NSCA Tactical Annual Training Conference

By Joe “BIG HOUSE” Kenn

This week we attended one of my favorite events on the annual conference calendar, the NSCA Tactical Annual Training Conference. I have attended a lot of conferences over the years, and this one has always had a different feel to it. One of the first things you notice is how seriously this group respects the opportunity to acquire knowledge. When the presentations are going on, the exhibit hall gets quiet. I mean QUIET! That tells you something about the people who attend this event and why they are there.

I believe this group also has a different understanding of exactly who their “athletes” are. These coaches and professionals are responsible for preparing men and women serving in the military, law enforcement and public safety, fire and rescue services, first responders, and security professions. Their athletes can leave for work on any given day knowing that their lives could be at risk or that they could potentially face a catastrophic injury. That brings a completely different perspective to physical preparation than what we typically experience in traditional team sports.

That reality creates a tremendous sense of responsibility, and you can feel it throughout the conference. The attendees take learning as seriously as any group I am around during the year, but what makes this event even better is that they are also extremely outgoing once they hit the exhibit hall. The camaraderie is strong, the conversations are genuine, and people want to share ideas and learn from one another. It is a very engaging and special group of professionals.

Now, I know I just told you the exhibit hall can get pretty quiet, but the NSCA does an outstanding job creating non-competing time slots specifically for vendors and attendees to connect. They build extended windows throughout the day around meals and networking opportunities, and that makes a huge difference for everyone involved.

The breakfast window is always one of my favorite parts. We will have attendees and exhibitors getting in an early-bird workout, trying equipment, getting a sweat on, talking training, and then grabbing some breakfast before the educational sessions begin. There is another extended break around lunch, followed later by some type of reception or social gathering in the exhibit hall. Instead of vendors trying to compete with presentations for people's attention, there are designated opportunities where everyone can actually slow down, interact, and build relationships.

And I can tell you this: our Dynamic Fitness & Strength booth was POPPING!

Coach Yox, Gort, and I were constantly engaged in conversations about life, training, coaching, and, yes, equipment. That is one of my favorite parts of representing Dynamic at these events. Of course we are there to showcase what we do, but some of the best moments have nothing to do with selling anything. They come from talking shop with coaches, hearing what they are doing with their athletes, discussing problems they are trying to solve, and continuing to build relationships throughout the profession.

I highly recommend the NSCA Tactical Annual Training Conference even if you do not currently work in the tactical space. If you are a coach who simply wants to LEARN, there is tremendous value here. The speaker lineup is exceptional, the topics are diverse and hearing how professionals prepare people whose performance can have life-or-death consequences can challenge you to look at your own coaching through a different lens.

And with that, it is time to highlight my featured speaker from this year's event, a man I have known for more than two decades and one of the most passionate people you will ever meet in our profession:

Martin Rooney.

Speed Saves Lives

There are certain people in this profession who simply bring a different level of energy into a room. Martin Rooney is one of those people. Martin and I go back more than two decades as friends, colleagues, and coaches, and I have watched him impact our profession across the globe. I have often described Martin as the “Tony Robbins of physical fitness.” His passion, enthusiasm, energy, and ability to deliver a message are unmatched. The dude is a true MONSTER in our field!

At the 2026 NSCA Tactical Annual Training Conference in Orlando, Martin presented “Speed Saves Lives: Training for Tactical Survivability.” As Chancellor of Lionel University and someone who has spent decades studying, coaching, teaching, and promoting speed, Martin brought a simple but powerful message to the tactical community: speed isn't just an athletic quality. In the tactical world, speed can literally be a survival quality.

Martin built the presentation around three major objectives: understanding why speed is a force multiplier, applying speed to real-world tactical outcomes, and building long-term resilience through speed training. The presentation connected physical preparation to what actually happens when military personnel, police officers, firefighters, and first responders are required to perform under pressure. The faster an individual can move, react, reposition, or remove themselves from danger, the less time they may be exposed to the threat.

One of Martin's strongest messages was captured perfectly in his statement: “Faster people are harder to kill.” That may sound aggressive, but in the tactical environment it gets directly to the point. Martin emphasized that many critical tactical actions occur within a three-to-five-second window. Increasing speed reduces exposure time, and reducing exposure can improve the probability of survival. His message wasn't about building track athletes. It was about preparing tactical professionals to move when movement matters most.

What I appreciated most was how Martin connected performance training with purpose. Too often coaches can get caught up in exercises, numbers, programs, technology, and testing without asking the most important question: What are we preparing this person to do? For the tactical athlete, strength matters. Conditioning matters. Resilience matters. But the ability to rapidly apply those qualities when the environment demands it may ultimately determine the outcome.

That is Martin Rooney. He doesn't just give you information. He makes you feel the importance of the information. After knowing him for more than 20 years, that passion has never changed. Whether he is coaching athletes, educating trainers, presenting internationally, or speaking to tactical professionals, Martin attacks the opportunity with the same enthusiasm.

Great coaches educate. Great presenters communicate. The special ones inspire people to take action.

Martin Rooney has been doing all three across the globe for decades.

Speed Saves Lives.

#WORDSWIN

— Joe Kenn