example, they would analyze specific data for forwards, looking at parameters like sprint count, heart rate, and distance covered. “During the season, we would ask our forwards to be able to transition and expose teams in the space behind. Monitoring sprint numbers was important in this context,” said Katy. 

Figure 4: This graphic compares strikers in all season games, showing total sprints (top) and sprints per minute (bottom). Total sprints tend to favor players with more game time, like Player 1, who has a high sprint count. However, the sprints per minute metric reveals that other players sprint more frequently during their time on the field, despite Player 1's overall higher sprint total.

Figure 5: The image displays two side-by-side games, using the same plots for comparison. On the right, against St. John's, Player 1 leads in both total sprints and sprints per minute. On the left, in the game against UConn, Player 2 shows fewer total sprints but nearly matches Player 1 in sprints per minute.

For XUWS, a high-impact game would typically see a forward reaching about 35 sprints, whereas in games with lesser impact, the sprint count might drop to around 20. This approach of using sprint data provided a clear, measurable way to gauge player performance and adapt strategies accordingly.

This level of detail was crucial for XUWS’s strategy. “Our game plan involves a lot of pressing, so sprint numbers are critical for us. DAoD helped us understand how effective our forwards were in games based on their sprint counts,” Katy shared.

This approach allowed the team to tailor their training and recovery strategies based on solid data, ensuring that players were adequately prepared for the demands of each game without overexertion. It exemplified how data-driven insights could be seamlessly integrated into a sports program to enhance both player performance and team strategy.

Figure 6: This example illustrates how Player 1 successfully maintained her Acute:Chronic Ratio within the optimal zone, while progressively increasing her average daily workload each month.

This data-driven strategy ensured that the team did not fall into the trap of merely 'holding on' as the season progressed. Instead, they were able to proactively 'keep pushing,' enhancing their performance levels and maintaining peak physical condition even in the later stages of the season, as proven in their record. This approach was key in keeping the team competitive and in top form throughout the entire season.

The team credited their success in maintaining fitness and strength, as well as avoiding major injuries throughout the year, to the implementation of Beyond Pulse. Their goal to enhance player fitness levels and minimize mid-season performance drop-offs was effectively achieved. 

Beyond Pulse, along with the Data Analyst on Demand (DAoD) service, were invaluable tools for the players and staff at XUWS. They provided essential data that guided coaching strategies and fostered a heightened sense of self-awareness among the players, contributing significantly to the team's overall health and performance.

Looking Ahead

Xavier University Women's Soccer plans to continue and expand its use of Beyond Pulse and DAoD in the Spring 2024 season. The goal is to refine their training strategies further and prepare for another successful fall season.