Many young, aspiring coaches think that the path to becoming trainers is as smooth as just graduating from school then landing their dream job. Sometimes, there are lots of stops and hiccups along the way. Sometimes, there’s a lot of detours involved. Take Michael Kay, a Doctor of Physical Therapy based in Phoenix, Arizona. He […]
Playing sports initiates all things performance, whether it’s about trying to be a better jump shooter or a better athlete. And that’s exactly the catalyst that sparked the passion of applied sports scientist and educator Max Schmarzo. After playing Division III Basketball for Coe College, where he also completed his degrees in athletic training and […]
Danny O’Rourke has seen soccer from the vantage point of both athlete and coach. After playing collegiate soccer at Indiana University – where he played 83 games, who back-to-back National Championships and the MAC Hermann Trophy – Danny had an 11-year MLS career. In the early years of his career as a professional soccer player, […]
Performance Coach and Brand Strategy Consultant Sam Pogue knows what it takes to be resilient in a time of uncertainty. After his stint as Director of Strategic Partnerships and Senior Coach for Onnit, Sam moved to Colorado to work for TrueCoach as Vice President of Brand. Amidst the global pandemic, Sam was laid off following […]
To me, Lee Taft is more than a highly-respected and world-renowned athletic movement specialist: He has been a constant mentor and role model who helped shape my thoughts on speed training. A former physical education teacher, Lee began his career in the world of physical preparation in 1989 and has since been helping people take […]
Born and raised in Minnesota, Athletic Performance Coach for Women’s Senior National Volleyball team Jimmy Stitz has always known he wanted to become a coach. Growing up with a passion for many sports, Jimmy stumbled into the world of strength and conditioning at an early age. Realizing his athletic career may not have been strong […]
When 8 Weeks Out founder and best-selling author Joel Jamieson began his career in the fitness industry, he immediately learned the importance of data in gauging the factors that affect fitness and recovery. But what’s interesting is that those factors are often found outside the gym. Without an objective technology that can monitor these factors, […]
From his experience working with elite athletes, Nutrition Consultant Kyle Pfaffenbach knows all too well a pitfall athletes tend to have: While they are driven for success, they can be too strict with everything from training to nutrition. Kyle is an Associate Professor of Health and Human Performance at Eastern Oregon University, where he teaches […]
What does it take to have a long, stable career in the world of sports and physical preparation? And how do you make yourself stand out in a competitive industry where everyone is welcome to enter? Veteran Strength & Conditioning Coach Joe Kenn, whose career spans more than 30 years, is a well of wisdom […]
Sports science is a common thing in elite and professional sports today – but it hasn’t always been that way. Over the past 25 years in his career at high-level sports, sports scientist and consultant Chris Barnes has seen how sports science has evolved and gained prominence. When he began his career as a sports […]
The other day I was walking our dog, Finn, and asked myself this fairly simple question… Why do I coach? It made me think back to when I was a little kid and how much I loved sports. Growing up in the country – with literally ZERO kids my age within miles of me – […]
It can be challenging to coach a high school athlete. Caught between training and studying, these young athletes have a lot of things going on in their lives and can be prone to fatigue and exhaustion. Especially during the COVID-era. Former IFAST intern Mike Coval knows this all too well. Mike is the owner of […]