Learn practical programming ideas to implement in youth speed training programs. In this session from the NSCA’s 2017 National Conference, Lance Walker explains how to leverage the differences between starting, acceleration, and maximum velocity dynamics (movement preparation) and plyometrics. Learn about the most common errors made by young athletes when training linear speed with practical tools, teachings, and contextual cues.

NSCA Coach 11.3 is an exercise research article providing strength coaches, considerations to design effective sports performance programs for collegiate soccer.

The tactical strength and conditioning field is evolving each year. Because of the experience of those in the field, as well as the growing body of research, we are gaining a better understanding of what it actually means to work within the tactical field.

No two days are the same for Will Gilmore as part of a team that oversees over 800 athletes across 200 sports at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Center. From surfers to skydivers, the facility provides an elite high-performance ecosystem for traditionally individual sport athletes. Gilmore highlights the need for remote programming and monitoring to support a constantly shifting roster. Together as a team, they navigate uncharted territory in action sports conditioning, guided by physiological demands and underlying energy systems. Gilmore and NSCA Coaching and Sport Science Program Manager Eric McMahon discuss the shift in sport science from ample to actionable data to find, change, and measure what matters most. Gilmore reflects on his “career periodization” and having free time for friends and family while working corporate hours — a stark contrast with his background in Major League Baseball (MLB). The pair also emphasize proactive networking and education for future career opportunities. Connect with Will on Instagram: @will_gilmore_ or LinkedIn: @will-gilmore | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Want to get involved with the NSCA? Find peers who share your passion for a specific sport or topic in Special Interest Groups (SIGs), or apply now for Volunteer Leadership Opportunities!

Contracted Human Performance and Optimization Coach of 2nd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regimen Jeff Carroll talks to the NSCA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about his start in the field of strength and conditioning and his transition from professional athletes to a tactical population and setting. Topics under discussion include: Carroll’s career path, coaching professional athletes, transitioning to tactical strength and conditioning, and the future of tactical strength and conditioning.

This Personal Trainers Quarterly article promotes the benefits of walking to boost physical activity and improve overall health outcomes. Visit NSCA online to read more on health science and low-impact exercises.

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.

While no recruitment process will ever be perfect, it is time to address the “legal defensibility” of physical employment standards as the primary consideration in developing recruitment guidelines that are concurrently designed to increase workplace diversity.

This PTQ article discusses a Mini Quality System (MQS), an ISO 9001-inspired framework designed to help small and growing fitness centers establish better operational control. Visit NSCA online to read more on fitness management.

This article aims to share practical application strategies that strength and conditioning coaches can use in fostering a positive change in their athlete’s performance by understanding intrinsic and extrinsic performance motivation and how to adopt an autonomy-supportive coaching style.