Faq

The ASCA is an incorporated non-profit organisation and is the peak national body for strength and conditioning professionals in Australia.

The ASCA provides coaching programs for all levels of coaches – these programs are registered with the National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS), which is administered by Sport Australia (SportAus).

ASCA Accreditation identifies individuals who possess the knowledge and skill to design, implement and review safe and effective strength and conditioning training programs.

Level 2 strength and conditioning accreditation provides participants with an advanced level of knowledge and skills to plan, conduct and design strength and conditioning programs to physically prepare advanced level athletes to improve performance across a wide range of sports.

Strength and conditioning training is the deliberate practice of using structured exercise programming, and associated training, to enhance performance, prevent injury and aid in post-injury rehabilitation, in individuals and teams participating in youth sport programs, amateur and professional sport settings, and tactical occupational settings (e.g. military, law enforcement, first responder and emergency services).

• To identify athlete strengths and weaknesses, for both athletic performance and injury prevention
• To help athletes and coaches set short-term fitness training goals
• To evaluate an athlete’s progress, which helps fuel their motivation to improve
• To refine training load programming, with results serving as an objective basis for intensity (load) prescription
• To assess athletic talent, especially in younger athletes or in specific sports

• Testing can’t automatically produce better performing athletes and should not be used in isolation to make selection decisions
• Athlete performance testing is a tool, which if used correctly, can provide valuable information that is to be used, in combination with other information, to design training programs that will improve an athlete or a team’s performance.

• At the beginning of certain phases of training
• At regular intervals during certain training periods
• For school-based athletes or groups, testing may be suitable at the beginning and/or end of school term periods

Force plates are instruments that measure the magnitude and timing of ground reaction forces (GRF). According to Newton’s third law of motion a GRF is the force exerted by the ground on a body in contact with it. Force plate testing allows coaches and athletes (individuals and teams) to obtain objective and detailed data about jumping and landing performance, as well as measures of isometric strength, in order to build athlete strength and power profiles.

Though not necessarily sport-specific, force plate testing provides us with neuromuscular information from which we can draw sport-specific insights.

Common tests administered using force plates include the countermovement jump (CMJ), the isometric mid-thigh pull (IMTP), the squat jump (SJ) and the drop jump (DJ).

Force-velocity profiling assesses an athlete’s force and velocity production capabilities during dynamic tasks and is typically assessed via instrumented barbell exercises, jump tasks performed on a force plate or electronically timed linear sprints. Through force-velocity profiling, a coach can identify whether an athlete is force or velocity deficient for a given task.

Based on an individual’s force-velocity profile, targeted training can then be implemented in order to reduce the athlete’s force or velocity deficiency, and therefore improve their performance on a given task.

The Australian Strength and Conditioning Association (ASCA) Position Statement on Resistance Training for Children and Youth recommends, based on current evidence and with due consideration for age, safety, training loading intensities and exercise selection, that the youngest a child should commence resistance training is at 6 years of age.

Maximal effort lifts are to be avoided in all child populations and most youth populations.

According to the ASCA the following training loading intensities and exercise selection strategies be adopted when training child and youth populations:

Level 1: 6-9 years of age: modification of body weight exercises and light resistance work only for relatively high repetitions e.g. 15+ repetitions.

Level 2: 9-12 years of age: 10-15 RM; (maximal loading approximately 60% maximum) using predominantly simple free weight exercises and machine exercises where the machine is an appropriate size for the child.

Level 3: 12-15 years of age: 8-15 RM; (maximal loading approximately 70% maximum) using progressively more free weight exercises but avoiding complex lifts such as cleans, snatches, deadlifts and squats etc. unless competent coaching is available from a coach with at least a Level 2 ASCA coach.

Level 4: 15-18 years of age: 6-15 RM; (maximal loading approximately 80% maximum) progressively moving towards an advanced adult program involving split routines, where appropriate, and complex multi-joint movements, provided sound technique has been developed under competent coaching by a coach with at least Level 2 ASCA accreditation.

For noting: The above maximal loading percentages relate to strength-based exercises (e.g., bench press) and not to velocity specific exercises such as medicine ball throws where higher percentages may apply.

Online strength and conditioning coaching is a convenient, flexible and cost effective solution for athletes who are unable to access face-to-face strength and conditioning coaching services due to being remotely located, or due to scheduling or financial constraints.

Online strength and conditioning coaching is also suited to athletes and teams wanting to undertake programming that is supplementary to their usual face-to-face training regimen.

• It’s cost effective. Get a month’s worth of strength and conditioning programming + direct coaching support for less than the cost of a single one-to-one strength and conditioning training session.
• The service is interactive. Online coaching with Blitz Strength and Conditioning is delivered using the TeamBuildr interactive strength and conditioning programming and tracking software application, with all training sessions calendared in advance in weekly or monthly blocks, and all training sessions, as well as your accompanying progress, tracked in real-time. You can even exchange messages and videos with your strength and conditioning coach, team coach and team mates (depending on your subscription type).
• The service is portable. Housed on your mobile device, take your program, embedded exercise example videos and individualised coaching and training notes with you to your gym or usual team training venue, or simply access the service from the comfort of your own home when training from home.
• You have on-call access to an accredited expert strength and conditioning coach. Whether simply needing a supplementary strength and conditioning training program to accompany your usual training regimen or more advanced programming in order to achieve a specific performance goal, for the duration of your online coaching subscription you will have on-call access to expert advice and support via in-app messaging, phone or online video teleconferencing, and email.