Under Mike McCarthy, the Pittsburgh Steelers have a nearly entirely new coaching staff. We\u2019ve covered virtually all of the handful of holdovers: QBs coach Tom Arth, ILBs coach Scott McCurley, director of player development Darrel Young, and assistant strength & conditioning coach Justus Galac. We\u2019ve also spent plenty of time talking about the new faces. Starting with the coordinators, of course, but also the key position coach hires.<\/p>\n
One forgotten but critical member of the new-look staff is head strength & conditioning coach Mark Lovat. The S&C staff plays a foundational role in player readiness. How they train, sleep, eat, and take care of their bodies all correlate to maximizing their physical talent.<\/p>\n
Steelers.com\u2019s Teresa Varley recently interviewed<\/a> Lovat as part of her series getting to know the new coaches. Lovat\u2019s answers were encouraging and reflected his NFL experience.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you\u2019ve got to stick to your principles,\u201d Lovat told Varley. \u201cThat\u2019s the number one thing. Once you know your principles, you stick to your principles. It\u2019s just like life. When you stick to your principles, things generally go well. And when you deviate from principles, things get a little sideways. It\u2019s the same way in training. But then within those principles, you\u2019ve got to have a lot of modalities. In other words, there\u2019s a lot of ways to go about your principles. As long as the modalities fit the principles, you\u2019ll be okay.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I\u2019m going to squat, there\u2019s a lot of different ways to get a squat pattern in the weight room. Not just a barbell back squat, there\u2019s a front squat or a safety squat. Sticking to your principles but having a wide array of modalities to match those principles, to execute those principles.\u201d<\/p>\n This 2016 interview dives even deeper<\/a> into Lovat\u2019s philosophy and the sports science side he and Mike McCarthy embraced. McCarthy might be the oldest head coach in Steelers history, but he\u2019s far from ancient in mindset or ideas.<\/p>\n