Navigating Different Sporting Cultures
Written by Joe Vecchione Many strength & conditioning (S&C) coaches will work with a variety of sports in their career spanning different ages and levels. Through these experiences, we quickly realize that each sport and level bring a diverse set of S&C deliverables and interpersonal dynamics to navigate. The training routines and roles of the S&C coach have evolved within a deep-rooted culture that spans decades. I am referring to the meta culture of a sport that transcends the team or program we work with creates the common threads that make up the fabric of a sport environment at large. [...]
Strength & Conditioning Resources for Femoroacetabular Impingement
Written by Michael Silvestri Introduction & What is FAI As strength and conditioning professionals, part of the scope of practice is to work with athletes to manage and mitigate the risk of injury in sport. Having an athlete injured, or being an injured athlete is not a positive experience, as this would require the athlete to miss time away from their given sport. Although not all injuries can be prevented through training – particularly contact-related injuries – there are non-contact and overuse related injuries that strength and conditioning professionals should be aware of and work towards mitigating non-contact and overuse [...]
Alternative and Complementary Training Methods for Strength and Flexibility
Authors: David G Behm1, Andreas Konrad2 and Konstantin Warneke3 Institutions: 1 School of Human Kinetic and Recreation, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, A1C 5S7. 2 Institute of Human Movement Science, Sport and Health, Graz University, Graz, Austria. 3 Institute of Sport Science, University of Klagenfurt, Universitätsstraße 65-67 9020 Klagenfurt, Austria Corresponding Author: David G Behm, School of Human Kinetic and Recreation, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, A1C 5S7. 709-864-3408 Running Title: Resistance and Stretch Training Similarities Introduction It has been well known for millennia (e.g., legendary Milo of Croton progressing from lifting a calf [...]
An Interview with Track Coach Les Gramantik: Part 3
You know, we had to complete a Decathlon as part of passing my undergraduate degree.
CSIO Strength & Conditioning Coach Employment Opportunity
POSITION TITLE: PS1 Strength & Conditioning Coach (1.0 FTE) Posting Date: Thursday, August 31, 2023 DEPARTMENT: Performance Services Application Deadline: Monday, September 18, 2023 (09:00am EST) LOCATION: Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre) 875 Morningside Avenue, Suite 100, Toronto Interview Date: Week of September 25, 2023 (Date TBC) ORGANIZATION The Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (CSIO) is committed to providing best-in-class, multi-sport daily training environments for athletes and coaches through expert leadership, services, and programs. Our Purpose is Elevating people and performances Our Values are Commitment, Synergy, Integrity, Openness PERFORMANCE SERVICES CORE OBJECTIVES The Performance Services business unit [...]
CSCA Advisory Team Spotlight – Jennifer Stielow
CSCA Advisory Team Members Jennifer Stielow is the Performance Pathway Manager & Performance Data Analyst at Alpine Canada. She strives to support individuals who can train sensibly and systematically in a safe, clean, and professional manner for individual growth, enjoyment, and the development of performance excellence in both sport and life. CSCA: How did you initially find out about the CSCA? JS: After online searching for credentials in Canada, I found the website and subscribed to the newsletter. I was struck by the content and thought, here is a group of people doing great work in Canada to help connect [...]
Part 1 – Return to High Performance Sport: Progress and Suggestions in the Midst of COVID-19
The objectives of this article are to share the processes, challenges, and successes of reopening facilities dedicated to high performance sport in Canada. In so doing, specifics are shared related to one case study. Additionally, in being open and transparent, practices outlined here within may be appropriate and applicable, for facility owners and operators, during reopening phases in the public and private sectors. Each Canadian Provincial and Territorial government links, for specific guidance, are included at the end of this article. Note, the comment/blog reply posting feature is activated for this article. We encourage you to post your feedback, replies, [...]
Remote Coaching Part 1: What to Use to Connect with Athletes?
As a coach, I have used multiple methods to track training programs and stay connected with the athletes I work with. When I first started coaching, remote coaching involved using either a phone or a fax machine. My business partner and I recognized the challenge of programming and coaching for the athletes we worked with and approached a grad student at U of T to help design a program that enabled us to create, monitor and track programs electronically. There were challenges, glitches, and growing pains, especially for our athletes who lived and raced in different countries. Although there were [...]
Over 30 Years and Still Coaching: Part 2
CSCA Founder and Inaugural President Sheldon Persad CSCA - How did you get started in the industry? SP - My passion has been coaching since I was in grade school. My first paid opportunity came in the mid-1980s as a result of one of my teachers (Doug Quarrington) having faith in me and seeing something in me I did not see in myself. Although he was a teacher, he had a part-time job as the convenor of a youth basketball league. At the last minute, just before the regular season started, one of the coaches had to drop out. He [...]
Olympian Bill Crothers’ Connection with Chris Chapman and Derek Virgo
“Healthy active kids become healthy active adults.” This quotation is from former school trustee and Olympic medalist Bill Crothers, who was instrumental in creating a public school in Markham Ontario that supports student-athletes like no other. Supporting the students includes having a full-time S&C coach as part of the faculty. I met with Mr. Crothers over hot chocolate to discuss the genesis of the high school named in his honour, Bill Crothers Secondary School (BCSS). I also met with the school’s first S&C coach Chris Chapman, and the current S&C coach Derek Virgo, who shared their answers to 4 questions [...]
About the Canadian Strength and Conditioning Association
BRIEF HISTORY Conversations about the formation of a Canadian S&C Association have been on-going in pockets across Canada for over 20 years. On April 4, 2013 we were close. However, debates centred around what the association’s focus should be, without conclusion. Nevertheless, there is a debt of gratitude that needs to be expressed to many individuals for their outstanding work and time devoted in attempting to get an association off the ground at that April 4th meeting in Toronto. In attendance at that meeting were practitioners who worked in the universities, colleges, public sector, private sector, amateur high-performance sport and [...]
