Someone once told me when it came to programming, their objective was to be able to get as much bang for your buck as possible. That stuck with me, so I ensure my programs are of good quality and don’t last more than 45 minutes.

Stop killing kids by making them run so much. Stop running them into the ground with running… and in general, stop it. It defeats the purposes of building them up.

These off-season lane options are meant to keep them in the ballpark of being in game shape without beating the crap out of them. They don’t have to be ready all the time; just ready to get ready. If you think they are not sport-specific enough or intense enough, that’s why.

“People I knew got my foot in the door, and I got myself through the door.” Morehead State strength and conditioning coach Matt Rhodes shares his story of how he made his way into the collegiate strength and conditioning world.

A bad program can tarnish more than reputation; it could end a young athlete’s future. These kids are in the most important developmental years of their lives, so it’s up to us to give them the tools to be the best they can be, and these key components are a good place to start.

In January 2017, Marc Keys and I embarked upon a labor of love to develop a questionnaire investigating what the various groups of people who make up the rugby industry think are the key elements of the physical preparation of the rugby player. Here are the results.

Alwyn Cosgrove made quite the splash at the SSTSS 2019 event, so it’s only natural we’d have him sit down with Dave… plus, we have a couple of other guests joining Dave and Alwyn. Any guesses? Their last name starts with ant and ends in O…

Quitting social media will help you realize how you’re spending your time and where you’re spending your time. Most of us, myself included, are wasting entirely too much time on stupid stuff. Stop wasting your time there and start putting it where it’s most important.

I’ve covered the negatives about being a collegiate strength coach. If that didn’t scare you off, good — because there are some really awesome things about the job, too. For me, the pros outweigh the cons. If they didn’t, why would I still be doing this?

For the first time in our head coach’s time at Indiana State, the entire roster passed their fitness test before the start of the spring season — and did zero conditioning outside of morning practice sessions. Thank you, conjugate method!

If “what you’re saying you’re doing and what you’re doing to the athlete doesn’t match up… I’m calling BS on your integrity.” Phil Matusz, OSU’s associate director of strength and conditioning, shares a powerful message for high school strength coaches.

After 20 years of mistakes and heartbreaks, I’ve learned that we need to do better when it comes to mental health training for our student-athletes. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but we can start to do better by being more empathetic.

Watch out, Dave — there’s a new host in town. Actually, there are 3 hosts in town, and they’re taking over Table Talk Podcast while Dave is on vacation. Expect some wild stories with Vincent Dizenzo, Matt Rhodes, and Jim Wendler as they answer your questions.

Social media is toxic when it comes down to good teamwork. There’s no “I” in team, and there’s no “me” in team, either. So let’s try to figure out how to flip the “M” in me upside-down and change that Me to a We.

There are movements that I think all coaches should have a fundamental understanding in, and it’s hard to think of an exercise more worthy of a deep dive than the Bulgarian Split Squat. Go grab your dumbbell so we can figure out which side to load.

elitefts has a strong focus on the freedom of education — so strong that we’re willing to invest in all of the content we provide for you. For 20 years, the strength of this value has enabled us to earn your trust, and therefore, produce more content.

During Richland High School’s last football season, I combined the conjugate method and the tier system for programming game day lifts. Seeing the results thus far, I intend to continue the program with a few adjustments — but not before sharing it.

In the first three parts of this series, I discussed the current failings of the strength and conditioning fields. In this fourth and final installment, I’ll try my best to solve some of these problems — something that could very well take decades but needs to be done.

Previously, I’ve discussed relationships with sports coaches and administrators. In Part 3 of this series, I’ll cover some of the biggest issues and names in our field: certification, qualifications, the NCAA, NSCA, and CSCCa.

In The Iron Life Podcast #7, Chris Tutela talks with world-renowned strength and conditioning coach Joe DeFranco about success, programming, things trainers should never do, and more.

Matt Rhodes’ takeaway lessons for strength coaches in this clip: Put your best foot forward. Stop screaming and start communicating. Hold yourself accountable. Do better and be better.

In Part 1, I covered problems strength and conditioning coaches deal with when it comes to sports coaches, whom we work with on a regular basis. Now, I’ll go over a group we don’t deal with every day but impact everything we do: the administrators.

If you understand the science of physics and how to apply it, you’ll have a better understanding of sports and performance enhancement. You owe it to your athletes to understand the fundamentals. Let’s get started.

As I start up my new job, I wanted to give younger strength and conditioning coaches some advice: Don’t be afraid to spread your wings and fly out of your comfort zone. Be bold and be brave. It will pay off at some point.

In this four-part series of articles, I’ll explain why strength and conditioning is a failing field and how we can improve our line of work. This first article covers the problems that we often face with sports coaches.

In this episode of Table Talk Podcast, Dave Tate talks shop with Phil Matusz, the associate director of strength and conditioning for the Ohio State University football team.

“There’s only one way to build confidence, David…” JM Blakley, the creator of the JM Press, isn’t afraid to call Dave Tate out… by his full first name, then, in true coaching fashion, breaks down what it is that good trainers and coaches do.

Not sure if you should attend the NSCA Coaches’ Conference or the CSCCa National Conference? Which exam to take? Take a look at some of the pros and cons of each organization and figure out which is best for you.

I don’t know why my tae-kwon-do instructor did this after I told him I couldn’t afford lessons, but he said, “You’ll be back, and you’ll teach the kids’ class.” He gave me an opportunity to become a coach, which changed the direction of my life.

A few years ago, I attempted to bring 4 strength sports together into a training plan for rugby. This time, I want to delve deeper into the framework that makes up the programming of these sports and how we can program them into a usable athletic development plan.

You won’t ever find my old programs on a typed-out card. Why? Because I don’t run the same program each year. I meet my kids where they’re at, which is why this program isn’t a program. It’s an outline.

For Ashley Jones, being at the S5 Compound is like being a kid in a candy store, meaning he needs some moderation. Rather than use all of the equipment, Ashley shows off his top-5 pieces of equipment that should be in every strength and conditioning program for rugby.

Self-determination theory is an approach to shift motivation from extrinsic to intrinsic. As coaches, we can make small changes to the way we already do things to cause great changes to the athlete’s performance and motivation source.

The suggested strategy to build trust from the sports coach involves a particular approach to the strength and conditioning process. A natural consequence of this approach defines the scope of practice of strength and conditioning.

Lately, I’ve noticed a lot of coaches telling other coaches to be careful of people who ask for advice in case they’ll steal their trade secrets. Knock it off. Where did you learn the stuff you know now? That knowledge is not yours alone.

During my time working under the University of Minnesota’s Cal Dietz, I saw the impact of the myelination phase in athletic performance. I also found it’s most effectively programmed with Overcoming Isometric variations of the big lifts.

In this episode of Table Talk Podcast, Dave Tate, Matt Rhodes, and Jim Wendler re-watch some old training videos, talk about near-death experiences, being a strength coach, and more.

Every team has areas that need attention, and if we are not careful, we can step on the toes of others by doing their jobs, and then we have no time to develop what OUR job calls us to do.

Here’s a red pill for you to swallow: The conjugate system is like an XL shirt that fits differently on different people. With a few modifications, that shirt can be made to fit just about anyone. Same goes for the program in this article.

After resigning from my last position, I thought it was an opportune time to reflect on the situation and hopefully, a time for me to assist you in the process of finding your next gig. Best of luck in your job hunt!

Listen, Blockbuster, Sears, and Kodak went under because they failed to add this secret ingredient to their business models. Are you willing to risk all your business’ longevity? Read on to see how your business can stand the test of time.

For those new to the game and for seasoned vets alike who’ll be attending the CSSCa National Conference, here are some do’s and don’t’s that will make your annual trip a success — both in terms of enjoyment and employment.

Get to know Dr. Bryan Mann, from his humble beginnings to his current position at the University of Miami, and how he became one of the leading experts on Velocity Based Training.

My why is to improve athletes through and of the human body and mind by giving them all a well-thought-out program to make them faster, stronger, and more resilient. What’s your why? And why?

In this episode of Table Talk Podcast, you might want to grab your headphones because Dave Tate has some choice words on a variety of topics.

It’s not every day that you get to listen to an interview with the only strength coach who’s won a championship in both the NFL and NBA. That means today is your day! A few topics we cover are recovery, early morning workouts, trends, intensity, injury, calf exercises, buy-in, and more!

Your foundation needs to be deeper and stronger than your core values. It must be a part of your being, some things that you will never give into or allow to change. These can also be small things that will get you, your staff, and your players through just about anything.

Generally speaking, if we can get an athlete stronger, that athlete will get faster. But at what point is the athlete strong enough for continued speed improvements? I hope you weren’t looking for a quantifiable answer on this one…

According to the Pareto Principle, 80% of results come from 20% of your time. Ocham’s Razor states the simplest solution tends to be the best one. Simplicity is the missing ingredient in most training programs. Hence why I return to the famous paradigm of the pull-push-squat.

Dave Tate advises potential college students to bust their asses, get the best grades they can in high school, try to get scholarships and grants to knock the price tag down; Jim Wendler suggests going to a junior college to get basic requirements out of the way; and both of them stress the importance of internships.

In this episode of Table Talk Podcast, Dave Tate and Jim Wendler talk about a couple of documentaries, majoring in exercise science, the best way to break down the conjugate method, and more.

A beautiful transformation occurs when you begin to accept that difficulties are as inherent to our lives as breathing. For strength coaches, there is nothing more substantive to our daily lives than questions and books. Do you diverge from the routine?

The DOMINATE method is a way of working out a team with the bare minimum while still being able to maximize results. It consists of eight principles that all successful strength and conditioning programs must have and must be able to do.

In this episode of Table Talk Podcast, Dave Tate and JL Holdsworth reminisce about their time at Westside Barbell, perspective and the meaning of “going all in,” figuring out band and chain percentages, and more.

In order to fully help your athletes maximize their performance while bringing the juice as a coach, you have to be able to communicate to them how to do the lifts properly — through effective and efficient cues. Here, take a sample sip of some of my juicier cues.