In an age when information is everywhere, the challenge is finding safe, effective, and evidence-based science. Cue the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the world's leading organization in strength and conditioning. The first release of Strength Training redefined exercise instruction with no-nonsense, straightforward science. Now the new second edition raises that bar even further.
Written by a team of experts chosen by the NSCA, Strength Training combines the most valuable information with best instruction for proven results:
- Assessing strength to personalize programs
- Incorporating new exercises and equipment for increased intensity
- Increasing muscle mass as well as strength, power, and muscular endurance
- Preventing injuries
- Improving performance
Serving more than 30,000 members from the sport science, athletic, allied health, and fitness industries, the NSCA is the authoritative source on strength training. Now the proven techniques developed by these renowned experts are available to you.
Whether you're launching a lifting program or fine-tuning a serious training regimen, Strength Training will fill any knowledge void and correct the misconceptions to ensure proper technique, safety, and progressions. Multiple program options for specific machines, free weights, body weight, and other types of apparatus provide the flexibility to tailor your training to personal preferences or needs. It's the authoritative guide from the world's authority on strength training.
Earn continuing education credits/units! A continuing education course and exam that uses this book is also available. It may be purchased separately or as part of a package that includes all the course materials and exam.Most competitive sports require rapid whole-body movements in which athletes need to accelerate, decelerate, and change direction in response to game situations. That's why coaches, athletes, and strength and conditioning professionals are constantly searching for the most effective ways to improve agility and quickness.
As the world's leading organization in the field of sport conditioning, the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) is at the forefront of such knowledge. In Developing Agility and Quickness, Second Edition, 19 of the NSCA's leading experts provide evidence-based assessment tools, exercises, drills, and training regimens to achieve that aim:
- More than 130 drills--with instructions, photos, and diagrams--offer a smorgasbord of proven activities to enhance athletes' ability to rapidly accelerate or decelerate in three dimensions.
- Twelve agility and quickness tests provide gauges of present abilities and methods to measure progress.
- Guidelines for tailoring training to specific needs present a blueprint for increasing change of direction speed and explosive movement.
- New chapters on warm-up methods and age and sex considerations prepare athletes to get the most from their training.
- Sport-specific training plans foster peak performance for athletes in 15 specific sports.
Developing Agility and Quickness is an essential training guide for athletes and coaches seeking to excel in today's fast-action sports. The drills and training programs in this book will get you a step ahead of the competition, whether you're on the court or on the turf.
Earn continuing education credits/units! A continuing education course and exam that uses this book is also available. It may be purchased separately or as part of a package that includes all the course materials and exam.The physical demands of tactical professions such as military, law enforcement, and fire and rescue require those workers to be in top physical condition to perform their jobs well and decrease the risk of injury. NSCA's Essentials of Tactical Strength and Conditioning contains scientific information to assist in implementing or restructuring strength and conditioning programs at commercial or government fitness centers that work with these tactical athletes to achieve those goals.
Designed primarily as a preparatory resource for the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Tactical Strength and Conditioning Facilitator (TSAC-F) certification, the text is also useful as a manual for government agencies or a daily reference for strength and conditioning professionals. Editors Brent A. Alvar, Katie Sell, and Patricia A. Deuster have extensive experience as scholars and practitioners in their respective fields. They have assembled a team of distinguished contributors who bring to light current trends in strength and conditioning through their combined experiences as professionals in the fields of academia, athletic training, firefighting, law enforcement, military, nutrition, physical therapy, and strength and conditioning.
The contributors not only provide foundational knowledge of exercise physiology and biomechanical movement patterns, but they also comprehensively review all of the components necessary for TSAC Facilitators to design and operate successful training programs for tactical athletes. Separate chapters focus on the specific physiological issues related to military, law enforcement, and fire and rescue personnel, including how a strength and conditioning program should directly correlate to their critical job tasks and the specific environmental, occupational, and exposure concerns for each population.
Topics such as nutrition, supplements, injury treatment and rehabilitation, wellness interventions, and assessments and evaluations are discussed for professionals who work with tactical populations. Additionally, exercises, drills, and techniques targeting the specific needs of tactical athletes in areas such as flexibility, mobility, speed, agility, power, and aerobic endurance are described in great detail and accompanied by full-color photos.
Each chapter of NSCA's Essentials of Tactical Strength and Conditioning begins with learning objectives and incorporates key terms, diagrams, detailed photographs, and key points throughout the text to help guide readers and facilitate comprehension of concepts. Sidebars and sample programs are included in some chapters to help readers apply theoretical concepts in their professional practice.
Additionally, for instructors using the book, or the TSAC-F exam prep symposia, a presentation package plus image bank with more than 300 photos and illustrations is available, making preparation easier with the use of predeveloped materials that correspond with the book's content.
Ultimately, the goal of NSCA's Essentials of Tactical Strength and Conditioning is to help prepare those seeking TSAC-F certification and to serve as a resource for professionals so that they can implement an optimal strength and conditioning program targeted for tactical athletes that will decrease their risk of injury and optimize performance.
The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) has long been at the forefront of aiding aspiring and established exercise professionals in working with clients from special populations, such as children, aging adults, and clients with temporary or permanent physical or cognitive conditions and disorders. Clients with special conditions often require modifications to general exercise recommendations, specific exercise facility design, and particular training equipment. They may also require exercise programming supervised by exercise professionals with specialized training.
NSCA's Essentials of Training Special Populations will help exercise professionals design customized programs for clients with unique considerations. It is an ideal preparatory resource for those seeking to become an NSCA Certified Special Population Specialist (CSPS) as well as professionals who work in collaboration with health care professionals to assess, educate, and train special population clients of all ages regarding their health and fitness needs. Editor Patrick L. Jacobs, who has extensive experience as both a practitioner and scholar, and a team of qualified contributors provide evidence-based information and recommendations on particular training protocols for a breadth of conditions, including musculoskeletal conditions, cardiovascular conditions, immunologic disorders, and cancer.
The book discusses the benefits of exercise for clients with special conditions and the exercise-related challenges they often face, as well as the importance of safe and effective health and fitness assessments for these clients. With an emphasis on published research, NSCA's Essentials of Training Special Populations reviews the pathology and pathophysiology of numerous conditions and disorders, including the known effects of exercise on those conditions and disorders. Each chapter includes tables that provide exercise recommendations for specific conditions, complete with training modifications, precautions, and contraindications. Also included are case studies with practical examples of the application of these population-specific recommendations, as well as a summary of the commonly prescribed medications and their potential effects on exercise responses and adaptations.
NSCA's Essentials of Training Special Populations includes a number of learning aids designed to assist the reader. Chapter objectives appear at the beginning of each chapter, study questions are at the end of each chapter, key points in easy-to-find boxes summarize important concepts for the reader, and key terms are identified and defined throughout the text. Recommended readings are also provided for readers wishing to learn more about a topic in general or specifically in preparation for the CSPS exam.
For instructors using NSCA's Essentials of Training Special Populations in a higher education course or for a training symposium, ancillary materials are available to make class preparation easy. The materials are designed to complement the content and assist in its instruction. The ancillaries consist of an instructor's guide, test package, and presentation package plus image bank.