This article discusses performance under stress, as well as factors influencing this performance in tactical personnel.

This TSAC Report article discusses incorporating stress inoculation to help first responders reduce stress response and expedite recovery. Visit NSCA online to learn more about exercise research.

This article will discuss specific measures of stress that can be monitored, as well as coping skills to mitigate the negative effects of stress.

Tactical jobs are fast-paced, physically and psychologically intense, and failure can have tragic consequences, making it vital to train tactical athletes to perform better under stress.

The physiological response to breath holding includes bradycardia and peripheral vasoconstriction, which contrasts with that of exercise which includes tachycardia and peripheral vasodilation. This raises the question as to what the physiological response is to breath holding during exercise. During low-intensity exercise, the breath holding response of bradycardia and peripheral vasoconstriction prevails over the exercise response of tachycardia and peripheral vasodilation, but nevertheless the exercise may be sustained. Due to the lack of availability of extrinsic oxygen (O 2 ) from the atmosphere during breath holding, the energy demands can be met by increased reliance on intrinsic O 2 stores (i.e., O 2 that was in the body before the breath hold) via increased O 2 extraction at the muscle compared with exercise while breathing, or increased contributions from anaerobic energy systems. During high intensity exercise of short duration, the exercise response may prevail over the breath holding response due to the increased parasympathetic withdrawal and sympathetic drive of higher intensity exercise. If breath holding during high-intensity exercise was sustained for long enough, the breath holding response may eventually overcome the exercise response, although this may be difficult due to the inverse relationship between exercise intensity and breath hold duration.

This article discusses how first responder organizations can optimize their training programs through scientific techniques, including the measurement of training load.

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 seeks to help personal trainers understand the physiological effects of stress and helpful ways they can drive positive changes for their clients through exercise.

This article looks to explain why law enforcement recruits have higher incidences of lower extremity bone stress responses and stress fractures. It also explores injury mitigation pathways to increase the graduation rates among law enforcement academies.

The purpose of this article is to provide education surrounding the importance of recovery in tactical populations, identify key aspects of the mental recovery process, and identify strategies Tactical Strength and Conditioning Facilitators® (TSAC-F®) can implement to promote mental recovery when working with athletes.