Donovan Santas, former Head Major League Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball (MLB) organization, explains the process for optimal athletic development by taking a look at the day-to-day practices and techniques used at the professional baseball level.
Mark Kovacs, PhD, CSCS,*D, spoke during the NSCA's 2013 Coaches Conference about the importance of balancing conditioning with strength training, and the need to approach program design in such a way that all your athletes get what they need, no matter their fitness level or sport.
The “five Ss” of trainability and performance are critical periods of development that all youth strength and conditioning coaches should consider when creating a training program. Coaches should take advantage of each window to maximize a youth athlete’s potential and help ensure a long athletic career.
CoachesProgram designLTADyouth training guidelinesyouth athletic training
Adam Feit, Coordinator of Physical and Mental Performance at Springfield College, discusses the use of psychological skills in collegiate strength and conditioning and shares his insight into how strength coaches are in an optimal position to incorporate more of these skills into the weight room.
CoachesProfessional DevelopmentPsychological SkillsMental PerformancePerformance PotentialProfessional Development
This video demonstrates coaching cues that can help an athlete to utilize optimal squat technique. It specifically addresses stance width, heel position, head position, and squat depth
Personal trainersTSAC FacilitatorsCoachesExercise Techniqueexercise techniquesquat exercisesquatbest way to squatsquat techniquehs-coaching
This video demonstrates optimal joint kinematics at the shoulder complex for overhead lifting tasks as well as a screening process to provide coaches with a tool to assess an athlete’s suitability for overhead lifting.
Learn about cluster sets, and how they can be used in program design for optimal athletic development. Greg Haff, President of the NSCA, shares examples of various set structures in this session from the NSCA 2016 National Conference.
CoachesProgram designweight trainingcluster setsstrength and conditioningprogram design
The Physical Readiness Training Manual includes many exercises intended to keep military personnel in optimal physical condition while staying at a low risk to injury. Additionally, the application of progressive overload may be beneficial to periodization programming in ROTC cadet preparation for the Army Physical Fitness Test.
Decompressing after a workout, practice, or competition is a beneficial habit that can be achieved through breathing. This article provides an overview of the autonomic nervous system and guidelines for how to use breathing to calm, or balance, the brain and body.