In recent years, youth strength training and models of athletic development have become hot topics thanks in part to a shift in youth sports from leisure activities to year-round commitments. In order for strength and conditioning professionals to help the athletes of tomorrow achieve their performance and fitness goals, it’s imperative to develop safe, effective, and balanced programming for the youth of today.

This article examines why the Romanian deadlift (RDL) provides a suitable in-season strength training application, explores the interlinked relationship between the demands of practice and resistance training, and identifies how the RDL functions with other lower-extremity exercises.

The purpose of this article is to discuss the theory behind the French Contrast Method (FCM), current evidence demonstrating its effectiveness, as well as proper implementation and execution for athletic populations.

This article explains the potential benefits of microdosing training with tactical athletes.

Although most resources on program design review the foundational scientific principles of training, they often fail to provide practical strategies that strength and conditioning professionals need in order to apply these principles successfully. To help bridge the gap between science and application, this article provides a simple and practical, step-by-step system for applying the scientific principles of training into the program design process.

The purpose of this article is to identify considerations that are to be taken into account when designing and implementing an annual training program for firefighters, as well as to discuss strategies for implementation.

Should personal trainers include the crunch exercise in an exercise program? The answer should always be, “it depends;” however, arriving at the best answer requires a process.

Due to the principle of specificity, training should be tailored to the goal of the lifter in terms of the prioritization of strength, hypertrophy, health, and functional outcomes. If the goal is muscular hypertrophy, it may be beneficial to vary the repetition range, and to utilize a variety of loads and loading strategies in the pursuit of maximizing hypertrophy.

This excerpt from Strength Training, Second Edition provides insight into how resistance bands and cords can be used for a variety of training methods.

This article discusses the influence of lower-body power on soccer performance in collegiate female soccer players. It also covers testing for muscular power qualities, different training modalities to use, and sample training programs as examples.