Over my 20+ years in strength and conditioning, my passion for performance has expanded across exercise science, sports psychology, biomechanics, and nutrition. While modern sports performance as a formal profession is relatively young, its foundational sciences are well-established.
We have more peer-reviewed research, data, and educational resources on athlete safety, work-to-rest ratios, thermoregulation, and progressive overload than at any point in human history.
So why are young athletes still getting injured, hospitalized, or killed due to outdated, reckless training practices?
The news recently carried another devastating story: a college hockey player died following a grueling, military-style "special forces" workout—a single, acute session designed not for physiological adaptation, but to build "camaraderie" or "mental toughness."
Single workouts do not build elite physical fitness. But unscientific, random, and extreme exertion workouts can kill.
The Hypocrisy of Higher Education
What frustrates me most—as a strength coach, certified PE teacher, and parent—is watching places of higher education completely disregard higher education.
We see high schools and colleges continuously pass over qualified, credentialed exercise science professionals in favor of:
- The former college athlete who "likes to grind."
- The sport coach who lifts on the weekends.
- The fitness enthusiast running extreme workouts with zero understanding of fatigue management, biomechanics, or emergency protocols.
In the private sector, facility owners are forced to be cautious because an injury or lawsuit destroys their livelihood. But in high schools and colleges, administrative apathy allows unqualified individuals to operate without real oversight, proper supervision, or accountability. They judge strength programs on generic, superficial metrics—"Do the coaches like you?" or "Do the kids work hard?"—rather than safety, scientific structure, and athletic ROI.
Mental toughness is built through discipline, progressive preparation, and overcoming structured challenges—not through reckless physical breakdown.
A Call to Action for Every Level of Sports
If we want to stop these preventable tragedies, every person involved in the athletic ecosystem has to hold the line.
1. For Parents: Audit Your Child's Trainers
If your child is in a training environment—whether at school, a private facility, or a team camp—ask questions:
- Education: Do they hold a degree in exercise science, kinesiology, physical education, or a related field?
- Credentials: Do they hold a nationally accredited, verified certification (such as the CSCS)? A quality certification represents the minimum baseline of safe human movement and program design.
- Experience: Do they pursue continuing education, or are they relying on the same workouts they did 15 years ago?
2. For Coaches & Administrators: Raise the Standard
The physical component of every sport—from soccer conditioning to football power—is rooted in science, not guesswork.
- Do Your Due Diligence: Stop hiring "buddies" or uncredentialled former players to oversee high-liability environments like the weight room or conditioning field.
- Fund & Require Education: Write mandatory certifications and mandatory Continuing Education Units (CEUs) into job descriptions and contracts.
- Measure What Matters: Evaluate your strength and conditioning staff on movement quality, injury reduction, progressive tracking, and safety protocols—not on how exhausted the athletes look after a session.
3. For Parents of Injured Athletes: Demand Accountability
If an athlete is hurt or placed in danger due to unsupervised, unscientific, or punitive workouts, hold the school, department, and administration accountable. Institutions will only prioritize professional standards when failing to do so carries real consequences.
Do the Job. Respect the Science.
Organizations like the NSCA and CSCCA cannot hold the line by themselves. It takes coaches, athletic directors, and parents deciding that our young athletes deserve professional, science-backed preparation—not reckless survival tests.
Sports performance is a discipline. It’s time we start treating it like one.