By John Valentik, MS, CSCS, NASM-PES, CES

Last week, I had the privilege of attending the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Conference in Kansas City, Missouri. As always, it delivered a powerful reminder: our field is constantly evolving, and staying stagnant is not an option if you want to lead, coach, or live with excellence.

This post isn’t just a recap — it’s a nudge to continue growing and moving forward. Whether you’re a coach, healthcare professional, or someone who cares about health and wellness, here are a few lessons I took away that may shed some additional light on your programs:

---

1. Your Feet Are Talking — Are You Listening?

(Presentation by Rocky Snyder)

When combining both feet, they contain over 66 joints — and mobilizing them properly can create a ripple effect throughout the body. Foot mobility isn’t just about the foot; it can influence alignment, movement quality, and even pain patterns up into the knees, hips, shoulders, and even neck.

Pro Tip: Add intentional foot mobility work to warm-ups or cooldowns. Consider your foot as the foundation of movement. Like any structure, if the foundation is off, everything above is affected.

---

2. Rethinking Chronic Pain: It’s Not Just Physical

(Presentation by Jessica Bento & Josh Henkin)

Chronic pain affects millions annually, but structural explanations (like disc issues or joint degeneration) aren’t always the root cause. Instead, the brain’s predictive protective mechanisms play a powerful role. The nervous system can amplify pain as a defense, based on previous injuries or trauma.

They introduced the 5 Fs of chronic pain:

• Focusing on the pain
• Fighting against it
• Fearing the pain
• Fixing it obsessively
• Frustrated with lack of progress

Myofascial stretching — unlike traditional static stretching — engages the fascia, nervous system, and mind. Some research suggests that it’s more effective than static stretching.

Pro Tip: To help yourself or others in pain, don’t just stretch — create a calming, responsive environment for the nervous system. Focus on breathwork, gentle movement, and whole-system awareness.

---

3. Hypertrophy: Volume and Intensity

(Presentation by Brandon Roberts)

Muscle growth (hypertrophy) is often misunderstood. The “more is better” mindset can actually lead to fatigue and stalled progress. According to the research:

• 6–15 sets per muscle group per week is ideal.
• Up to 30 sets can still be effective for some individuals.
• Training closer to failure yields better hypertrophic results — as long as recovery is managed.

Pro Tip: Quality > quantity. Don’t just add volume — track it. If you’re not recovering well or seeing results, scale back and increase intensity.

---

4. Hand Grip: The Underrated Vital Sign

(Presentation by Jeff McBride)

Grip strength isn’t just for lifting heavy or carrying groceries. It directly correlates with total body strength, and research shows it can even impact performance in movements like golf swing, pitching speed, bat swing, and more obvious items like one rep maxes of traditional strength movements.

While the four vital signs are blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, and body temperature, doctors should consider grip strength with their patients as this has strong implications for overall strength which leads to increased or decreased independence down the road.

Pro Tip: Incorporating strength training into your routine will naturally improve group strength (essentially picking up, pushing and pulling heavier items). You can also include grip-focused exercises into your programming (farmer carries, hangs, squeezes). It’s simple, scalable, and impactful — not just for performance, but for longevity.

---

Attending the NSCA Conference was a reminder that growth isn’t accidental — it’s built through a desire to not only learn and grow but build connections. Hopefully one or more of these tips will help you in the future. Outside of the tips, my hope for you is to act on what you’re passionate about.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do. Explore, Dream, Discover – Mark Twain