With the need to be ready under any circumstances from operational missions to physical training, understanding how the adrenal gland functions is important for any tactical athlete. The adrenal gland mediates performance and can have a negative effect on the body’s physiology when exhausted. It is vital to understand the interventions needed to obviate the negative effects and enhance the positive aspects of such physiological function. This session from the 2015 TSAC Annual Training sheds light on this important physiological system that impacts both physical health and functional performance.

Chris Morris, Director or Performance Science at the University of Kentucky, talks to the NSCA Coaching Program Manager, Eric McMahon, about the importance of capturing athlete readiness through data and technology. Topics under discussion include Dr. Morris’s time as a University of Kentucky football player turned PhD student, how sports science is critical to understanding athlete’s capacities on a much deeper view, and developing interpersonal relationships with athletes to create trust and buy-in. Find Dr. Morris on Twitter: @CMorrisPhD | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs or Twitter: @ericmcmahoncscs

This book excerpt provides examples of quickness drills that may improve the ability to identify a specific stimulus and to respond quickly and appropriately.

Endurance sports are typically not thought of as highly technical endeavors, but proper movement during training and competition for endurance sports can affect both performance and health.

This excerpt from Developing Agility and Quickness aims to provide a snapshot of programming volleyball-specific agility and quickness sessions.

The NFL Combine is a week-long evaluation process that allows NFL scouts, coaches, general managers, and owners to get an up-close and personal evaluation of the talent that comprises the given year’s draft class. This is a day-by-day program outline to maximize results and effort for the NFL combine.

Much in the same way that a single movement or a single workout does not make or break a training cycle, the same holds true for mental skills. The challenge is that the strength and conditioning coach will likely need to reach out to another professional trained in sport psychology to help establish the plan and construct the appropriate interventions.

The ability to manage the adaptive response, handle accumulated fatigue, and capitalize on the aftereffects established from training is central to the training process.

This article examines using the sled as a dynamic correspondence exercise for increasing on-ice acceleration.

This book excerpt is from Developing Agility and Quickness, Second Edition and goes over change of direction drills to help with speed and power development as well as an athletes cognitive and decision making skills.