PODCAST

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast

This is the NSCA’s Coaching Podcast, where strength and conditioning coaches share their experience, lessons learned, and advice about how to thrive in a highly competitive profession. Published by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, www.nsca.com.

health fitness & nutrition

All Episodes

Brittany Wiebe | Coaching “Full Send” Across Sports...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/11/21

Growth happens when you go all in, or as Brittany Wiebe says, “full send.” As Head Strength and Conditioning Coach of women’s basketball at the University of Oregon, she shares her people-first, evidence-based approach to maximize performance, minimize risk, and positively impact each individual. Using reverse engineering and fundamental principles, Wiebe describes programming around the big seven movements, progressive overload, and objective and subjective feedback. She reflects

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Keith Swift | College Coaching: Breaking It Down to...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/11/07

For Keith Swift, coaching is completely effort based, but it starts with camaraderie and education. As Director of Strength and Conditioning at Wofford College, his philosophy is clear: educate, heal, and enhance. While playing collegiate football and studying exercise science, Swift learned early to question the “why” behind training and encourages his student-athletes to do the same. At an academically rigorous institution, his educational focus fits right in, fostering curiosity,

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Katie Guillory | The Heart of a Coach: Katie...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/10/24

Strength coaches build resilience in others, but sometimes life puts their own to the test. Katie Guillory, now Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at her alma mater, Louisiana State University (LSU), faced that test after a summer accident led to a below-knee amputation. As a former LSU softball captain with extensive knee and hip surgeries, Guillory explains her strong foundation for physical and mental recovery. For her, that means showing up and getting after it, even on hard days

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Erik Hernandez | Embracing Imperfect Mentorship

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/10/10

Mentorship isn’t flawless — and that’s where its power lies. Erik Hernandez, Associate Director for Sports Performance – Olympic Sports at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, has built his career on turning imperfect scenarios into lasting lessons for athletes and young coaches alike. For over 14 years at UNC, he has guided lacrosse, volleyball, and golf, adapting his voice to each culture while holding firm to shared standards of accountability and growth

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Christi Edson | Building the Strong, Healthy, &...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/09/26

Building athletes who are strong, healthy, and resilient requires more than sets and reps, starting with a shift in mindset. Christi Edson, Head of Performance for the Orlando Pride in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), shares how she integrates strength and conditioning with sport science to sustain athlete health and performance. She reflects on the field’s evolution from the well-known “Bigger, Faster, Stronger” program to a training culture emphasizing resilience,

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Champ Bailey | Sport as a Platform for Growth

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/09/12

You don’t have to love the weight room, but you can’t last without it. Champ Bailey, a National Football League (NFL) Hall of Famer, admits he never enjoyed lifting, but says respecting the work gave him the edge to sustain 15 seasons at the highest level. Hear how his preparation evolved from traditional lifts to readiness routines — core, mobility, warm-ups, and recovery — that kept him fresh through the NFL grind. Bailey emphasizes that strength and conditioning coaches

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Al Vermeil | A Coaching Legacy Across Professional...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/08/22

Few strength coaches have shaped sport performance like Al Vermeil — the only strength coach to earn championship rings in both the National Football League (NFL) and National Basketball Association (NBA). In this Gatorade Performance Partner Special Episode, Vermeil shares how a career built on explosiveness, adaptability, and relentless curiosity has transformed teams at every level. From advancing plyometrics and Olympic lifts in the 1970s to creating the performance pyramid and the

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Kate Smith | Finding Success in College Athletics

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/08/08

What's behind enduring success at the highest level of college athletics? Kate Smith, Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at the University of Michigan, shares insights from nearly 14 years of experience coaching multiple sports in a competitive collegiate environment. Smith emphasizes sustained excellence through adaptability, genuine curiosity, and openness to opportunities —even outside of athletics. Drawing on her private-sector experiences, she explains how diverse roles helped shape her

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Gavin Pratt | From Down Under to the Top: Coaching...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/07/25

Coaching elite mixed martial arts (MMA) athletes demands creativity, adaptability, and a global mindset. Gavin Pratt, Senior Director of Strength and Conditioning at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Performance Institute, shares insights from his international career. Pratt reflects on preparing athletes for the Chinese National Games and managing strength and conditioning at the world’s first MMA academy in Shanghai. Applying a systems-based approach, he tackles MMA’s unique

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Michelle Pifer | What Makes Coaching Authentic?

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/07/11

How do you find your coaching voice? Michelle Pifer, Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning at Rutgers University, shares how mentorship and professional communication helped her establish an authentic coaching identity. Reflecting on her extensive intern journey across Ivy League and Division III athletics, Pifer highlights key milestones that shaped her coaching approach. These include observing experienced coaches, applying constructive feedback, and effectively navigating challenging

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Reed Wainwright | Strength, Conditioning, and the...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/06/27

Do you know your legal blind spots? Attorney and former collegiate strength coach Reed Wainwright explores how legal expertise reinforces professional standards in strength and conditioning. Wainwright has been instrumental in developing NSCA resources that help professionals mitigate the inherent risks associated with athletics. He highlights key areas —such as facility safety, equipment management, and emergency preparedness —that help coaches effectively advocate for their athletes

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Alice Read | How Do We Build Sustainable Pathways in...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/06/13

How do you build a sustainable high-performance culture despite yearly assistant coach rotations and demanding schedules? Alice Read, Assistant Athletic Director for Sport Performance at Vassar College, shares expertise from managing 29 teams and 600 student-athletes while continuously "riding the rollercoaster" of Division III scheduling. Read explores strategies for maintaining program continuity, including matching assistant coaches to sports based on strengths and growth areas. She emphasizes

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Dan Perlmutter | Turning Passion Into...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/05/23

What defines true toughness in coaching? Dan Perlmutter presents an alternative to the “tough strength coach” stereotype, reframing success asadaptability, resilience, and relentless positivity. As Director of Sports Performance and Head Olympic Sports Performance Coach at Duke University, Perlmutter reflects on building a strong culture rooted in genuine relationships and longevity. He explains Duke’s structured approach to developing interns and coaching assistants, highlighting

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Sam Moore | Unlocking Success: Career Pathways in...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/05/09

Sam Moore’s path into sport science is defined by taking risks and chasing meaningful questions. After a devastating knee injury as a collegiate athlete, Moore not only returned to compete, but she also discovered her calling in strength and conditioning. She recounts her coaching, sport science, and hybrid roles prior to leaving a full-time position to pursue her PhD at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Moore describes sport science as problem-solving and drawing evidence

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Cole Hergott | Coaching, Program Building, and...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/04/25

Former collegiate hockey athlete Cole Hergott thrived in the offseason, but it took a setback to accelerate his path in strength and conditioning. After losing his spot on the team, he channeled his work ethic into interning with Trinity Western University. Years later, he returned to his alma mater as Head Strength and Conditioning Coach. Only 25 at the time, Hergott recounts the unique challenge of coaching athletes who were older or previous classmates. Leading over 300 athletes as the sole

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Brigita Roemer | Squashing Boundaries and Expanding...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/04/11

Squash demands speed, strength, and control at the edge of human range —but still suffers from a massive stigma around heavy lifting and underuse of strength and conditioning. Brigita Roemer is leading the shift as Director of Strength and Conditioning for U.S. Squash, where she oversees all off-court physical development. After suffering a devastating injury as a track and field athlete, she discovered strength and conditioning when a biomechanics team “put [her] back together,”

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Felipe Eichenberger | Pro-Level Coaching Insights

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/03/28

After fifteen years with the Denver Nuggets, Felipe Eichenberger has witnessed the evolution of National Basketball Association (NBA) performance firsthand. The demands of an NBA season include 82+ games, relentless travel, and the challenge of staying fresh through it all. Eichenberger reveals their post-game lifting culture, driven by the philosophy: “If it’s a hard day, let’s make it hard.” Prioritizing compliance over hardware, he emphasizes flexible periodization and

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Jeanne Rankin | Pathways to Success: Crafting Your...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/03/14

Thrown into the fire — that is how Jeanne Rankin learned, and it’s how she’s developing her athletes and interns at Coastal Carolina University. Rankin reveals how trust is what drives buy-in, performance, and success; without it, even the best program is just a piece of paper. She breaks down some of strength and conditioning’s toughest realities —long hours, relentless demands, and work-life challenges —which require strategic approaches across career stages. A

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Mike and Jade Esmeralda | Defying Gravity through...

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/02/28

Night after night, Cirque du Soleil’s performing arts athletes defy gravity and expectations — executing elite-level feats across 480 shows annually. Maintaining peak performance requires more than talent; it demands strategic preparation, adaptability, and trust. Channeling backgrounds in dance and martial arts, married coaching duo Mike and Jade Esmeralda bring a philosophy of continuous improvement to Cirque’s collectivistic infrastructure. Preparing performers with diverse

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Bill DeLongis | Exploring the Sport of Ice Hockey

NSCA’s Coaching Podcast ·

2025/02/14

In the "SEC of Division III," championships and high standards define the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). Now in his 10th year at Trinity College, Bill DeLongis reinforces high performance is not about scholarships —it’s about culture, strategy, and buy-in. DeLongis outlines how small-school strength coaches manage high athlete-to-staff ratios, maximize resources, and create top-tier training environments despite fewer external incentives. He discusses Trinity

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NSCA’s Coaching Podcast

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