• Move - Strength

    The Relationship Between Posture, Stress, and Chronic Pain

    Posture is not as simple as your mom telling you “sit up straight”.  Rather, it is a product of common daily actions (like sitting, driving, or using a smartphone). Actions which are continuously executed result in an enhanced ability to recreate, due to increased neurological proficiency. Without an intervention, this cycle…

  • Athletes - Strength

    2022 Illinois H.S. Powerlifting Season

    IHSPLA Gearing Up For Spring 2022 Powerlifting Season! by Chris Dertz It’s time to replenish your supply of chalk and make sure that your singlet, lifting belt, and Chuck Taylors still fit! The 2022 Illinois High School Powerlifting Association (IHSPLA) 2022 spring season will be here soon! The last few…

  • Athletes - Eat - Safe

    Creatine: Benefits and Drawbacks

    By Matt Klem In high school athletics, the use of creatine has been a controversial topic, often leaving athletes and parents with questions regarding the potential benefits and consequences that it can have on athletic performance. However, there is emerging evidence indicating that if used in conjunction with a balanced…

  • Opportunity - Strength

    “Coaching is Teaching” with Eric McMahon

    Coaching and teaching require similar skillsets. Leaders in each must develop subject matter expertise, create cultures rich with learning, and share information with students/athletes. The “classrooms” look different (some might have desks, others might have hoops or barbells), but the methods and objectives are similar. Eric McMahon understands those similarities.…

  • Opportunity - Strength

    3 Keys to Support Mental Health in the Weightroom

    The weight room can be one of the most powerful learning environments in all of athletics. For 9 months each year (an offseason), dedicated educators create cultures within a “classroom” full of novelty, goal-directed behavior, hard work and fun. Time after time, young people report learning valuable lessons in the…

  • Safe

    Are Sports at Harvard Worth the Risk?

    This article originally appeared in the Harvard Crimson in September, 2019. Football season is upon us. The current instantiation of the 10,000 men of Harvard take the field on Sept. 21 and finish on Nov. 23 when, for the 136th time, Harvard locks horns with Yale. But the battle surrounding…

  • Athletes - Opportunity - Safe

    Illinois Return-to-Training Support

    Illinois, we’re heading in the right direction! There are so many exciting moments to come as we seemingly turn a corner in this pandemic. That is, if we take up the charge of ensuring a thoughtful return to training. Coaches across the state agree that the goal of the spring…