Todd Hamer is the head strength and conditioning coach at Robert Morris University. He received his bachelor’s of science degree in exercise science from Pennsylvania State University in 1999 and his master’s of science degree from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia in August 2002. Todd is a competitive powerlifter, and his best lifts are a 545-lb squat, a 375-lb bench, and a 500-lb deadlift.

RC: Why did you want to become a strength and conditioning coach?

TH: I’ve always been interested in athletics. For years, my father worked at the University of Pittsburgh and that led me down the road of strength and conditioning.

RC: Where did you start your career?

TH: I began interning for Buddy Morris during his second stint at the University of Pittsburgh. I was extremely green and had no clue what performance training was all about. Also, working for or around Buddy when you’re 22-years-old is a little intimidating.
RC: Who are your influences?

TH: I will try to mention everyone—Buddy Morris, Mylo (Tom Myslinski and his staff), Tim Beltz, Ethan Reeves, Tim Kontos, Jason Riddell, and Jim Roney. This is just a short list of strength coaches. As far as those working outside of college athletics, there are many more such as Eric Cressey, Jason Ferruggia, Smitty and the Diesel Crew, Dr. Steve Horwitz, the guys at EliteFTS, Sir Edmund Hillary, and Tenzing Norgay.
RC: What is your favorite sport to work with?

TH: I can honestly say that I don’t have one team that I enjoy working with more than any other team. The beauty of this job is that I deal with athletes from many different backgrounds and sports. This makes my job ever changing.

RC: What do you think is the most important attribute to have to be a strength coach in the NCAA?

TH: Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty. I interviewed for a job once, and the strength coach who interviewed me called Buddy Morris to ask about me. His response was that I wasn’t afraid to get my hands dirty.

RC: What is the basis of your program design for your athletic teams here at Robert Morris?

TH: Wow, what a great question. I have no clue! Each team is different. Some teams do Olympic lifts while others don’t, and some use kettlebells while others don’t. My underlying philosophy is that I must make the athlete better using whatever means possible. If something isn’t working, we must adapt.

RC: What type of preventative measures do you take with your teams as a sort of
pre-habilitation before the in-season?

TH: We do pre-habilitation work throughout the year. We work some pre-habilitation into each one of our warm ups. I try not to separate pre-habilitation, rehab, and strength training because there are numerous movements that could be classified as all three. For example, take the squat. If your athletes’ knees collapse during the squat and you correct this, you have decreased your athletes’ chance of being injured while training for strength.

RC: What’s the biggest challenge you have being the strength coach at Robert Morris University?

TH: Twenty-three teams! Ha ha! Just time for each athlete and the ability to motivate many different teams, coaches, and athletes. One of the first rules I implemented when I started at RMU was that when you come in the weight room, I don’t want to see any other school’s gear. This was a shock to many athletes. However, being a Division I school, I think it is important to place ourselves on the same level as the University of Missouri or the University of Pittsburgh. Attitude controls everything that we do.

RC: In your opinion, what is the key to making each team’s workout time efficient?

TH: I have roughly 45 minutes to an hour with each team so this is extremely important. First, we do not waste time on exercises with little metabolic demand. Our core exercises are squats, pull-ups, body weight rows using blast straps, and bench presses. As you can see, all of these exercises have a high metabolic demand. Pull-ups are the king.

RC: From your experience, what schools do you feel are truly getting the most out of the weight room in recent years?

TH: Anyone who shows up. Honestly, I can’t say who is and who isn’t getting it done. However, I will tell you the schools that I learn a lot from. I’ve been blown away by what the University of Missouri (Mizzou) is currently doing. Also, with Buddy Morris working with the football team and Tim Beltz working with basketball, the University of Pittsburgh is getting it done. Others that affect me are Wake Forest University, the University of Richmond, the University of North Carolina, Duke, American University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Minnesota (Cal Dietz is really smart!), University of Southern California, and Drexel (any school who has a dragon is good with me). Also, Quinnipiac (second best in the NEC) is going to be a school that you hear from in the future.
RC: In your opinion, what is the one thing missing from training programs for athletes?

TH: Attitude. I have said this many times but will repeat it here. My workouts are just pieces of paper, no better or worse than toilet paper. What makes the workout is the work put into the workout.

RC: If you could add anything to the weight room, what would it be?

TH: More space. My weight room has three Sorinex double-sided racks, three York racks, and one York half rack with a platform. So I have enough places to squat, bench, and perform pull-ups or other movements. Also, we have blast straps from EliteFTS hanging from every pull-up bar as well as bands, chains, Strongman equipment, trap bars, fat bars, and kettlebells. We don’t need much more equipment. However, being in the sunshine city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, it’s difficult during the winter to find space to warm up a team or foam roll due to lack of space.
RC: In five years, where do you see your athletes?

TH: What a great question. Ninety-nine percent of my athletes will never play a professional sport, and I must realize that as a strength professional. My ultimate job is to make better people. I am an educator, not better or worse than a physics teacher. So I hope that most of my athletes continue on to successful careers in whatever profession they choose.

RC: What one piece of advice would you give a student who wants to be a strength and conditioning coach in the NCAA?

TH: Volunteer! Get out and work for someone and anyone.

RC: Finally, what’s the best part of your job?

TH: The best part of my job is working with the athletes. Most of my athletes are good people with bright futures, and it is exciting to watch them travel through this period of their lives.

Richard Canter is currently in his senior year at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania and is working toward his bachelor’s degree in exercise science. He has volunteered many hours with Division 1 coaches in the pursuit of learning what it means to be in the strength and conditioning profession. He has a passion for training and plans to pursue a career as a strength coach.  Richard is also employed as a personal trainer. He can be contacted at rncstrength@comcast.net.