Tactical facilitators are especially well-positioned to integrate mental skills training that may develop more complete tactical athletes who are prepared for dangerous environments. This article offers recommendations for mental skills training based on reported views from a tactical population.

Expectations for strength and conditioning coaches now extend far beyond the weight room. Athletes and sport coaches demand better data, deeper insight, and stronger performance. Faith Brown, Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning at George Mason University, supports women’s basketball and volleyball while collaborating with the Patriot Performance Lab. Brown describes balancing teams, testing, and athlete monitoring as a “circus act.” At the heart of her coaching is one goal: be the coach she wishes she had as a college track athlete. She demonstrates ways strength and conditioning coaches can contribute as scientists, creating impact and value outside the weight room walls. Brown shares how GPS, heart rate monitoring, and force plates support workload monitoring. However, she believes that technology should only be used when it answers a real question. Learn how to turn data into better training decisions, translate sport science so sport coaches buy in, and reach out to other coaches to refine your program. Connect with Faith on Instagram: @faithsabrown, LinkedIn: @faith-brown, or by email: fbrown20@gmu.edu | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs From the Episode: Explore NSCA’s Essentials of Sport Science, a foundational text defining the field and the role of sport scientists in high-performance environments. It also supports preparation for the Certified Performance and Sport Scientist® (CPSS®) certification exam.

This article presents general information suggesting physical training as a means for improving cognitive fitness.

This article is a review of the research relating to the tactical population from presentations and research from the 65th Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

The purpose of this article is to guide tactical leaders in their development of a unit combatives program (UCP).

This article describes the transition from the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) to the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), as well as the detailed events that make the ACFT.

This article is the 11th in a continuing series of tactical strength and conditioning (TSAC) research reviews. It is designed to bring awareness to new research findings of relevance to tactical strength and conditioning communities.

It is important for tactical athletes to be aware of their fluid intake and hydration status when training for or performing job duties. This article explains several ways this can be accomplished.

Mandy Nice explains the benefits and need of expanding health and fitness programs into military and law enforcement agencies, and offers strategies for the common obstacles preventing implementation of these programs.

Tactical athletes, due to the nature of their jobs, may have sleeping problems (such as falling asleep and/or staying asleep) which is indicative of poor sleep quality. This article shares sleep hygiene strategies that can help tactical athletes achieve better rest.