Are you interested in pursuing a career in strength and conditioning research? Chad Kerksick, Assistant Professor of Exercise Science at the University of New Mexico, provides insight into some of the advantages and disadvantages of a career in academia. Kerksick talks about how to choose a path, and the different types of academic jobs available today.

In this career series article, developing personal training skills to train special populations is discussed; it includes starting out as a novice through the expert level.

This article encompasses some of the necessary experience, education, certifications, and personal development needed to become a strength and conditioning coach.

NSCA Coach provides valuable takeaways for every level of strength and conditioning coach through quarterly, electronic issues. You can find scientifically based articles specific to a wide variety of your athletes’ needs with Nutrition, Programming, and Youth columns. You must be a member of the NSCA to access NSCA Coach.

There's risk in every business, but fitness professionals can often face higher risk than most. While personal trainer insurance can offer solid protection, fitness professionals can best protect themselves by understanding the fundamentals of risk management as they apply within the realm of sports and fitness. In this article, global insurance firm Integro Entertainment & Sports offers tips on how to best protect yourself and your business, defines common insurance terms, and provides an overview to understanding insurance conditions.

This excerpt from NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training discusses the importance of education on proper running surfaces, appropriate footwear, and the benefits of cross-training in addressing overuse of the knee.

This Kinetic Select excerpt from the Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, Fourth Edition describes the results from electromyography (EMG) studies on the neural adaptations to anaerobic training.

This Kinetic Select from NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training, Second Edition gives a brief overview of respiratory adaptations, and how aerobic interventions of duration and intensity can be used for specific adaptations for endurance training.

This book excerpt reviews the psychological principal of the self-determination theory (SDT) and its role in motivation and how this can be used in a tactical setting.

Some research has found that static stretching can have detrimental effects on subsequent performance. This is not to say that static stretching should be eliminated from an athlete’s program, but it should be sensibly incorporated into the daily training regimen since chronic stretching can enhance the range of motion around a joint and potentially improve strength and power performance.