This article provides considerations for preparing firefighters for the physical and psychological demands of their job, including pre-operational work specific training during their rest times.

Sam Moore’s path into sport science is defined by taking risks and chasing meaningful questions. After a devastating knee injury as a collegiate athlete, Moore not only returned to compete, but she also discovered her calling in strength and conditioning. She recounts her coaching, sport science, and hybrid roles prior to leaving a full-time position to pursue her PhD at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Moore describes sport science as problem-solving and drawing evidence across disciplines to drive innovation. She discusses her research on female athlete availability in elite settings, including nuances like body composition, recovery, and high speed exposure in training. Moore advises young professionals to remain open-minded, pitch their ideal position if it does not exist, and go “all in”— knowing one decision does not define forever. Whether you are a coach or researcher, this episode delivers real-world insights on navigating your career with courage and curiosity. Connect with Sam on Instagram: @sammoorestrong and Twitter/X: @SamMooreStrong | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs

This infographic explains how utilizing the rear foot elevated split squat is a reliable method of testing unilateral leg strength and how it can measure athletes’ symmetry in producing vertical ground reactive forces.

PT 2021

Mick Stierli, a Sargent with the New South Wales Police Force and the creator of both the Physical Training Instructors program and the New South Wales Police RECON program in Australia, discusses his holistic approach to providing care and training to police officers over the course of their career from hire to retire at the 2018 NSCA Tactical Annual Training.

The extent to which a special operator’s training schedule can be planned in advance is often limited due to their unpredictable operational demands. However, there may be opportunities to plan for specific training during certain periods.

In this session from the NSCA’s 2017 Coaches Conference, Tara De Leon presents common issues that female athletes face and provides solutions for how to optimize training in females. CEUs available.

PT 2021

A Multidisciplinary Individualized Operator Reset Week: Development, Design, and the Road Ahead

Rob Orr, co-lead of Bond University’s Tactical Research Unit, explains the differences in load carriage requirements and contexts between different tactical forces, and how to prepare tactical personnel for load-carriage tasks. This session from the NSCA’s 2018 Tactical Annual Training also looks at how to employ fitness assessments to determine future load carriage requirements.