Carleton adds Westcott as Strength and Conditioning Coach

Source: Taylor Pritchard, Carleton Ravens Sports Information

Experienced strength and conditioning coach Nick Westcott has been a familiar figure at Carleton’s High Performance Centre since 2013 while overseeing the training regimens of numerous Ravens varsity teams.

In his time in the profession, Westcott has had the opportunity to work with individuals from a wide array of sporting backgrounds, including elite athletes from the NHL, KHL, CFL, ECHL, OHL, NCAA and CIS.

GoRavens.ca recently caught up with Nick to discuss the transition into his new role as the strength and conditioning coach with the Carleton Ravens Football team.
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GoRavens: How many years have you been working at Carleton?

Nick Westcott (NW): The 2015-16 season was my third year with the Ravens. I’ll be entering my fourth varsity season with the school this fall.

GoRavens: What sports do you currently assist with as the strength and conditioning coach?

NW: I work with men’s and women’s hockey, men’s and women’s soccer, Nordic skiing, women’s rugby and I just took over football.

GoRavens: How did you decide to step into a new role with the football team?

NW: It was an organic progression. I obviously spend the majority of my time in theHigh Performance Centre and in the weight room. In terms of the management of the weight room culture and development of our athletes, I thought it would be a good opportunity to step in and be involved with another team and help [football] progress the way I am helping other teams to do the same thing. For me, it’s another exciting opportunity to be involved with varsity programs here at Carleton and hopefully I can make a bigger impact with another team.  

GoRavens: Have you ever done football-specific strength and conditioning before?

NW: I have worked with football athletes on an individual basis during my time in the private sector prior to my arrival at Carleton, but I have never had a full football team, so it’s definitely a new venture for me. Working with 90 guys is unique, but it’s been going well so far in first few group sessions. With regard into the customization of my programming, much of my specificity towards certain athletes comes from the energy system component development within a particular sport, so with football, guys aren’t running more than 5 to 10 second for the majority of plays in a game. Our energy system component development needs to mimic that, where as other sports have different needs.  There is also an emphasis on strength and power, but realistically, I am trying to develop athletes, so there are many similarities across programming for all sports.

GoRavens: What specific conditioning will you have to consider for different position players? Can you use an example of an offensive lineman and a defensive back?

NW: With me being the only trainer here with the team right now, there isn’t an immense amount of programming customization per individual. However, our defensive backs might be working specifically on plyometrics (jump training), but I can’t have our offensive linemen doing that as they are bigger, heavier guys. It would be quite taxing on a 360-lbs. frame, where a DB can withstand longer periods of plyometric training. Modifications are made for running programs and running distances. You have to consider the level of impact on their bodies and you have to consider what they are doing in games as well. A defensive back is going to have to run a bit more than an offensive linemen or even a defensive linemen for that matter.

GoRavens: Aside from your own knowledge of a particular sport, is it important for you to observe sports live to get a better sense of what Carleton student-athletes require for strength and conditioning training?

NW: Absolutely. I do my homework by going to games and educating myself. I have a good rapport with the different coaches (at Carleton) and they have a large input on what their particular sport requires and they have a good sense of what their athletes require and I use that information as well. I like going to watch the varsity events and supporting the teams.

GoRavens: What part of working with the football team are you most excited about?

GW: Ultimately, I get excited about what we’re doing in the high-performance gym, but what matters most is the performance on the field, so it’s always good to see that success translate from one place to the other. Seeing the athletes achieve their goals is what it’s all about.