Paris Experience
Written by Sheldon Persad The topic of the Olympic games typically brings about divergent views and sentiments. On one end of the spectrum there are those who spend a lifetime preparing for the Olympics in the pursuit of excellence, and on the other end of the spectrum there are those who approach the topic with cynicism and comments about wasted spending. Yes, the Olympics costs host cities a lot of money, and according to Flyvbjerg et al. (2016) every Olympics between 1960 to 2012 went over budget at an average of 172% (1). Specific to the Paris games, with a [...]
Ammonia Inhalants
Written by Trevor Cottrell Ammonia inhalants (AI), also known as smelling salts, are common in the powerlifting gym. Coming in various capsule or bottle forms, these inhalants are made of ammonia carbonate and release ammonia gas, that when inhaled, causes a strong nervous system response that is thought to enhance focus and ability to move weight. Although anecdotally supported by many lifters, the safety and efficacy of its use is often in question. Research on AI use as a strength performance aid is limited. A study of Australian powerlifters found that over half have used AIs, with the majority of [...]
CSCA and CSEP Collaboration Announcement
The Canadian Strength and Conditioning Association (CSCA) in partnership with the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) is excited to announce the development and launch of Canada’s first and only strength and conditioning credential, the Certified Strength and Conditioning Professional (CSCP). The CSCP credential is allocated to an individual who has completed all academic and professional experience requirements and successfully demonstrated coaching and knowledge proficiencies set forth by the CSCA’s newly developed mentorship program. Through continued collaboration with various national organizations, both employers and athletes will recognize that the CSCP qualifies a strength and conditioning professional to design and administer [...]
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. [...]
2023 CSCA Conference
https://canadianstrengthca.com/ Join us Virtually May 12, 2023 Join us Live May 13, 2023 Nova Scotia - Dalhousie University Ontario - Sheridan College British Columbia - University of British Columbia CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS https://canadianstrengthca.com/
Performance Solutions Workshop (Vancouver)
An active workshop for therapists, kinesiologists and coaches to improve their ability to get performance-minded athletes/clients back to their sport/activity, and how to best work in collaboration with medical professionals. For additional details and to register click HERE
McMaster Performance Summer Strength & Conditioning Female Coaching Internship
This opportunity is a paid 18-week internship providing hands on experience in the field of Strength & Conditioning in a University athletic setting. Individual selected for this position will work 10-15 hours/week under the direction of lead performance coaches. The total compensation for this position is dependent on candidate as hours are flexible based on candidate needs and areas of interest. The purpose of the Summer S&C internship program is to educate an up and coming coach in all aspects of sports performance coaching. Selected intern will assist with and help train varsity athletes from a wide range of sports, [...]
IHPS Conference 2023
$50 off extended to CSCA Members (Discount code sent to memebers directly through FB and email) The best in hockey performance at a live and in-person event this summer at IHPS 2023! Opening the Summit on Friday night with one of the world's best performance coaches and researchers, Dr. Matt JordanStarting the first full day of presentations with an icon in hockey performance Matt Nichol doing a one-on-one Leave Your Mark style conversation with Scott LivingstonTwo-time Stanley Cup winner Ryan Van Asten goes deep on Energy System TrainingOne of Canada's best sports dieticians and consultant to the NBA Champion Golden [...]
Becoming a Successful Intern
Internships provide guided opportunities to develop coaching skills and are the most common pathway to becoming a strength and conditioning coach. Internships play a pivotal role in coach development and are a way to open doors to the industry. Within internships, an important indicator of subsequent success is the ability to thrive and internalize lessons along the way, which will build essential skills while building your network and learning from others. As a coach currently in my third round of being an intern across three different settings, I have gathered a broad array of experiences, learned from a diverse set [...]
Insight into International Soccer Environments from Two National Programs
International soccer operates in a series of camps that take place all over the world ranging from approximately 10 days to 6 weeks or longer. With plenty of access to athletes and staff, there are numerous ways in which international soccer staff members function to provide high-performance support to their teams. I have had the privilege of working with the women’s soccer programs from two nations. I will share insight into some of the similarities and differences I experienced between the New Zealand Senior Women’s National Team (WNT) and Canada’s Senior and U20 WNT teams this past year through training [...]
Multi-Role Practitioners: Should Strength and Conditioning Coaches « Stay in Their Lane »?
Introduction Due to the various demands of being a strength and conditioning coach (i.e., working with different types of athletes with different goals) and evolving training modalities, it is natural to learn new skills over time. Some practitioners specialize in a specific area, while others opt to learn a breadth of skills in many areas. Areas outside the classic scope of strength and conditioning include: nutrition, psychology, physiology, biomechanics, physical therapy, performance analysis, and sport coaching. As a practitioner, I bounced back and forth between strength and conditioning and nutrition early in my career, eventually landing a job as a [...]
Make Them Feel Special: 4 Tips to Building Relationships within your Athletic Department
When it comes to being a Strength & Conditioning Coach in an academic setting (University, College, High School), there are many challenges that come with the job that can include lack of space/funding, scheduling issues, as well as long hours with low pay. The biggest struggle I have encountered in my three years working full-time in this setting, is getting the buy-in of both the sport coaches and student-athletes. S&C professionals don’t have much say when it comes to playing time for athletes (unless you are a dual role S&C/Sport Coach). Due to this athlete engagement can be limited and [...]
McMaster University – Performance and Wellness Workshop August 5-7
McMaster Performance, the Marauders' elite-athlete training program, in partnership with McMaster University's Department of Kinesiology, are hosting a three-day Performance and Wellness workshop to engage leading industry professionals and those exploring a career in strength & conditioning or human kinetics. The event, hosted at the Marauders' new, state-of-the-art High Performance Area from August 5-7, 2022, will feature guest speakers, panelists and interactive workshops covering a range of topics on biomechanics, coaching strategies, clinical integration, motivation, career paths, and more. "Here at McMaster, we understand the importance of seeing things from a holistic perspective when it comes to training and performance with [...]
Creating Effective Resumes
The resume is an important tool for getting you onto the "short list" for a job interview, no more, no less. It is critical for very quickly and efficiently highlighting your skillsets and experience in a manner that displays professionalism and attention to detail. A poorly designed resume can easily find its way into the "no" pile and with employers only having 30 seconds to review each resume you need to make sure yours will strongly display your qualifications. In this webinar you will have the opportunity to learn how to effectively design and organize your resume, and review samples [...]
Facility Planning and Design
This webinar covers the general processes involved in designing your own facility. Whether small or large scale, there are important steps in the process to consider. This webinar also provides some tips and tricks for finding the best deals on equipment and a few shortcuts on affordable facility design. https://youtu.be/DcbxlvGCWzM
Equipment Vendors Guide
To support our members, we have partnered with our preferred equipment vendor Dotmar Fitness Inc to provide you with a vendor guide for equipment sales. The vendors on this list are both national and local, and represent major vendors with the capacity to bid on large projects and manage purchase orders. CSCA-Vendors-List-4-29-22Download
Becoming a Strength and Conditioning Professional
Learn what is involved in being a strength and conditioning professional and the traditional pathways you can follow to enter the profession. https://youtu.be/EbQ-fT9jLfA
CSCA CONFERENCE 2022
REGISTER HERE Registration closes on May 4th 11:59pm ET DATES: Friday May 6th and Saturday May 7th, 2022 WHERE: Virtual (Conference Link will be sent to participants the week leading up to the conference) General Admission = $50 CSCA Conference Schedule 2022 FRIDAY MAY 6th (7pm-9pm ET) OPENING KEYNOTE The Importance of Mastery for the S&C Coach (Dr Stuart McGill) Consider the spectrum of health care and illness prevention. Fact: every system in the body requires appropriate movement, and stress, for optimal health. Now consider who is the movement specialist within the life-long heath rubric? Also consider who guides the path [...]
Female Athlete Health and Wellness
I opened my talk at the first annual CSCA conference last year with an apology and about a year later I am going to do the same with this short article. I will also end this with my final slide as it is still applicable. During the conference I highlighted the fact that in my 20 years of coaching, I wasn’t vocal enough in calling out some of the traditions that we tend to rally around as S&C coaches. The reality is, professional (paid) S&C, or even sport coaching for that matter, is relatively new in the grand scheme of [...]
Reconditioning Learning Opportunities
R1 Foundations - The LIVE LAB Have you been waiting to do Reconditioning in a live environment? We get it. The R1 Foundations LIVE LAB is made for you. This LIVE weekend Lab is a chance to finally get together with us to practice all of the principles and skills outlined in the online learning content of R1 Foundations Neuro Reconditioning in an in-person, group, case study format. This is a LEARNING LABORATORY where you will be exposed to context and application through case studies. You will do and try the skills and principles and understand how these will best [...]