Competence, autonomy, and relatedness are three keys to promoting a more intrinsically motivated athlete. These components can be combined in nearly limitless ways, which is especially important for the long basketball season.

This article will provide some conditions and standards with specific tools personal trainers may consider using in their initial interview with potential clients.

All sports nutrition professionals should be able to answer basic nutrition questions. However, athletes with complex nutrition issues should be referred to the appropriate resource as explained in this book excerpt.

This article provides a background on the benefits of plant-based nutrition for athletic performance, recovery, and overall health.

Tom Williams’ journey to Head of Performance and Sport Science for Major League Soccer (MLS) powerhouse, the Los Angeles (LA) Galaxy, began at a crossroads: pursue traditional coaching or medical pathways. As a soccer “Swiss Army knife,” he embraced early sport science alongside coaching, building a career defined by collaboration and innovation. At the Galaxy, Williams is part of a web of support that uses rich data storytelling tailored to stakeholders and players, guiding decisions and infusing value in every encounter. This system drives their three key pillars: winning championships — including their recent record-breaking sixth MLS Cup — developing a robust academy pipeline, and leading innovation. In MLS’s “cultural melting pot,” Williams balances diverse backgrounds and short-term demands like fixture congestion while employing sustainable long-term strategies. With a unique full-time cognitive department and creative approaches like dodgeball warm-ups, he combines trust and ingenuity to elevate performance and presents a blueprint for those exploring emerging sport science. Reach out to Tom on LinkedIn: @tom-williams and X/Twitter: @Williams26Tom | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Did you know MLS has a newly mandated Certified Performance and Sport Scientist® (CPSS®) role? Engage with NSCA’s Pro Sport Partner, the Professional Soccer Performance Association (PSPA), on social media to learn more: Instagram: @pspa_performance X/Twitter: @PSPA_perform LinkedIn: @professional-soccer-performance-association

This second article of a two-part series continues the discussion of long-term athletic development (LTAD). This article provides practical application of the LTAD principles by examining two sample programs.

The path to actual integration of mental and physical training for the tactical athlete is paved with growing empiricism. The current challenge is to sustain creative development of functional approaches and demonstrate that integration can deliver potential benefits.

By reviewing this simplified process of obtaining a client’s health history and physician release, designing an exercise routine with modified exercises, and providing exercises for paid clients versus general members, NSCA-CPTs can be confident prescribing a routine for those who suffer from chronic or temporary health issues.

This article provides a first-hand perspective of different approaches strength and conditioning coaches can take when they need to produce a highly competitive athlete, but their financial resources are limited.

This article focuses on a program for a Paralympic athlete born with a congenital limb deficiency (transradial peromelia) of the right arm.