Squatting may be commonplace in the weight room, but proper execution of this great exercise is difficult. Strength and conditioning coaches will need to properly select exercises and cue their athletes in a way that not only allows for a proper stabilizing strategy to occur, but promotes it.

This article presents the shoulder taps, which could serve as a more time-efficient screening tool for tactical operators. Although this article will present the shoulder taps as an assessment modality, it may be expanded upon and prescribed as an exercise for the purpose of improving trunk, hip, and shoulder stability.

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

Hear from the 2023 NSCA Assistant College Coach of the Year, Gary Calcagno, from Oklahoma State University. In this episode, Calcagno shares highlights from a more than 30-year strength and conditioning career and how being resourceful as a once aspiring coach prepared him for lasting professional success with NSCA Coaching and Sport Science Program Manager, Eric McMahon. Calcagno also discusses his long history with the NSCA, recent areas of progress across the profession, and the role of quality leadership in managing a successful strength and conditioning program. You can reach Gary by email at gary.calcagno@okstate.edu | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or Twitter: @ericmcmahoncscs

The purpose of this article is to help bring awareness of athletic recovery by useful fatigue monitoring and managing tools, such as external and internal load examples.

In order to move patients, gear, and equipment properly, the first responder must be able to move well themselves. Both unloaded and loaded movement should be examined and trained. One way to achieve this is to train frequently and properly with a constant focus on both mobility and strength in the various positions that are commonly required of first responders.

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.

Meet Tara De Leon, a former collegiate strength and conditioning coach who now works as a personal trainer in Edgewater, MD. De Leon shares insight with NSCA Coaching and Sport Science Program Manager, Eric McMahon, and episode co-host, NSCA Personal Training Program Manager, Blake Brightwell, on alternate routes for strength and conditioning coaches through personal training, group fitness, and private sector coaching. This episode discusses the “coaching identity” as it exists and impacts coaches’ beliefs across various stages of professional development. With the growth of the strength and conditioning field, De Leon challenges us to expand our thinking and perceptions around personal training, while holding true to our values and expertise as coaches. Regardless of your current role in the profession, learn more about how the NSCA can help you grow your career. You can connect with Tara on Instagram: @tara_de_leon_fitness or tara@edgewaterfit.com | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or Twitter: @ericmcmahoncscs

Joe Kenn, Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Carolina Panthers, talks to the NSCA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, Scott Caulfield, about… well… a little bit of everything.

This article describes the various strength training processes that can be implemented to build a soldier’s ruck march capacity.