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

It is important for tactical athletes to be aware of their fluid intake and hydration status when training for or performing job duties. This article explains several ways this can be accomplished.

Knowledge of metabolic rate can help athletes as well as health-conscious people improve their exercise performance or obtain the fat-to-lean-mass ratio optimal for their personal situations. Two examples of how this works follow.

This article presents ways to add variety to workouts using Bulgarian Bags as an alternative to kettlebells. It also provides an effective sample Bulgarian Bag program.

This article is an overview of several studies that look into the effects of intensity and volume in the training of combat soldiers and its relation to injury.

Guy Leahy writes a review of the research relating to the tactical population from presentations and research from the 65th Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

This excerpt from NSCA's Essentials of Tactical Strength and Conditioning explains the importance of wellness programs for tactical athletes.

There is a formula for attracting more clients into your gym and it can work for you if you commit to following the right steps. This article will explain how to set marketing goals, create a marketing action plan to bring in new clients based on your strengths as a trainer, provide examples of how to implement your marketing plan, and discuss why tracking the success of your plan is important.

The NSCA provides career-focused benefit videos designed to help members gain expert insight, knowledge and tips to help further their careers.

This research review covers topics such as the effects of police officer equipment loads, military occupational specialties, and the effects of protective clothing and self-contained breathing apparatus for firefighters.