INTRO TO Strength & Conditioning

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MISSION
Provide the most up to date, evidence-based
and practically applicable knowledge to
Strength & Conditioning Coaches, Sport
Scientists, Sports Coaches & Athletes

VISION
Educate Coaches & Athletes globally to
improve their training, nutrition, recovery
& performance

AMBITION
Make Strength & Conditioning accessible &
digestible for everyone
 S&C MANUAL Collection

INTRO TO S&C THE WARM-UP NEEDS ANALYSIS COACHING HYPERTROPHY 1 HYPERTROPHY 2

Fundamentals Movement Prep Athlete & Sport Communication Muscular Adaptations Training Principles

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PLANNING & POWER 2 POWER 1 MAX STRENGTH 2 MAX STRENGTH 1

PROGRAMME DESIGN Training Principles Training Modalities Training Principles NM Adaptations
Periodisation
 INTRO TO S&C Overview
• What is Strength & Conditioning | What is Coaching?

• Exercise & Adaptation

• Key Sporting Performance Indicators

• Why do we do it? | Multiple Training Goals

• How do we do it? | Rationale | Factors to Consider

• Manipulating Training Variables

• Keystone Movement Patterns

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WHAT IS Strength & Conditioning?

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 DEFINITION OF S&C
• A strength and conditioning coach is a fitness and physical performance professional who uses exercise prescription to improve the performance
of competitive athletes. This is achieved through the combination of strength training and aerobic conditioning, alongside a variety of further
methods. Strength and conditioning coaches also help athletes with injury prevention and proper mechanics within their sports performances. –
Human Kinetics

• A Strength and Conditioning Coach plans, delivers and reviews the physical and physiological preparation of athletes aligned to specific sports
performance outcomes. – English Institute of Sport

• Strength and conditioning at its simplest form is the practical application of sports science to enhance movement quality. It is grounded in
evidence-based research and physiology of exercise and anatomy. – Strength and Conditioning Education

• The specialist area encompassing the physical preparation of athletes for performance in sport, while aiming to prevent or minimise the risk of
injury. It includes processes that result in physical adaptation. Strength work involves all forms of resistance training. Equally the conditioning
element can include work on agility, endurance, speed and flexibility and other areas, which can impact on the athlete's performance. – UKSCA

• Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialists (CSCS) are professionals who apply scientific knowledge to train athletes for the primary
goal of improving athletic performance. They conduct sport-specific testing sessions, design and implement safe and effective
strength training and conditioning programs and provide guidance regarding nutrition and injury prevention. - NSCA

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 TWO SIDES TO S&C

STRENGTH CONDITIONING
Ability to generate force or power Ability to sustain repeated force/power outputs
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& recover
 COMPLEX S&C @strength_conditioning_science

Fat Mass – Sum of 7 Skinfolds

BODY COMPOSITION INJURY
Lean Mass – Muscle Mass & Hypertrophy Sport Specific (Common Sites)
Momentum (mass x velocity) & Collisions Robustness | Resilience
Tissue Tolerance (Capacity)
Mobility | Flexibility
Peak Power Outputs
Power to Weight Ratio (P:W)
Explosiveness/ Speed-Strength
Rate of Force Development
POWER
Elasticity/ Plyometrics/ SSC/ Stiffness/ RSI
CONDITIONING
STRENGTH Cardiovascular System
Maximal Strength: Respiratory System
ATHLETE Eccentric Energy System Development
Position Isometric W:R Ratios
Training Age Concentric Variable Manipulation
S&C History Strength Endurance
Injury History Strength-Speed
Comparison to SPEED
Normative Data
Linear | Multidirectional
Acceleration | Maximum Velocity
HSR Exposure | Deceleration
ENERGY SYSTEMS Change of Direction | Agility
Aerobic Capacity BIOMECHANICS Repeated Sprint Ability
Movement Skills:
Anaerobic Lactic: Glycolytic Main movements & positions of sport
Cross-over | Drop Step | Side Step
Anaerobic Alactic: PCr Athlete’s movement limitations/restrictions & abilities
 SIMPLE S&C @strength_conditioning_science

↑ Performance ↓ Injury Risk

“The physical preparation of athletes to improve sports performance, while

aiming to prevent or minimise the risk of injury.” - UKSCA
Coaching: AN ART OR A SCIENCE?
 ART Vs Science @strength_conditioning_science

Practical Coaching Underpinning Scientific Principles

Pedagogy: Physiology:
Educational | Learning | Knowledge Exchange Demands | Metabolic | Cardiovascular | Respiratory
Neuro-Muscular Adaptations | Skeletal Adaptations
Politics: Influence of Environment | Altitude | Heat | Humidity
Social Sciences | Leadership | Relationships | Kinesiology | Biomechanics | Joint & Muscle Actions
Decision Making
Principles of Adaptation:
Communication: Periodisation | Manipulation of Variables | Recovery
Influence | Improvisation | Rapport | Trust | Buy-In Fitness Testing & Monitoring | Valid & Reliable Tests

“What we say matters” – Nick Winkelman

“You do not get buy-in, you earn it” – Brett Bartholomew
WHY DO WE NEED Strength & Conditioning?
 MULTIPLE PERFORMANCE Goals
Neuromuscular Maximal Strength Aerobic Endurance Change of Direction
Control Development (Capacity) & Agility

Muscle Power Linear Acceleration & Stability

Hypertrophy Development Maximal Speed Mobility
Flexibility

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 EXERCISE & Adaptation
Exercise Stimulates Adaptation:

• Exercise stimulates acute & chronic adaptation in body tissues/organs

• These adaptations can be specific to the type (mode) of exercise or training
• Adaptations occur at the cellular level and are mediated by so-called ‘Signal Transduction Pathways’
• These regulate the transcription & translation of genes and hence influence phenotype

Exercise signals


Activation/inhibition of signal transduction pathways


Change in gene transcription, translation or other cell function
(= adaptation)
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 PRINCIPLES OF Training
Simplistic acronym to generally
illustrate main components of a
programme
S.P.O.R.T
Specific (Relevant) to Sport: Rugby
Specific to Position: Prop
Specific to Goals: LB Strength/Power
Specific to Weaknesses: Acceleration
SPECIFICITY
Essentially ‘detraining‘. May occur
during times of injury & lead to
muscle atrophy, strength &
performance decrements
REVERSIBILITY
Monotony: Refers to variety of
training (exercise type, training
TEDIUM modality etc) for mental
stimulation & physical adaptation

For physiological adaptation &

Objective, quantifiable gains in key
performance indicators relevant for
PROGRESSION RECOVERY performance enhancement to
occur, adequate recovery & re-
sporting success
fueling (nutrition) must take place

OVERLOAD INDIVIDUAL Other factors to consider:

Increasing the stress stimulus for Training Age
the desired adaptation(s) over time Injury History
Timetables & Schedules etc.

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 PRINCIPLE OF Dynamic Correspondence
• Definition: The training effect or ‘transferability’ of training
• First described by Verkhoshansky & Siff (1999) – Supertraining Book
• A generic term referring to the ability of a training programme to directly influence athletes’ sport performance
• Strength & Conditioning work in the gym must transfer into improved performance on the pitch/court/pool etc.
• However, difficult to practically measure – due to multiple uncontrollable variables e.g. Recovery, Nutrition, Sleep etc.
• Dynamic Correspondence = Specificity = SAID Principle
• SAID: Specific Adaptations to Imposed Demands
▪ Training must reflect sporting demands in the following ways:
o Physiologically | Same Metabolic Energy Systems used during Competition | e.g. ATP-PCr
o Biomechanically | Same Movement Qualities| Muscle & Joint Actions as Seen in Sport | e.g. Vertical Power
o Psychologically | Cognitive Component | Reactive Agility in Response to External Stimuli | Decision Making

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 ADAPTATION & Energy Systems
PRIMARY ANAEROBIC LACTIC OXIDATIVE
ANAEROBIC ALACTIC
ENERGY
(PHOSPHAGEN) (GLYCOLYTIC) (OXIDATIVE PHOSPHORYLATION)
SYSTEM

EXERCISE
Highest High to Moderate Low to Moderate
INTENSITY

0-6 Seconds,
DURATION 30-75 Seconds Minutes to Hours
6-30 Second

SPEED OF ATP
Very High High Low
PRODUCTION

TOTAL ATP
Very Low Low High
PRODUCTION

FUEL Phospho-Creatine (PCr) Blood Glucose Blood Glucose

SOURCE & Stored ATP Muscle & Liver Glycogen
Muscle & Liver Glycogen
Adipose Tissue (Fat)
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 SAID | Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands

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 INJURY Risk Reduction

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 SIMPLE S&C
Performance

Injury Risk
REMEMBER: “The physical preparation of athletes to improve sports performance,
while aiming to minimise the risk of injury”
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MOST COMMON Injuries & Areas?

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 INJURY RISK | Common Injury Regions
RUGBY
Concussion equates to 20% of BADMINTON & WATER POLO
all rugby union injuries Over 50% of badminton athletes report
(Head & Neck) Shoulder pain in dominant shoulder
Majority of water polo injuries (24%) to Shoulder

CANOE
Majority of injuries sustained in upper limb, with
shoulder being most commonly injured site VOLLEYBALL
(26%) Ankle = most commonly injured area (26%)
Knee = 15% - Rationale for improving
jumping & landing ability
HOCKEY Small injury risk for Lower Back
Most injuries affect Lower Limbs
Majority occur without contact and
include thigh, knee, ankle NETBALL
Second most common injury site = Knee
Majority through jumping & landing tasks
that involve abrupt twisting whilst foot is
NETBALL planted
Ankle injuries (strains & sprains) most common. BADMINTON
Ligaments are most commonly injured tissue (53%) Majority of lower extremity
Most common injury mechanism: landing from jump (33%) injuries to knee, ankles & Achilles
Majority of injuries are ‘first time’ injuries (81%)
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Rugby: Montgomery et al. (2018) | Canoe: Toohey et al. (2018) | Hockey: Hollander et al. (2018) | Netball: Partner et al. (2017) | Badminton: Fahlstrom et al. (2006) & Reeves et al. (2015) | Miller et al. (2018) | Volleyball: Bere et al. (2015)
 REDUCING Injury Risk
Increase Muscle Size & Strength:
Reduce risk of soft tissue injuries (strains & tears)

Increase Bone Mineral Density:

Reduce risk of fractures & breaks

Increase Strength of Connective Tissue

(Ligaments, Tendons & Cartilage): Reduce risk of ruptures & sprains

Increase Athlete Robustness & Resilience:

Strengthen supportive structures & joint integrity
Strength training can reduce sports injuries to less than 1/3 (Lauersen et al. 2014)
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 BENEFITS OF Resistance Training
STRENGTH • • BLOOD PRESSURE
AEROBIC ENDURANCE • • MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN
POWER & JUMP HEIGHT • • IMMUNE SYSTEM FUNCTION
SPRINT & CHANGE OF DIRECTION TIME • • OBESITY & BODY COMPOSITION

O’Connor et al. (2010)

Maestroni et al. (2020) • MEMORY & COGNITION
• DEPRESSION & ANXIETY
• SELF-ESTEEM & CONFIDENCE
• SLEEP QUALITY & CHRONIC FATIGUE

MUSCLE MASS & STRENGTH •

BONE MINERAL DENSITY •
TENDON STRENGTH •
CARTILAGE HEALTH • • CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK
• METABOLIC DISORDER RISK
• TYPE II DIABETES RISK
• CANCER SIDE EFFECTS
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 INJURY IS Multi-Factorial

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 FACTORS AFFECTING Injury Risk
ENVIRONMENT NUTRITION
PSYCHOLOGICAL Weather: Temperature, Humidity
Inadequate Calorific Intake
Protein, Carbohydrate, Fats
Playing Surface (Friction) Poor Food Choices - Inflammation
Travel Demands

Anxiety
Depression
Excitement (Confidence)
EQUIPMENT
Stress Damaged/Faulty
Inappropriate
Worn-Out

TRAINING
BIOLOGICAL Loading: Volume, Frequency, Intensity etc.
Age (Youth, Adolescent,
Adult, Elderly)
Exposure & Playing Experience/ History
Competitive Level
RECOVERY
Preparedness/ Readiness Sleep - Restoration
Sex (Male/Female)
Previous Injury History Stress (Tissue & Psychological)
Maturity (Pre/Post-PHV)
Stage of Recovery Mental (Regeneration)
(Return to Performance) Modality
Duration
Frequency
PHYSIOLOGY ANATOMICAL Adherence
Flexibility & Mobility (ROM) Body Composition
Muscle Imbalance (Asymmetry) Biomechanics (Movement Mechanics)
Muscle Weakness (Strength/Force) Bodymass
Fatigue (Physical/Mental) @strength_conditioning_science
Movement Categorisation
 MOVEMENT Classification
DURATION: High (<120s), Moderate (150-120s), Low (<15s) 06
VELOCITY: High (<1.0m/s), Moderate (0.5-1.0m/s), Low (<0.5m/s) 05
LOAD: High (80-100% 1RM), Moderate (60-80% 1RM) or Low (<60%1RM) 04
PLANE: Frontal, Sagittal or Transverse 03
STANCE: Foot arrangement & center of mass 02
PATTERN: 6 Fundamental Movement Patterns 01
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Keystone Movement Patterns
“Train Movements, Not Muscles” - EXOS
If you train patterns, you won’t miss muscles, but if you train muscles, you will miss patterns
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 KEYSTONE Movement Patterns
UB PULL SQUAT
Vertical Bilateral
Horizontal Semi-unilateral
Diagonal Unilateral

UB PUSH LUNGE
Vertical Forward
Horizontal Rear
Diagonal Lateral

BRACE HINGE
Rotate, Carry, Flex, Extend Bilateral
Semi-unilateral
Unilateral
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 KEYSTONE
6 FUNDAMENTAL MOVEMENT PATTERNS:
• Squat | Lower Body Push
▪ E.g. Goblet Squat
• Hip Hinge | Lower Body Pull
▪ E.g. BB Romanian Deadlift (RDL)
• Lunge | (Semi-)Unilateral Lower Body Push
▪ E.g. BB Forward Lunge
• UB Push | Upper Body Push (Vertical & Horizontal)
▪ E.g. Press Up | BB Overhead Press
• UB Pull | Upper Body Pull (Vertical & Horizontal)
▪ E.g. Chin-Up | BB Bent Over Row
• Brace | Trunk Abdominal Stabilisation
▪ E.g. Pallof Press
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Movement Patterns
WHAT ARE THEY?
• Main movement patterns that form the
foundations of exercise selection
• A way of categorising exercises based on their
biomechanical demands
• Generally the first movements an athlete is
taught within the gym environment (and
usually without external load)
• Act as initial building blocks for other
movement patterns
 KEYSTONE Movement Patterns
HOW ARE THEY CLASSIFIED?
Common rules of thumb for categorising exercises
• Movement Direction
▪ E.g. Flat BB Bench Press | Horizontal Press
• Primary Joint Lever
▪ E.g. During a RDL, the Hip Joint is the Primary Lever
• Or, the Joint deemed to experience the Largest Relative Forces
▪ E.g. Pistol Squat – the hip may experience larger overall forces than the knee, however, the knee might
experience close to it’s maximal tolerance. A pistol squat would therefore be classified as a
Knee-Dominant Movement

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 MOVEMENT PATTERNS Sport Example
HOW ARE THEY USED? A sporting example

• What is a main movement pattern of a Rowing Athlete?

• UB Pull: Horizontal Pulling Action (Shoulder Extension | Humerus Adduction | Elbow Flexion)

• How may we improve the general strength of this movement pattern within the gym environment?

• Exercise Selection: UB Pull (Horizontal) – BB Bent Over Row

• Additionally, we have a Lower Body Pushing Action (Hip & Knee Extension)
• What lower body exercise may aid this pattern?

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 MOVEMENT PATTERN Taxonomy
UPPER BODY
• Push
• Pull

TRUNK
• Brace:
- Flex LOWER BODY
- Extend • Squat
- Rotate • Lunge
• Hinge

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 Planes OF MOTION
The three planes of motion are the frontal, sagittal & transverse:

• Frontal Plane: Cuts the body into front and back

Side-to-side movements (Lateral Movements: Adduction & Abduction)

▪ E.g. Lateral Lunge: Hips & Knees move in same plane as imaginary line

• Sagittal Plane: Cuts the body into left and right

Forward & backward movements (Flexion & Extension)

▪ E.g. Back Squat: Knees & Hips move in same plane as imaginary line

• Transverse Plane: Cuts the body into top and bottom

Twisting movements (Rotational & Diagonal)

▪ E.g. Rotational Med Ball Throws: Torso moves around central axis of
rotation

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 KEYSTONE Trunk Movements
Trunk Training (Core): - Trunk training, typically referred to as core training
• Brace E.g. Plank - Most challenge lumbo-pelvic stability to prevent
• Flexion E.g. Hanging Leg Raise unwanted movement (“anti-”)
• Anti-Flexion E.g. Isometric Back Extension Hold - Improve stability of spine & abdominal stiffness
• Anti-Lateral Flexion E.g. Side Plank (Fenwick et al. 2009)
• Anti-Extension E.g. Deadbugs - Many exercises fall into multiple categories
• Anti-Rotation E.g. Pallof Press
• Rotation & Diagonal E.g. Med Ball Throw
• Loaded Carry E.g. Farmers Walk
• Crawling E.g. Bear Crawl (Loaded)

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 WHY Trunk Training?

RESIST MOVEMENT TRANSFER FORCE

Ability to prevent unwanted movement Transfer force into implement,
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object or opponent
Vertical UB Pull | Options
• Pull Ups (Wide-Grip, Close-Grip, Neutral-Grip)
• Chin-Ups
• Lat-Pulldown
• Plank Banded Rows

More Than One Way to Skin a Cat

HOW DO WE Improve Performance?

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STRENGTH
Ability to generate force is
foundational in both sporting
performance and reducing
injury risk. Apply force into
ground (sprint & jump),
opponent (tackle),
object (stick or ball)
TRAINING
POWER
Ability to generate force rapidly,
under short time-frames, similar
to how explosive activities occur
in sports e.g. accelerating,
jumping, tackling,
throwing, hitting etc.
Overview
ENDURANCE
Ability to sustain repeated
efforts of highly intense
activities such as strength &
power actions & recover from
repeated bouts
MOBILITY RECOVERY
Refers to the range of motion Recovery comprises 3
around a joint and links in with main components:
flexibility. It aids fluidity of Physical (Muscle & Tissues)
movement, strength through Substrate (Nutrition/Fuel)
length and may decrease Mental (Psychological/Stress)
likelihood of injury
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 PROGRAMME Overview
EXAMPLES

→ →
PRIMING Dynamic Stretching
Glute/Hip Activation
Warm-Up | Movement Preparation Plyometrics (Jumping & Landing)
Med Ball Throws & Sprints

→ →
OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING Snatch
Clean
Explosive Movements under Control Jerk
Variations of the above

→ →
STRENGTH, POWER & SPEED Fundamental Movement Patterns:
Lower Body: Squat, Hinge, Lunge
Upper Body: Push & Pull, Brace, Rotate
Developing Sport-Specific Qualities
Speed: Acceleration, Deceleration etc.

→ →
INJURY RISK REDUCTION
Main sporting injury sites e.g. shoulder,
hips, knees, hamstrings etc.
Robustness & Resilience

→ →
METABOLIC CONDITIONING On-Pitch Running
Prowler (Sled)
Watt Bike
Energy System Development Rower
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HOW DOES THIS INFLUENCE Sport Performance?

BIOMECHANICAL MUSCLE & JOINT STRENGTH & POWER MOBILITY &

SIMILARITIES LOADING PATTERNS DEVELOPMENT ATHLETICISM

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 TRAINING VARIABLE Manipulation
• Exercise Type | Selection | Progression & Regression
• Volume | Sets x Reps
• Intensity | Load | Weight | %1RM | RIR | RPE
• Tempo | Speed | Ecc | Iso | Conc
• Duration | Minutes | Time
• Density | Volume & Duration
• Workload | Duration x RPE
• Frequency | Sessions per Week
• Rest | Inter| Intra | Post
RESISTANCE TRAINING
Force & Power Development
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• Conditioning Modality | On-feet | Off-feet | Pool etc.
• Type | Fartlek | MAS | Lactate Threshold | HIIT | SST | SSG
• Goals | Power Output | Distance | Time | Reps
• Intensity | Heart Rate Zones | Peer Competition | RPE
• Work:Rest Ratio | Relevant to Sport & Positional Demands
• Duration | Minutes | Time
• Workload | Duration x RPE
• Frequency | Sessions per Week
• Rest | Inter| Intra | Post
AEROBIC TRAINING
Energy System Development
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