LaRue Cook,
Senior Contributor

LaRue Cook is a certified fitness professional with over 23-years of hands-on training experience. He holds a BS in Health Science, Masters in Healthcare Administration, and Juris Doctor Degree.

Additionally, LaRue holds the following certifications: Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, Certified Tennis Performance Specialist, Certified Sports Performance and Injury Prevention Trainer, Certified EXOS Performance Specialist, Certified Titleist Performance Specialist, and Certified Youth Conditioning Specialist.

LaRue serves or has served on the Board of Examiners of the National Board of Fitness Examiners and the Board of the Florida High School Tennis Coaches Association

Additionally, LaRue has served on a Maryland County Subcommittee on Childhood Obesity and served as Program Manager and Developer for the seminal Employee Wellness Program for Arlington Virginia County’s Parks and Recreation employees.

LaRue has taken on a number of different leadership roles in the Strength and Conditioning, Fitness, and Wellness industry and has become a Nationally-Recognized expert in the areas of Sports Performance, Strength and Conditioning, and Injury Prevention for Athletes.

In his over 25-years of experience, he has served as Director of Wellness, Fitness, and Recreation at a 2-Year College, as a Fitness Director at a large Corporate Fitness Center, and as a Trainer and Program Developer for Country Clubs, Sports Organizations, and Healthcare Providers in the U.S. He continues to serve as a Consultant and Trainer to Sports and Fitness organizations throughout the United States helping them develop or improve Sport Specific Strength and Conditioning and Performance Programs with a focus on improved performance and injury prevention.

In 2016 LaRue was highlighted in a publication by the Exercise is Medicine Program ® (a worldwide initiative co-launched by the American Medical Association and the American College of Sports Medicine) as a Certified Fitness Professional who has successfully forged a working relationship with the medical profession. Cook is also involved with the STOP Sports Injuries initiative, and a major part of his private practice is devoted to Injury Prevention and Post-Rehab Recovery as it relates to athletes of all ages, all sports. Cook has worked with athletes from age 6 to 98. He emphasizes work with female athletes and specializes in helping that population of athletes improve their strength and conditioning to not only improve their performance on their chosen field of play but also to help them avoid such injuries as Non-Contact ACL Injuries that affect female athletes at a rate of 2-10 times greater than their male counterparts.

LaRue has served as Contributing Expert to a number of health, fitness, and sports publications and organizations including the International Sports Sciences Association, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the International Tennis Performance Association, USA Basketball, ESPN.com, the Rhode Island Health and Fitness Magazine, Tennis View Magazine, Women’s Basketball Magazine, iHoops.

In 2011, LaRue produced a short documentary film ‘We R Athletes’ which highlighted the many benefits, both physical and psychological, of strength and conditioning for female athletes, and how becoming physically strong enhances self-confidence both on the field of play and in the work world.

LaRue is a lifelong athlete who has competed in baseball, tennis, karate, track, wrestling, and bowling. He currently competes in tournament tennis and has been ranked in the Top-10 Men’s 4.0 Singles tournament players by the United States Tennis Association, Mid-Atlantic Section for over 14 years.