TQR Recovery Scale vs. Session Effort
Students compare how recovered they felt coming into class, using the 6-20 TQR scale, with their perceived effort for the session, and post their result anonymously on a four-quadrant chart on the whiteboard. It prompts reflection on the balance between training load and rest.
How to play
- Gentle seated mobility (shoulder circles, trunk twists) for 1 minute while sheets are handed out.
- Recall the TQR score you wrote down at the start of class, from 6 (not recovered at all) to 20 (fully recovered); if you didn't, estimate how you came in (1 min).
- Rate the session's effort from 0 to 10 and write it next to your TQR (1 min).
- Each student sticks an unsigned sticky note on the whiteboard chart: horizontal axis recovery, vertical axis effort (1.5 min).
- Group analysis (1.5 min): low recovery plus high effort calls for prioritizing sleep and rest; good recovery plus low effort means you could have pushed harder.
- Each student writes one action for next class on their sheet, based on their quadrant (1 min).
Rules
- Notes on the whiteboard are anonymous.
- Rate honestly; there are no good or bad numbers.
- Nobody comments out loud on someone else's data.
- Keep your personal sheet in your notebook to track trends.
Variations
Easier
Use only session effort and a simplified three-face recovery scale.
Standard
TQR scale, session effort, anonymous chart, and a personal action.
Harder
Log both numbers for a month and connect the worst recovery days with sleep and weekly load.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: the opening mobility is adapted to the chair, and a partner can post the note if the whiteboard isn't accessible.
- Comprehension difficulties or autism: scales with colors and faces next to the numbers.
- Students with heavy club or team schedules: add their practice hours to the sheet.
Learning goals
- Rate their own recovery with a validated scale.
- Connect pre-session recovery with the effort delivered.
- Make decisions about load and rest based on their own data.
Equipment for a class of 25
- recording sheets: 25
- pens: 25
- sticky notes: 25
- whiteboard: 1
Teacher tip
It works best if TQR is recorded in the hallway or during attendance at the start of class. Draw the chart before students arrive to save time.
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