It is apparent that speed plays a vital role in successful baseball performance. Because of the short distances involved in the game, players rarely, if ever, achieve maximum speed and in actuality, it is acceleration that plays a much greater role in baseball.

Squash demands speed, strength, and control at the edge of human range — but still suffers from a massive stigma around heavy lifting and underuse of strength and conditioning. Brigita Roemer is leading the shift as Director of Strength and Conditioning for U.S. Squash, where she oversees all off-court physical development. After suffering a devastating injury as a track and field athlete, she discovered strength and conditioning when a biomechanics team “put [her] back together,” setting her on a linear path in the profession. Assigned to a sport she had never heard of before, Roemer began by emphasizing injury risk reduction, full range of motion, and “strength at length” to meet squash’s extreme movement and deceleration demands. With frequent connective tissue injuries like sprains and strains, athlete availability remains a top concern. By prioritizing continuing education and building relationships, Roemer has helped U.S. Squash make history — on the path to LA 2028. Connect with Brigita on Instagram: @brigey_lux | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Elite strength and conditioning pros like Brigita Roemer rely on NSCA events to stay sharp, grounded, and connected. Join them at the 2025 NSCA National Conference (NSCACon) this July 16–19 in Kansas City, MO.

This excerpt from Developing Speed aims to develop athletes’ ability to accelerate quickly through stride modification.

This TSAC Report article highlights ruck performance for tactical athletes with key insights on load carriage biomechanics, gait changes, and training strategies to reduce injury. Visit NSCA online to learn more about military strength training.

Focusing on developing the core muscles in a strength and conditioning program for ice hockey players can improve performance of movements on the ice.

This excerpt briefly explains programming agility sessions for lacrosse athletes.

This excerpt from Developing Agility and Quickness provides a needs analysis for field hockey and possible program design options for optimal performance outcomes.

All fitness components depend on body composition to some extent, and the demands of many sports require that athletes maintain standard levels of body composition.

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.

This NSCA Coach article provides a proposes a framework for standardizing SEB resistance training based on principles of kinetic and potential energy. Visit NSCA online to read more on exercise science and sport performance.