Athlete self-report measures in research and practice: considerations for the discerning reader and fastidious practitioner

Athlete self-report measures (ASRM) have the potential to provide valuable insight into the training response, however there exists a disconnect between research and practice which needs to be addressed. Namely, the measure or methods used in research are not always reflective of practice, or data primarily obtained from practice lacks empirical quality. This commentary reviews existing empirical measures, and the psychometric properties required to be considered acceptable for research and practice. This information will allow discerning readers to make a judgement on the quality of ASRM data being reported in research papers. Fastidious practitioners and researchers are also provided with explicit guidelines for selecting and implementing an ASRM, and reporting these details in research papers.