Mark Young – How to Read Fitness Research

Without even thinking of it, I rely pretty heavily on what I was taught in graduate school research methods courses and what I learned during my own master’s thesis

Mark Young – How to Read Fitness Research

If you read this blog on a regular basis, I’m sure you know that while I’m undoubtedly an “experiment in the trenches” kind of guy, but I’m also very evidence-based in a lot of things I do.  As such, I spend a lot of time reading research.  Doing so not only affirms or refutes what I’m doing, but also provides me with consistent content ideas for this blog: read more, write more!

Without even thinking of it, I rely pretty heavily on what I was taught in graduate school research methods courses and what I learned during my own master’s thesis training intervention, data collection/analysis, and subsequent publication in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.  Unfortunately, a lot of folks never get this training in school – or they get it at a time when it isn’t interesting or applicable, because all they’re doing is cramming for the next test or counting down the hours until a big party weekend.  Then, down the road, when it comes time to interpret research on a scholarly journal, they overlook key elements of a study, misinterpret results, or let poor research practices slide.

Additionally, a lot of people simply don’t know where to look when it comes to finding new research in their field of expertise.  Especially within the fitness industry – where one may need to cover everything from nutrition, to sports medicine, to strength training – things can be tough to locate.

The good news is that my buddy Mark Young just released a product called  to address these problems.

I won’t lie to you: reading about research methods isn’t sexy, and you probably won’t be able to watch all the webinars straight through like you would the Rocky or Jaws movies.  However, if you put the time in to cover this material, you’ll be rewarded with a better understanding of how to approach continuing education in the fitness industry.

The general fitness enthusiasts in the crowd shouldn’t worry about picking this one up, and neither should those of you who’ve been through college exercise science research methods classes (and actually paid attention).  Those of you who entered the fitness industry as a second career or as a first career without a college education should absolutely check this out, though.  At $37, it’s a great value.