# Training to Compete: Are Basketball Training Loads Similar to Competition Achieved?
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Quantifying demands allows for the recording of the workload that players experience during training and competition [10]. This enables monitoring and evaluating player performance to optimize the training process, design strategies for training and competition, reduce the risk of overtraining, and prevent injuries [11; 12; 13]. Research on load control has distinguished two concepts or types of demand: internal workload demands (iTL) and external workload demands (eTL) [14]. iTL has been defined as the biological stress response of an athlete's body manifested at physiological and psychological levels as a result of eTL (training and competition tasks) [10; 15]. The impact of iTL can be measured through parameters like heart rate; training impulse (TRIMP); blood lactate levels; biochemical, hormonal, and immunological assessments; oxygen consumption; subjective perceived effort (subjective measurement); sleep quality; and more [11; 16]. eTL is defined as the mechanical and locomotor stress caused by sports practice [15]. Objective eTL, the physical load, can be analyzed from both a kinematic perspective, such as displacements and accelerations, and a neuromuscular perspective [11], including player load (PL) and impacts. Information about iTL and eTL can be used to individualize training programs and optimize training time, load, and volume. This ensures that training becomes more efficient and aligns with the pace of competition [17]. Microtechnology has introduced instruments with sensors for real-time measurement. These instruments include heart rate monitors and systems with inertial measurement units (IMUs). IMUs integrate various sensors like triaxial accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, and more. They also incorporate global positioning systems (GPS) and ultra-wideband (UWB) technology [18]. In the case of indoor sports like basketball, IMU devices allow for the collection of extensive data, particularly when used with local positioning systems (LPS). IMU technology has been employed in invasion sports [15; 19; 20] and, specifically, in basketball [15; 21; 22]. Data on competition workload demands are becoming increasingly common. Basketball loads have been monitored in official competitions across different categories and leagues [17; 23; 24]. In these studies, baseline values and the comparison of mean values between different groups could be seen. The high speed and deceleration variables are significantly different when it comes to finding differences according to sex, with higher values found in men for all variables except the acceleration:deceleration ratio. These differences are also found when adding the covariate specific positions, being generally higher in the forwards. The load placed on basketball players during competition vary depending on the game phase [13], game period [21; 25], and specific player positions [25; 26; 27; 28]. On the other hand, the loads reported during basketball training tasks have been studied in both amateur [29] and professional sports [2; 3; 5]. These studies show reference values in 5 \(\times\) 5 exercises for acceleration variables (3.50 m/s\({}^{2}\) on average), player load (around 11 au/min on average), and heart rate (144 ppm on average). Differences in the load have been found based on player position, experience, and session phase, both in professional and amateur sports [3; 30; 31; 32], as well as in youth basketball [33; 34]. The training method and task selection may explain the variation in iTL and eTL, and the correlation between both types of loads [35]. There is little research that provides objective information on the training and competition loads of professional basketball teams. The difficulty in obtaining data in real competition situations caused by regulatory restrictions limits coaches to prepare training tasks that resemble the scenarios caused by competition. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain objective information on the training demands of professional basketball players during real competition.