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What We Do

At Mass General Brigham’s Center for Sports Performance and Research, our team of advanced sports science professionals assess and analyze your athletic performance and develop customized training plans to keep you ahead of the competition. 

male trainer supervising a male athlete using a weight machine at gym

About the Center

No matter where you are in your athletic journey, at the Center for Sports Performance and Research, we recognize the heart and determination of every athlete who walks through our doors. Our goal is to leverage the latest findings in sports science to help you perform at your best whenever you step onto the field, court, ice or track.

Your first visit to the Center will be for your free consultation. During your consultation, you will be given a tour of the facilities, and you will discuss your athletic and health goals with a member of our team. We'll go over the services we offer in detail, and make recommendations on how we can help you progress towards, and ultimately achieve, your performance goals. 

We improve athlete performance through four key offerings:

In-depth athlete analysis

female trainer supervising male athlete on treadmill with oxygen machine attached on face

During your consultation, our performance specialists will provide assessment recommendations based on your athletic interests and goals. We also use this time to discuss your health and fitness history along with your nutrition, sleep, and recovery habits. Our assessments use the latest technology to help us analyze your posture, stance, movements, reactions, visuomotor skills (your ability to interpret visual information and respond with a physical action), oxygen consumption, and recovery time. These analyses form a foundation for your personalized training plan.

Below is a selection of our current analytical offerings:

  • Force plate analysis: Force plates are calibrated pads embedded in the floor that measure movement and directional velocity. Our system combines this hardware with machine learning software powered by a database of nearly one million scans and thousands of injuries from tens of thousands of people, enabling us to assess your movement health and injury risks in seconds.
  • Metabolic testing: Metabolic testing analyzes your oxygen consumption and cardiorespiratory endurance, including a fitness metric called maximum aerobic capacity, or VO2 max.
  • Biomechanical and motion-capture analysis: Our Center uses motion-capture technology to help you analyze and refine your sport-specific movements in detail. Our biomechanical analyses can provide insight on any athletic movement, including:

The Center for Sports Performance and Research offers custom assessment packages for all types of athletes competing in any sport. These comprehensive packages include a mix of sport-specific movement assessments combining force plate analytics, metabolic testing, and biomechanical study.

Following assessment and testing, our sports performance experts will walk you through your results, highlighting your strengths and opportunities for improvement. Using this scientific data, we work together to establish realistic, achievable goals for your training plan.

Customized training plans

womon running in training lab

Our team works hand-in-hand to develop a customized training plan that empowers you to reach your full potential as an athlete. We’ll guide you through what you need to do before, during, and after competitions to enhance your performance, including exercises to build muscle, increase speed and flexibility, and improve your focus and decisiveness under pressure.

For athletes recovering from a sports injury or recent surgery, the Center also offers bespoke return-to-play training packages that bridge the transition from physical therapy and rehabilitation back to pre-injury performance levels. Once your medical care and rehabilitation has concluded, our Return-to-Performance program team can help you rebuild strength and work to mitigate your risk for reinjury.  

Performance training packages are available in the following models:

  • Private one-on-one training
  • Semi-private training (small groups of 2-4 people)
  • Group fitness programs (seasonal offerings for up to 20 participants)

Restorative recovery suite

male athlete floating in saltwater tank

We understand the importance of recovery in maximizing your athletic potential. Your hard work doesn't end on the field or in the gym; what you do afterwards is equally crucial. Recovery science is at the forefront of elite athlete training.

At the Center, our state-of-the-art recovery suite allows you to recover in a way that quiets your mind, heals your muscles, and boosts your energy levels. Our dedicated recovery rooms feature amenities such as:

  • Saltwater float tanks 
  • Cryogenic (cold) therapy pod 
  • Photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy bed

Group performance training programs

woman squatting with barbell on her shoulders in gym

For many athletes, sport is something to be taken seriously, but also an opportunity to have fun and socialize. Group activities offer camaraderie and motivation you just can’t get when exercising on your own.

Our group offerings are an opportunity for our coaches to demonstrate sport-specific skills in a supportive environment. We are always developing additional seasonal group programs based on our clients’ goals and interests. 

Frequently asked questions

We welcome athletes of all levels seeking to enhance their performance through sport science. Our comprehensive services include custom assessment, training, and recovery packages tailored to athletes competing at every level, including:

  • Professional athletes
  • Olympic athletes
  • Endurance athletes/triathletes
  • College/NCAA athletes
  • Interscholastic athletes (intramural/afterschool, JV, and varsity high school teams)
  • Masters/senior athletes
  • First responders/tactical athletes
  • Active amateurs

The first step in your sports performance improvement journey is to visit the Center for your custom analysis. Depending on your goals, this session may include:

  • A comprehensive history of your weight, injuries, training regimen, sports participation, and performance
  • Physiological assessment and monitoring to understand your body’s response during exercise
  • Metabolic testing to assess your energy consumption and expenditure
  • Motion analysis to evaluate your movement pattens and biomechanics
  • Force plate kinematics to analyze the directional forces exerted by your body while moving, such as running, swinging, jumping, and landing
  • Cognitive performance assessments and training to enhance your mental focus and decision-making skills
  • Virtual/augmented reality simulations for immersive training experiences and skill development

Because it is based on the unique scientific data we gather during your assessment, no two training plans are the same. We tailor the training regimen to your physical and mental strengths, incorporating proven aerobic exercises and weight training sets in varying patterns to target different muscle groups and improve your health and fitness. You’ll receive hands-on guidance, and we’ll ensure you’re confident in continuing your training at home.

Our performance trainers will also provide advice on managing your sleep, nutrition, hydration, and recovery habits. For those looking for extra support, we offer recurring supervised training sessions on-site.

We recommend athletes come in to the Center to train with us at least twice a week, typically for three- or four-month periods. This model provides enough time for us to get to know you and zero in on opportunities for improvement. We'll work together towards achieving realistic strength and conditioning goals that will result in noticeable improvements in confidence, technique, strength, and stamina. 

The Center incorporates 20,000 square feet of laboratory and training spaces under one roof, including:

  • Biomechanics and motion analysis lab for studying a wide variety of sporting activities and tasks
  • 4-lane, 30-meter running track with integrated force plates and motion capture technology
  • Strength and weight training area with integrated technologies for physiological and biomechanical data capture
  • Recovery suite consisting of two saltwater float tanks, a cryostimulation (cold) chamber, and one infrared photobiomodulation bed
  • Innovation technology lab
  • Commercial performance nutrition teaching kitchen

The Center has integrated sports research technologies throughout the smart facility in order to provide a seamless, data-driven training and recovery experience.

Sports we specialize in

Meet the team

Whether you have a physically demanding job, are a competitive athlete, or simply aim to lead a healthier lifestyle, our expert training staff can help you perform better. We will teach you how to build muscle effectively, conserve energy, be faster and more decisive on the field, and recover rapidly.

center for sports medicine and research team at conference table viewing data on monitor