Jeff Carroll talks about his experience working with the tactical population and some of the key areas that tactical facilitators need to be aware of in training and testing for this population, in this session from the NSCA’s 2018 TSAC Annual Training.

This article in NSCA Coach discusses how machine-based testing can be used to gather data and improve training. Visit NSCA online to learn more on sports science and exercise research.

In this session from the NSCA’s 2018 TSAC Annual Training, Karen Daigle presents the opportunities and challenges associated with various levels of strength and conditioning and medical resources embedded in operational military units.

This excerpt from NSCA's Essentials of Tactical Strength and Conditioning explains the importance of third-party certifications on supplements in the tactical population.

This infographic discusses how testing for the change of direction deficit may be a more specific measure of change of direction ability in athletes.

This session from the NSCA’s 2015 TSAC Annual Training provide examples of how different agencies (i.e., fire, military, and police) have implemented legally defensible fitness tests. Previous experiences will be shared as well as general recommendations on how to implement a scientifically-based testing battery.

By implementing a fitness assessment, a law enforcement agency can assess its officers and gather important data. As long as there are support mechanisms in place to assist the “at risk” officers—such as access to physical training instructors, occupational health professionals, or dietitians—the organization can ensure that its officers move towards becoming a healthier and more resilient workforce.

This infographic explains how utilizing the rear foot elevated split squat is a reliable method of testing unilateral leg strength and how it can measure athletes’ symmetry in producing vertical ground reactive forces.

Matt Crawley, Strength and Conditioning Coach and Internship Coordinator for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Performance Institute, discusses performance considerations around testing and programming for UFC fighters, as well as the role of the strength and conditioning coach within the interdisciplinary team.

This course is an introduction to force plates and performance testing. This course covers the basics of setup and calibration of force plates, and then walks through several fundamental performance tests including squat jumps, countermovement jumps, drop jumps and loaded jumps. Two versions of the isometric mid-thigh pull as well as an isometric squat are also covered in the course. Real-time data collection from the software is also shown as the athletes are performing the tests. A module on data analysis rounds out the course, which includes five metrics collected from the force plate, as well as calculations from this data, including relative strength index - modified, and dynamic strength index.