How many adults out there have ever looked back on the best sporting moments of their childhood and have wished that they could relive some of those memories for one last glorious time? One more shot at victory. One final game changing play. One more chance to go to war with the best friends and teammates that you’re ever going to have. For many people, football represents that special moment in time, and both Todd Fryer and Frank Trivieri, co-founders of the Niagara Storm Football Club, would love to see more young players taking advantage of this brief window of opportunity, even if only for...

For many, many years, I worked in the Fitness Industry, specifically in the areas of “Beginner” fitness. I loved the idea of taking someone who had essentially been inactive for their entire lives and transforming that person into a healthier and more active (thus happier) person. One common trend amongst most of these adults however, was that at some point in their lives (usually back in high school), they were permanently turned off of physical activity, almost always due to the fact that they had a coach or a teacher who used exercise as a means to punish the less athletic players or students,...

Written by James Ryan As a youth football coach who specializes in defensive player development, I own many books on the subject of tackle football fundamentals, but none have proven more useful over the years than 101 LINEBACKER DRILLS written by none other than Coach Jerry Sandusky (Penn State University) and Dr. Cedric X. Bryant, who is the chief exercise physiologist and vice-president of educational services for the American Council on Exercise. It’s a really great book. However, given the recent controversy surrounding Coach Sandusky (he was arrested on charges that he preyed on boys...

“Mental toughness can take you to the top, and mental weakness straight to the bottom.”—John Schiefer Ask any Olympic medalist or top-ranked professional athlete, and no doubt they’d be the first ones to tell you that competing in any sport at the highest possible level requires just as much (if not more) mental preparation, as it does the physical. It is for this very reason that I find it more than a little disturbing that Nick Diaz’s coach and trainer, Cesar Gracie, would so willingly point the finger of blame and publicly proclaim his deep disappointment in his student/client...

“If you get a concussion, they’ve got to take you out of the game. So if you can hide it and conceal it as much as possible, you pay for it the next day, but you’ll be able to … stay in the game.”—Washington Redskins Fullback, Mike Sellers “I would not hide that. That’s not something you hide. That puts you in a terrible position, as well as the team. I think that would be the worst thing you could do in a situation like that. So if I ever got a concussion, I would definitely tell. I don’t know how you could hide a concussion.”—New England...

Athletes always want to learn how they can bring their game to the next level. Sometimes this means breaking ineffective techniques, as well as, beginning new and unfamiliar habits. Sticking to something new can be difficult, especially when results may not be seen immediately, but if the athlete understands and truly believes in the benefits, then adherence will be stronger. As a coach, part of your role is to facilitate any knowledge for ways to enhance an athlete’s performance, whether it may be optimizing physical or mental capabilities, or preventing injuries. With this in mind, a...

Conditioning is hard work—extremely intense in fact, but the most important piece of the conditioning puzzle is you. It’s you that has to inject the energy necessary to complete the workout. You only get out of it, what you put into it, so the harder you work, the better the results. Many people choose fancy equipment or state of the art technology, but it’s not the tools you use that matters. It’s the burning desire within you to push your body and mind through varied workout sequences. That is the telling factor. Many athletes search high and low for new ways of advancing their training,...

Thinking that you will not get tired, or trying to prevent fatigue from taking place is not an option. You must prepare for fatigue and be able to function properly when fatigue kicks in. Over the years, many professional athletes in a variety of sports have succumbed to fatigue. What makes a true champion is someone that can stare fatigue straight in the face and carry on working without losing form, and by applying continued power and formidable precision. You must be able to perform when fatigue sets in. This is the difference between a champion and the runner up—the difference between...

Some of you may remember a young wrestler by the name of Aaron Brooks who currently lives in Hagerstown, Maryland, from an interview that I did a few months back. . What’s that?! You’re not sure? Well then, you had better pay very close attention because the entire world of MMA is about to get “put on notice.” Aaron is a seven-time national wrestling champion, who has more than 345 amateur wins to his name. All of this was accomplished by the age of nine. Not impressed yet? Well, Aaron also set the Guinness world bench press record back in June for boys his age and weight. He now holds...

Before you pre-judge whatever it is that you think this article is going to be about, please let me just say that I have personally decided to reserve my own individual judgments on the issue of Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs), and I ask that you please do the same (at least for the moment). Whether you are against steroids or for them—whatever your opinion has been in the past, I am asking that you leave it exactly there—in the past. Myself, I have always been a big advocate against steroid use (in athletic competition) but lately I’ve been wondering if perhaps I’ve been swallowing...