NSCA Certified Strength & Conditioning
Specialist Comprehensive Exam Review
Design and administer strength, flexibility, aerobic, plyometric and other training
program that reduce the occurrence of injuries and improve athletic performance" is a
good example of what aspect of a program?
a. objective
b. mission
c. goal - ANS-ANSWER:
a. objective
EXPLANATION:
Program objectives are the specific means of attaining a program goals. Merely stating
program goals but failing to designate the objectives that will fulfill those goals may
result in athletes failing to achieve them. All areas of the program should be addressed
in program objectives to ensure that goals are attained.
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 24, pg 462
A 120-pound female basketball player has the following test results:
- 1RM bench press: 155 pounds
- 1RM back squat: 225 pounds
- Vertical jump: 15 inches
- 1-minute partial curl-up test: 65
Based on these results, which of the following exercises should be added to her training
program?
a. dumbbell fly
b. leg extension
c. box jumps - ANS-ANSWER:
c. box jumps
EXPLANATION:
Box jumps must be added to this athlete's training program. Female athletes average
around 20 inches for the vertical jump; therefore, improvements need to be made by
this athlete who jumps only 15 inches. Testing is often used as a way to evaluate both
an athlete and their training program. This program must be adjusted based on poor
scores and lacking abilities exposed by analyzing test results.
,Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 13, pg 300
A 32-year old male athlete wants to measure his body fat percentage by using skinfold
calipers. Which of the following is a common location to measure a skinfold?
a. biceps
b. trapezius
c. midaxilla - ANS-ANSWER:
c. midaxilla
EXPLANATION:
Skinfold measurements are a popular method to calculate body fat percentage, and are
easily performed by strength and conditioning professionals. Common locations of
skinfold measurements are the following:
- Chest
- Thigh
- Abdomen
- Triceps
- Suprailium
- Midaxilla
- Subscapula
- Calf
After obtaining the measurement, the strength and conditioning professional can then
use appropriate equations to determine body fat percentage.
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 13, pg 288
A female endurance athlete consumes a very low-fat diet on a daily basis. What would
you expect to happen to her running performance?
a. reduced performance due to lower triglyceride levels for energy production
b. reduced performance due to lower blood lipids
c. improved performance due to weight loss - ANS-ANSWER:
a. reduced performance due to lower triglyceride levels for energy production
EXPLANATION:
Fat stores are large and represent a vast source of fuel for exercise. At rest and during
low-intensity exercise, a high percentage of the energy produced is derived from fatty
acid oxidation. In addition to training, the body adapts to using greater amounts of fat for
energy when a higher-fat, lower-carbohydrate diet is consumed over a period of time.
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 9, pg 189-190
,A group of ten athletes performed a vertical jump test and received scores of 28, 29.5,
24, 30, 27, 28, 32.5, 30.5, 26, and 27 inches. What is the range of this group of scores?
a. 10
b. 14.5
c. 8.5 - ANS-ANSWER:
c. 8.5
EXPLANATION:
The range is the difference between the highest and lowest scores. It is a measure of
variability. Given values: 28, 29.5, 24, 30, 27, 28, 32.5, 30.5, 26, 27
lowest value: 24
highest value: 32.5
32.5 - 24 = 8.5
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 13, pg 291
A group of ten athletes performed a vertical jump test and received scores of 28, 59.5,
24, 30, 27, 28, 32.5, 30.5, 26, and 27 inches. What is the median of this group of
scores?
a. 32
b. 28
c. 24 - ANS-ANSWER:
b. 28
EXPLANATION:
The median is the middlemost score of a group of scores ordered from lowest to
highest. With an even number of scores, the median is the average of the two
middlemost scores. It is a measure of central tendency, sometimes even better than the
mean.
24, 26, 27, 27, 28, 28, 29.5, 30, 30.5, 32.5
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 13, pg 291
A person's efforts to master a task, achieve excellence, overcome obstacles, and
engage in competition or social comparison is known as what?
a. motive to avoid failure
b. achievement motivation
, c. motive to achieve success - ANS-ANSWER:
b. achievement motivation
EXPLANATION:
Achievement motivation refers to a person's efforts to master a task, achieve
excellence, overcome obstacles, and engage in competition or social comparison. All
things being equal between two athletes, whoever is higher in achievement motivation
will be the better athlete because he or she has a greater appetite for competition.
Motive to achieve success (MAS) refers to the capacity to experience pride in one's
accomplishments and is characterized by a desire to challenge oneself and evaluate
one's abilities. Motive to avoid failure (MAF) relates to the desire to protect one's ego
and self-esteem. MAF is not really about avoiding the perception of shame that
accompanies the failure.
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 8, pg 162
A power lifter looking for an assistance exercise to improve his or her bench press
should include which of the following exercises?
a. military press
b. triceps pushdown
c. pull-ups - ANS-ANSWER:
b. triceps pushdown
EXPLANATION:
Assistance exercises target smaller muscles and usually one specific joint. An
assistance exercise for bench press will target the triceps. The triceps pushdown targets
the triceps and will help strengthen this area for future help in the bench press.
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th Edition. Ch 4, pg 444; Ch 15, pg
399
A semi-leg straddle stretch is targeting which muscle area?
a. quadriceps
b. erector spinae
c. latissimus dorsi - ANS-ANSWER:
b. erector spinae
EXPLANATION: