From the 2022 NSCA’s Coaches Conference, Head of Combat Sports at the Star, Matt Crawley, discusses the importance of sleep in athletes, examines some high performance case studies involving sleep tracking, and provides sleep health resources for strength and conditioning coaches.

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.

Typically, a coach may follow a process in which they first identify the key performance indicators of their sport, determine the physical attributes that map back to them, and then distribute the development of those capacities over the allocated timeframe. Furthermore, effective training plans are based on a theoretical or biological basis for how we move and adapt to exercise stimuli, coupled with an understanding of how these are best sequenced, such that one stimulus and subsequent adaptation can potentiate the next. Thus, reverse or backward engineering, when appropriately converged with the plans of those devised around nutrition, conditioning, technical, and tactical training, for example, likely gives athletes the best chance of attaining their performance goals. The aim of this article is to describe the application of reverse engineering, exampling it within the context of developing an athlete who can demonstrate a high level of agility.

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.

Built on scientific principles and evidence-based research, the NSCA’s Tactical Strength and Conditioning (TSAC) Practitioners Course is a foundational strength and conditioning program designed to provide tactical facilitators with the tools to decrease injury risk and increase longevity and effectiveness of tactical professionals.

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.

Access the live stream video collection for the 2017 NSCA Training for Combat Sports Clinic, September 22-23, 2017 at the new UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas, NV. This two-day clinic brings together elite strength and conditioning coaches from the worlds of boxing, judo, mixed martial arts, and other Olympic combat sports to give you the most cutting-edge topics and best practices in strength and conditioning for combat sports.

Synergistic development of muscular strength and motor skill competency is central to long-term athletic development. However, these qualities need to be developed in a logical and progressive manner, and training methods need to be developmentally appropriate, engaging, and enjoyable for young athletes to help them build a positive association with strength and conditioning-based activities. This article aims to provide a resource for coaches to use when developing the athletic motor skill competencies in youth, including game-based activities, and a more structured resistance training curriculum.

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.

Grow as a professional and connect with peers by engaging in one or more NSCA Professional Development Groups. Discover resources, share your knowledge and get your questions answered. To join, please visit each group’s corresponding Facebook group and request to join. You may also update your preferences on your Account page.