March 11, 2020.
The day sports stood still in America and across the world.
While many athletes took the time to decompress when they usually wouldn't be able to, Langston Galloway, a guard for the Detroit Pistons, decided it was time to push himself even further. Not just in the weight room or on the court – although he kept doing that – but in the virtual classroom with a focus on his future.
Langston's Start with NASM
“I heard about NASM through my strength and conditioning coach Trevor,” Galloway said during an interview with NASM. "We talked about it after the hiatus started, and we were trying to figure out what's something I can do because I love training. I love being able to know the anatomy, how my body moves, and I'm really in tune with that."
Thanks to the advice of Trevor Harrison CEO and Founder of Athlete Health First and Galloway’s personal strength coach, the NBA guard decided to get his training certification as well as numerous specializations to not only help him on the court but off of it as well.
"When I spoke to Langston about certification, I felt that he wanted to do more than just get a personal trainer certification," Harrison said. "He wanted to learn more about the human body. Not only anatomy, functional movement, and how to train but also a scientific approach to training that he could learn to implement that benefits not only training but also to truly help athletes."
Training off and on the court
Galloway is passionate about gaining an edge on the court when his Pistons can return to play. He feels learning the tricks of the personal training trade will help him do just that.
"I wanted to know exactly the terminology and put that use," Galloway explained. “I've seen some huge strides with after games working out. Things like doing another lift as a cool down, and just trying to find new ways to recreate my body. So I was like, why not learn more about this and add this to my game going forward, so I'm all excited about everything I've learned thus far."
Looking to the future
Most 28-year-old professional athletes aren't looking to the future and how they can help other athletes. For Galloway, it's about giving back to those who are coming up behind him.
"I want to do something off the court in a training aspect," Galloway shared. "I think that's what I want to do for all the young kids that I come in contact with is, if I'm able to gain the knowledge right now especially, and be able to bring it back to the youth and help them train. That was my biggest thing, once this ball stops bouncing for me, I want to have everything lined up for me to have a gym in the long term.”
To ensure that he is prepared for life after basketball, Galloway signed up for his NASM Certified Personal Trainer program, his Nutrition Certification, and the Performance Enhancement Specialization.
dialed in on the NASM-CPT course
“I'm so focused on the CPT right now because it was time-restricted, I was like, I got to knock that out first, and then everything else I can go with my leisure,” said Galloway. “I want to add a lot of this to my background and my resume going forward, and apply it.”
While the circumstances that gave him free time weren't ideal, the seven-year NBA veteran has enjoyed the ability to expand his game and his horizons from home during his time away from the court.
"It couldn't have been better being able to fall into while I'm still playing and being able to knock out the program,” Galloway explained. “I'm well prepared. Then class and all the mentors that are in there, they're so helpful in trying to make sure that everyone is learning and not just falling by the wayside.”
While sports stood still, galloway didn't!
Sports may have stood still, but Langston Galloway certainly didn't. He's made the most of his time and is looking forward to making the most of his future and the athletes he'll get to work with after his basketball career is over.
"I'm all excited about everything I've learned thus far and to add this to my game."
