Journal of Psychology and Sport
by Rijad Pekmez People were cheering as a bar loaded with 370 pounds hovered above my chest. If I were to drop it, I’d be in serious trouble. Knox College was hosting a collegiate powerlifting meet and I was on my last bench press attempt of the day. After a controlled descent, I held for…
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In Strength & Conditioning, like so many fields, we learn from those who came before us. That’s how it works. When selecting our own strategies and behaviors, we refer to those who have been there, done it, and accomplished what we too would like to accomplish. Youth coaches often look to high school coaches for…
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In his new book, Weight Room Wisdom, Ron McKeefery recognizes the “opportunities our work affords us to provide a positive influence on the lives of those we train.” He’s not talking about winning a championship. He refers instead to the idea that some of the most empowering moments in an athlete’s life come not from…
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originally published in the Harvard Crimson in fall of 2015, this article was written in response to an OpEd suggesting that the school down their football program The death of Andre Smith, the 17-year-old football player who passed away last month, is a tragedy. Its impetus for the recent article (which calls for the shutting down of Harvard football)…
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On all of the weather websites we searched, a long red bar appeared across the top of the page: SNOW EMERGENCY IN EFFECT. We were less than a week out from the 2nd Annual Midwest Powerlifting Meet at St. Olaf College. The reports said that all should be clear by Saturday, the day of the…
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Robin Lyons, 5x NCAA Track & Field All-American, Canadian record holder in the hammer throw, and Founder of MTN LAB Performance Coaching, has spent a long time working on her base, and “getting to know [her]self.” That patience has created a peak that, although she is still summiting, she can finally see. She recognizes that…
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Death by suicide is a complicated occurrence which often leaves loved ones saddened and confused. The on-paper version of Tyler Hilinski’s passing is no exception: tall, bright, likeable young man playing quarterback in the Pac10. He leaves behind a loving family and host of friends who will miss him dearly. So what went wrong? Many recent…
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The feedback we’ve gotten from the original article is fantastic – thank you to all who wrote in! There seemed to be two camps of responses, which might overlap. Many of you identified that, if one of your players were considering opting out of their bowl game, you would sit down with the player individually…
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During the month of August, in the muggy Alabama heat, Nick Saban grants his players one opportunity to acknowledge the obvious: it’s hot. After that, the athlete must make one of two decisions: find a way to change the late-summer climate, or find a way to effectively deal with the heat. Repeatedly complaining about the…
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After many conversations with swimmers, swim coaches, and strength coaches working with swimmers, a common question persists: where do we start? There is no easy answers; everything is contextual, dealing with team dynamics, timelines, and sport-specific considerations. Strength coaches who generally deal with land-based athletes find themselves grappling with a unique set of athlete-performance requirements.…
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