Hear from Bri Kanz, Assistant Athletic Director of Sports Performance for Santa Clara University. Kanz connects with NSCA Coaching and Sport Science Program Manager, Eric McMahon, on key stops along her professional path, including her most recent position at Stanford University. Learn how injury inspired Kanz to pursue strength and conditioning, about her move to the West Coast, and her enthusiasm for Olympic sport strength and conditioning. Kanz shares her insight on what it takes to be an effective strength and conditioning coach and where she sees the field going in the future. Connect with Bri on Instagram: @brikanz| Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or Twitter: @ericmcmahoncscs

Lawrence Herrera, owner and founder of LH Performance, talks to the NSCA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about how strong is strong enough, keeping the training simple, and relating to athletes and coaches.

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.

Greg Haff, former President of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), current course coordinator for post graduate studies in strength and conditioning at Edith Cowan University, and Senior Associate Editor for the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, talks to the NSCA’s Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about his journey through strength and conditioning and his efforts to progress the field during his time as president of the NSCA. Topics under discussion include: his years being NSCA Board of Director President, the future of the profession, how he got involved in the NSCA, key traits of icons in the field, traits for potential incoming students, and how to get into sports science.

This Personal Trainers Quarterly article explains why personal trainers should understand how GLP-1 medications work. Visit NSCA online to read more on health science and fitness news.

This article serves to educate people about the menstrual cycle in the tactical female population. It provides a framework for how to work through the phases of menstruation to increase training response, and thus, overall success in military training.

Nearly all fitness professionals are forced to address low back pain (LBP) to some extent, regardless of the age or population with which they work. The purpose of this article is to shed light on contemporary research surrounding LBP.

In order to effectively prepare an ice hockey player for the season, it is necessary to have a thorough understanding of the specific demands of the sport.

Thrown into the fire — that is how Jeanne Rankin learned, and it’s how she’s developing her athletes and interns at Coastal Carolina University. Rankin reveals how trust is what drives buy-in, performance, and success; without it, even the best program is just a piece of paper. She breaks down some of strength and conditioning’s toughest realities — long hours, relentless demands, and work-life challenges — which require strategic approaches across career stages. A process-oriented coach, Rankin shares practical strategies for setting boundaries, maximizing efficiency, and avoiding burnout when 70-hr workweeks are common. She also delivers real-world insights on career longevity, professional growth, and adapting to an evolving industry. With salary conversations, career sustainability, and the future of collegiate strength and conditioning on the table, Rankin brings an unfiltered, solutions-driven perspective. Whether you are just starting out or an experienced professional, this episode delivers straight talk on what it takes to succeed long-term. Connect with Jeanne on Instagram: @thegingerguns or by email at: jrankin@coastal.edu | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Check out the 2022 NSCA Salary Survey discussed in this episode and watch for 2025 NSCA Salary Survey results coming soon. Additionally, find actionable strategies to support a raise request in the NSCA’s new article, “How to Ask for a Raise in Strength & Conditioning.” Read the NSCA’s proposal to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to recognize “strength and conditioning coach” as a detailed occupation in their classification system.

PT 2021