🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/normative-values-150647943 🏋️‍♀️

If you’ve ever wondered how well your youth lifter is progressing, this interview is for you. Zack analysed data from the IWF Youth World Championships (2019–2023), examining percentile rankings, sex differences, and weight class differences. You can compare the snatch, clean & jerk, or total directly (in kg) or using scaled values.

Zack Gillen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at Mississippi State University, where he directs the Resistance Exercise Performance Lab. His lab researches non-invasive assessments of musculoskeletal adaptations to training, with a primary emphasis on resistance training. He completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Exercise Physiology at Midwestern State University, and his PhD in Exercise Physiology & Nutrition at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He has also competed in Olympic weightlifting and has several years of experience as a strength and conditioning coach at both the collegiate and youth levels.

Enjoy!

Original research paper(s):

Gillen Z. Percentile Rankings and Normalization of Performance for Youth International Weightlifting Federation World Championships Competitors. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning. 2025 Aug 15;5(1).

https://journal.iusca.org/index.php/Journal/article/view/404

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/anabolic-and-150216092 🏋️‍♀️

How do anabolic androgenic steroids actually work? What do we know from human studies versus animal models? And do steroids alter gene expression in skeletal muscle?

In this episode, Luke Pelton breaks down the science behind anabolic androgenic steroids—separating evidence from speculation—without hype or exaggeration.

Dr. Pelton is an Assistant Professor of Exercise Science and Human Performance Lab Coordinator at Springfield College, where his teaching and research focus on neuromuscular physiology, reproductive endocrinology, and resistance training. His work bridges clinical research and applied performance, and he also serves as Head of Coaching Education at Strong for Life Co., an online strength-training platform.

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/performance-in-148171612 🏋️‍♀️

What does the performance of youth Olympic weightlifters depend on? And does this relationship differ between girls and boys? In this episode, Bartosz Malak and his team discuss findings from their study of young lifters across six weightlifting clubs in Poland.

Bartosz Malak is a weightlifting coach, neurobiologist, and entrepreneur. He currently works with LKS Budowlani-Kucera and the Polish Junior Weightlifting National Team, and is the head of the weightlifting coaching program at the Poznań University of Physical Education. He is also the founder of the Institute of Sport and Science.

Enjoy!

Original research paper(s):

Bartkowiak S, Kozieł S, Krzykała M, Karpowicz K, Konarski JM, Malak B. Are Sex Differences in Youth Weightlifting Performance Explained by Fat-Free Mass? A Controlled Analysis. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research. 2022 May 9:10-519.

https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/fulltext/2026/01000/are_sex_differences_in_youth_weightlifting.8.aspx

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https://evidencestrong.com

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🔹 https://budowlani-kucera.pl

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/strength-in-with-148168365 🏋️‍♀️

Research increasingly shows that exercise — including heavy lifting — can be beneficial during pregnancy. But how do health professionals view strength training for pregnancy in real-world practice? Katja interviewed five healthcare professionals to explore their perspectives and uncovered several important insights.

Katja Ungersböck completed her Bachelor’s degree in Physiotherapy at IMC Fachhochschule Krems, Austria. She currently works at Universitätsklinikum Hochegg, primarily with neurological patients, and has recently completed additional training in sports physiotherapy. Outside of work, she is passionate about physical activity, including gym training, climbing, hiking, and skiing.

Enjoy!

Original research paper(s):

Ungersböck, K., Lichtenwörther, J., & Miksch, T. (2024). Strength Training in the Third Trimester of Pregnancy: A Qualitative Survey of Health Care Experts. Poster session presented at ICS Congress 2024, Madrid, Spain.

https://research.imc.ac.at/en/publications/strength-training-in-the-third-trimester-of-pregnancy-a-qualitati/

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🖼️ Weightlifting research infographics:

https://evidencestrong.com

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/belt-or-no-belt-148165933 🏋️‍♀️

In this interview, Yoshaun Hunter breaks down findings from his Master’s research comparing belted and unbelted back squats, using barbell velocity to understand how belts influence load, speed, and power. We discuss what the data means for coaches, when belt use makes sense in training, and when it may be unnecessary.

Yoshaun Hunter completed his Master’s degree in Kinesiology at Troy University. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (NSCA) and was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica.

Enjoy!

Original research thesis:

Hunter YS. A Comparison Between Barbell Back Squat Velocity Belted vs Unbelted (Master’s thesis, Troy University).

https://www.proquest.com/openview/87071759fc7a052fd49a791d1fb33b97/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y

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https://evidencestrong.com

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/dsd-and-athletes-147365834 🏋️‍♀️

DSD (differences in sex development) athletes and transgender athletes are actually very different. Dr Shanie Landen explains why the two groups should not be discussed as one, how complicated the individual cases can be, and how well policies in sport reflect (or do not reflect) the biology.

Shanie has a PhD from Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, where she investigated sex-specific epigenetic adaptations to endurance exercise training. She has authored 22 publications in the field of gene regulation. Shanie is interested in gene regulation mechanisms and the mechanisms by which exercise improves health and disease. She is researching how sex-biasing forces influence gene regulation and function.

Enjoy!

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/coaching-through-147209495 🏋️‍♀️

Coaching a lifter towards the Olympics is hard. How much harder does it become when the lifter is part of a refugee team and must train through COVID?

Dr Shyam Chavda analyses the three years leading up to the Tokyo Olympics, including his plans for training and athlete monitoring, the changes made along the way, and the factors that influenced key decisions.

Shyam is the Programme Lead for the Strength & Conditioning Distance Education MSc at Middlesex University and the Lead Performance Scientist at British Weightlifting.

Original research paper(s):

Chavda S. The (Rocky) Road to the Olympic Games: A Longitudinal Case Study on the Preparation, Monitoring, and Training of an Elite Weightlifter. Applied Sciences. 2025 Aug 26;15(17):9373.

https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/17/9373

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/is-muscle-memory-145811567 🏋️‍♀️

Is muscle memory scientifically proven? And if muscle memory is real, what is the underlying mechanism? Dr. Nate Serrano explores these questions, explaining the current state of research and where the science is heading next.

Dr. Nate Serrano holds a PhD in Biology from Arizona State University and is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. His research focuses on the regulation of skeletal muscle, including muscle fiber types in relation to human performance, and the molecular regulation of muscle fibers and their role in metabolism.

Dr. Serrano was a Division I track athlete at Boise State University, where he completed his undergraduate degree in exercise science and got interested in research. He went on to complete a master’s degree in exercise science under the mentorship of Dr. Andy Galpin at California State University of Fullerton. Nate has over a decade of experience as a performance coach and competed in weightlifting for nearly ten years. He has since shifted his main hobby to rock climbing, but still lifts regularly.

Enjoy!

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/state-of-olympic-145657821 🏋️‍♀️

What if the best part of the sport is the stories of the athletes rather than the numbers on the board? In this Evidence Strong Show episode, Brian Oliver explains why highlighting athletes’ backgrounds and voices can change how we broadcast and watch weightlifting, what was really happening in Olympic weightlifting governance within the last decade, and how media in the sport are changing.

Brian Oliver is a seasoned journalist who spent 35 years in English newspapers, including serving as sports editor of The Observer. He worked at the London 2012 Olympics as weightlifting media manager and has freelanced since, focusing on weightlifting. He worked for the Insidethegames website during the sport's troubled times and now writes mostly for the IWF website, reporting on major competitions.

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.

🏋️‍♀️ Extended version of this interview: https://www.patreon.com/posts/strength-and-amy-145491810 🏋️‍♀️

Can eight months of heavy, high-load training reverse bone loss in older adults? Dr Amy Harding explains an exercise program using 80–85% 1RM with high-impact loading, reporting 4.1% bone mass gains in older men with low bone mass. She discusses progression, safety, coaching support, and practical takeaways for coaches and clinicians.

Dr Amy Harding is a Research Fellow in the School of Allied Health, Sport and Social Work and a member of the Griffith University Bone Densitometry Research Laboratory. Her research focuses on musculoskeletal health and fracture prevention across the lifespan. She holds a Bachelor of Exercise Science (Hons) and a PhD, and currently coordinates the Australian-based Strength Training for Optimum Prevention of Fracture program, building on the LIFTMOR and LIFTMOR-M trials.

Enjoy!

Original research paper(s):

Harding AT et al. High-intensity resistance & impact training for bone health in older men (LIFTMOR-M). Osteoporosis Int. 2020;32(3):451–465. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-020-05583-x

Harding AT et al. High-intensity resistance vs machine training for bone geometry & strength (LIFTMOR-M). Bone. 2020;136:115362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bone.2020.115362

Harding AT et al. Bone-targeted exercise strategies to reduce fracture risk (LIFTMOR-M). J Bone Miner Res. 2020;35(8):1404–1414. https://doi.org/10.1002/jbmr.4008

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https://evidencestrong.com

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All the content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, nutritional, coaching, or financial advice, nor does it substitute for advice from your health care professional/provider. Any actions you will take, changes you will make to your nutrition, training or health care, are on your own responsibility and not mine.