New training facility for Coach Hartig and MSU lacrosse

Head strength and conditioning coach Justin Hartig is returning to the Michigan State men’s lacrosse staff for his second year. But for this season, he has a reason to be even more excited.

Hartig owns the training facility Human Performance Institute with locations in DeWitt, Mich. and Traverse City, Mich. During the winter of 2015-2016, the HPI gym in DeWitt moved to a bigger building with new amenities.

“We opened up the new place in December,” said Hartig. “We doubled our square footage, clientele has increased, we brought more scientific based stuff in, and added more strength coaches.”

Hartig wasn’t added to the MSU lacrosse coaching staff until October of 2015. As a result, he had limited time with the Spartans before their 2016 regular season began. And at the time, HPI was still at its old location in DeWitt.

Hartig also said that he is new to lacrosse the past few years. However, he has really enjoyed learning it and is looking forward to continue coaching at the collegiate level.

Entering his first full year with the MSU lacrosse program for 2016-2017, Hartig is dedicated to getting the best out of all of his players.

“This year we get more time with the MSU lacrosse team,” said Hartig. “We’re going to move into more tri-phasic type lifting, agility testing and nutritional consultations and it’s going to be a whole different embodiment of program acting more towards the Division I level,” Hartig said.

At nearly every team lift and pregame warm-up the Spartan lacrosse team had throughout the previous year, Hartig could have been found in the middle of it. From motivating players struggling in the gym to providing energy in the huddle on the field, Hartig valued every opportunity he had to influence his players.

“I absolutely love this team,” Hartig said. “Every sport has their certain kind of people, and lacrosse has my people in it. To be able to do what I do from a strength and conditioning standpoint with a sport this athletic is awesome.”

–Jess Todd