Learn, participate and network with colleagues at (location) while earning CEUs. Hosted by the state, provincial and regional directors, this local event brings cutting-edge research and application to your backyard.

Learn why the NSCA has joined the Smart Heart Sports Coalition to advance emergency action plans, AED access, and CPR training that save young athletes’ lives.

Mentorship isn’t flawless — and that’s where its power lies. Erik Hernandez, Associate Director for Sports Performance – Olympic Sports at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, has built his career on turning imperfect scenarios into lasting lessons for athletes and young coaches alike. For over 14 years at UNC, he has guided lacrosse, volleyball, and golf, adapting his voice to each culture while holding firm to shared standards of accountability and growth. Hernandez streamlines training into a three-phase model — explosive, strength, and remedial — yet emphasizes that delivery and communication matter more than complexity. He reminds athletes, “modifications are part of progress,” linking health, recovery, and seasonal demands to long-term development. For interns and early-career coaches, his advice is clear: earn mentors by serving others, and learn from every scenario, even the imperfect ones. Hear how mentorship, adaptability, and athlete health point the way forward for stronger teams and longer careers. Reach out to Coach Hernandez on Instagram: @hernandezstrength or by email: ehhernan@email.unc.edu | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Answer Bryan Mann’s “call to arms!” Many volunteer applications are open now through December 15. Step up and give back to your strength and conditioning community at NSCA.com/Volunteer.

This Personal Training Quarterly article reviews the farmer’s walk exercise and how to incorporate it safely into a client’s exercise program. Visit NSCA online to read more on fitness news and exercise research.

NSCA Member Spotlight: Diane Homan shares her journey from club volleyball to coaching youth and professional athletes, built on NSCA credentials and community.

This article in NSCA Coach examines whether athletic coaches, educators, and institutions are adequately prepared to support athletes through athletic retirement. Visit NSCA online to learn more on LTAD and coaching strategies.

This TSAC Report article discusses the training load of GPS technology and blood lactate monitoring for first responders. Visit NSCA online to learn more about tactical fitness.

Concurrent training (CT), which combines resistance exercise and energy systems conditioning, is the default approach to preparation in high-intensity intermittent (“stop and go”) team sports. This review provides an overview of CT, emphasizing its complexities and challenges in managing fatigue and optimizing performance. These complexities are specifically compounded by the variability in game demands across the season, where the presence of intensified and nonintensified competition periods necessitates a flexible and adaptive training approach. In this context, there are essential training variables to consider, including intensity, volume, session order, and recovery intervals between sessions. In addition, nontraining variables such as travel, sleep, and nutrition play a role in the fatigue experienced while training and competing. These variables interact to influence acute performance and training adaptations and can be strategically adjusted by strength and conditioning practitioners. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive understanding of fatigue management for practitioners in team sports, emphasizing the complexities and challenges of CT and offering simplified practical recommendations for adjusting training variables within any given microcycle.

This article in NSCA Coach explores the potential cognitive benefits of creatine supplementation across diverse populations and conditions. Visit us online to learn more about nutrition and exercise science.

Learn, participate and network with colleagues at (location) while earning CEUs. Hosted by the state, provincial and regional directors, this local event brings cutting-edge research and application to your backyard.

Building athletes who are strong, healthy, and resilient requires more than sets and reps, starting with a shift in mindset. Christi Edson, Head of Performance for the Orlando Pride in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), shares how she integrates strength and conditioning with sport science to sustain athlete health and performance. She reflects on the field’s evolution from the well-known “Bigger, Faster, Stronger” program to a training culture emphasizing resilience, active recovery, and durability. Drawing from her experience coaching high school athletes to NWSL professionals, Edson highlights the adaptability and creativity coaches need. Those qualities help her to develop athletes who can thrive through a demanding 11-month season. She details how tools like GPS, force plates, and velocity-based training sharpen communication and reshape expectations in the gym. Her story points coaches toward the future of athlete development: collaboration, precise load management, and long-term health as the foundation of strength. Connect with Christi on Instagram: @christiedson and LinkedIn: @christiana-edson | Find Eric on Instagram: @ericmcmahoncscs and LinkedIn: @ericmcmahoncscs Read the article, “A Creative Mind in the Professional Development of a Strength and Conditioning Coach,” from NSCA Coach, 11(1), February 2024 — referenced in this episode’s return-to-play discussion. NSCA Members enjoy full publication access. Interested in bridging coaching and sport science? The Certified Performance and Sport Scientist (CPSS) credential can help you expand your qualifications, open new career paths, and strengthen cross-department collaboration.

Learn, participate and network with colleagues at (location) while earning CEUs. Hosted by the state, provincial and regional directors, this local event brings cutting-edge research and application to your backyard.

This Personal Training Quarterly article explores the science behind strength training’s effects on mental health and strategies for integrating wellness programming. Visit NSCA online to read more on fitness news and exercise research.

This article in NSCA Coach explores how developmental psychology enhances coaching in high school strength settings. Visit us online to learn more on high school strength training and exercise science.

Learn, participate and network with colleagues at (location) while earning CEUs. Hosted by the state, provincial and regional directors, this local event brings cutting-edge research and application to your backyard.