Weight Room Code: Technique and Safety Protocols for Success

with Andrea Hudy,
Director of Sports Performance for UConn Women's Basketball;
2025 NCAA Women's National Champions;
Head Coach, Basketball Strength and Conditioning at The University of Texas from 2019 to 2021;
University of Kansas Assistant Athletic Director for Sport Performance from 2004 to 2019;
while at Kansas, the Jayhawks produced 35 NBA Draft picks, including 11 Lottery selections, and won the 2008 NCAA Championship;
Labeled as Kansas' "secret weapon" during the 2011-12 Men's Basketball Season;
2017 National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Impact Award recipient;
2013 NSCA National College Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year;
UConn Sports Performance Coach from 1995 to 2004;
primary sports performance coach for the 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004 NCAA National Championship teams for the Women's Basketball program, the 1999 and 2004 Men's Basketball program and the 2000 Men's Soccer NCAA Championship.

Andrea Hudy teaches you how to organize your weight room in a safe and efficient manner, and how to establish a weight room culture stressing safety, achievement and a "result-oriented" culture. Using clear guidelines and expectations, Coach Hudy shows you how to make your weight room a place where athletes can reach their highest goals.

When developing an effective weight room environment, you need to develop what Coach Hudy believes is a practice atmosphere. Hudy takes you through the essential standards that you should hold your kids to when holding a weight training session. Each session should be treated like a practice and each athlete should try to get the most out of each workout.

Appropriate rules will minimize injuries and create a culture where keep athletes are focused on their development. Coach Hudy begins by going through the areas that she believes need to be covered before any student athlete enters the weight room for training. She breaks down the importance of being oriented with the facility, signing off on their manual for training, and having passed a physical and adaptations that can be made based upon results. Coach and multiple student athletes take you through the weight room and show you all of the key areas and procedures of the weight room. From weights to platforms, they show the proper steps that need to be taken in order to have a safe operating weight training facility.

As you watch an athlete demonstrate the lift, Hudy breaks down the difference between an Olympic lift and a weight room activity lift. lympic Lifts are a foundation to explosive athletic movement. Performing Olympic correctly will engage the proper musculature which will lend itself to producing a finely tuned athlete on the athletic field.

The finer points are stressed in order to execute the lift in a safe and discipline manner, which includes the proper way to spot your partner. A competent/well trained spotter will reduce possible injury and is an important safeguard in your weight room. Partners need to rely on each other to make strength gains, while also protecting each other, for the best results. Hudy shows various grips and accessories that she feels are essential and non-essential within a weight training practice.

Every coach who is taking over an athletic program knows the importance of the weight room for straining their student athletes. This video is essential in order to run a safe effective program as you continue to develop your athletes into a top level program.

It is appropriate for all levels of coaches, (our weight room coach here has been at it for 20 years and loved the film!) but would really be great for a beginning weight room coach!Kansas High School Coach

30 minutes. 2014.