Do you understand the youth athlete? In order to train youth athletes effectively, coaches must have an understanding of how to motivate youth athletes. This article will explain how to do just that, as well as how to use age-appropriate developmental cues for this population.

In this session from the 2015 National Conference, Brian Brabham provides ideas for improving the overall athletic ability of youth athletes, a better understanding of injuries sustained by youth athletes, methods to help prevent those injuries, and practical examples of training programs that can be effective options.

Strength and conditioning coaches should strive to teach athletes in a way they can understand: by hearing, seeing, and practicing. This article describes some techniques that a coach can use to accomplish this.

In this session from the NSCA’s 2017 National Conference, Joe Eisenmann explains how to identify the components of an integrated holistic youth sports performance program and takes a look at the unique challenges of training the youth athlete.

This second article of a two-part series continues the discussion of long-term athletic development (LTAD). This article provides practical application of the LTAD principles by examining two sample programs.

The purpose of this article is to make the case for implementing non-traditional sports into training programs that prepare youth for participation in traditional American sports and bridge the gap between pedagogy of physical education and strength and conditioning youth coaching.

This article applies LTAD principles to guide the process of generating an athletic profile (part 1) and sample program design (part 2) for a middle school athlete and a high school athlete.

This continuing education opportunity explores a variety of topics as they pertain to training the youth population. To earn your CEUs, it will be necessary to review several articles and pass a 50-question quiz. Please note: this quiz awards 1.0 CEU (10 contact hours). Articles 1) Effects of Balance Training on Physical Fitness in Youth and Young Athletes: A Narrative Review 2) Seven Pillars of Prevention: Effective Strategies for Strength and Conditioning Coaches to Reduce Injury Risk and Improve Performance in Young Athletes 3) Navigating the Complex Pathway of Youth Athletic Development: Challenges and Solutions to Managing the Training Load of Youth Team Sport Athletes 4) Energy and Macronutrient Considerations for Young Athletes 5) Assessing Athletic Motor Skill Competencies in Youths: A Narrative Review of Movement Competency Screens

The aging athlete and office worker are both being cramped into body positions that not ideal. People in these situations could greatly benefit from some daily exercises to perform to overcome these issues. In this hands-on session, attendees will be given some simple movements that can be adapted for anyone and any situation.

The top concern of strength coaches should always be athlete safety. For this reason, the NSCA has compiled a list of resources to raise the standard of care when working as a strength coach at any level. By reading and sharing these examples of standards and guidelines, policies and procedures, position statements on vital topics, mental health best practices, and more, strength coaches can push to increase the safety of athletes around the world.