Health & Kinesiology
Research and Discovery
Faculty, students, and staff are engaged in rigorous and impactful research ranging from understanding basic biological factors to examining community characteristics that contribute to health and wellness. Health & Kinesiology research is categorized into 4 general, overlapping, and non-exclusive themes that advance scientific understanding in the areas of:
- Behavioral Science & Community Health
- Cognitive and Motor Neuroscience
- Exercise and Disease
- Physical Activity and Well-Being
Check out our Google Scholar Page to see what we are up to!
Research Highlights
Research Spotlight
Genevieve Albouy
Genevieve Albouy explores how we learn and remember physical movements, especially during sleep. Using brain imaging and sleep monitoring technology, she studies how our brains store motor memories to help people move and perform better.
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- Biomechanics & Locomotion
- Community-Engaged Health Promotion through Dissemination & Implementation Science
- Lifespan Motor Neuroscience
- Neuromechanics & Applied Locomotion
- Physical Activity & Health Promotion Science
- Sleep & Circadian Physiology
- Sleep & Motor Memory
- Weight Management & Metabolic Health
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- Title: Continuous Monitoring of Head Turns: Compliance, Kinematics, and Reliability of Wearable Sensing
- Research team(s): Peter Fino (PI); Lee Dibble (Co-PI); Selena Cho (PhD Student)
- Stage of the project: Dissemination of findings
- Study purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of capturing the kinematics of head movements in free-living daily life and to provide a 'user-manual' for other researchers to follow. We demonstrated that quantifying head kinematics, including the number, frequency, amplitude, and velocity of head turns, is feasible in free-living daily life based on high compliance and repeatable methods to realign sensor-data. We also provided normative data on head turns, lumbar turns, and head-trunk coupling in healthy, young adults to complement previous studies on freeliving whole body turns in patient populations. We showed that the number of head turns are not well explained by traditional measures of activity. Finally, our results suggest that reliable data on free-living head turns can be achieved in as little as two days. Combined, these findings lay the groundwork for quantifying head kinematics in future clinical applications.
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Awards:
- Dr. Estabrooks and colleagues received CDC funding to develop marketing strategies that increase rural participation in lifestyle change programs.
- Dr. Christopher Depner and colleagues received an R01 from NHLBI to study how circadian misalignment contributes to cardiometabolic risks from sleep loss.
- Dr. Daniel Davis received an F31 fellowship from NIA to study mobility deficits in older adults using biomechanics and imaging tools.
- PhD Student Gabriela Pontes received a research grant for her dissertation and a teaching fellowship to enhance an undergraduate Kinesiology course.
- Graduate students Onosai Fonoti and Mickey Bolyard received poster awards for projects on Pacific Islander health access and elementary diabetes prevention curriculum.
Accomplishments:
- Dr. Ryan Burns was selected as Deputy Editor-in-Chief for Preventive Medicine and Preventive Medicine Reports.
- PhD Student Audrey Stegman gave an invited presentation at the Cincinnati Circadian Conference.
- Dr. Maria Newton and colleagues published a study examining their 20-year women faculty mentoring collaboration across universities.
Get Involved with Health & Kinesiology Research
Become a Participant
- Lost weight? Looking for help to keep it off? Enroll in our study to prevent weight regain. Participate Now!
- Learn about current research studies being conducted by the Lifespan Motor Neuroscience team.
Join a Research Team
- Undergraduate research opportunities in the Lifespan Motor Neuroscience Lab. Join Us!
- Graduate research opportunities in the Sleep and Motor Memory Lab. Join Us!
- Student research assistant opportunity for a lifestyle change implementation research project. Contact Dr. Paul Estabrooks to share your resume/CV and express interest
Key Faculty Publications
- Development of a mixed methods investigation of process and outcomes of community-based participatory research
- Tobacco product use and mental health status among young adults
- The metatheory of resilience and resiliency
- Using integrated research-practice partnerships to move evidence-based principles into practice
- Identification of latent classes of motor performance in a heterogenous population of adults
- Baseline sensorimotor GABA levels shape neuroplastic processes induced by motor learning in older adults
- Reactive postural responses predict risk for acute musculoskeletal injury In collegiate athletes
- Sigma oscillations protect or reinstate motor memory depending on their temporal coordination with slow waves
- Mechanics and energetics of human feet: A contemporary perspective for understanding mobility impairments in older adults
- Clinical factors associated with adherence to aerobic and resistance physical activity guidelines among cancer prevention patients and survivors
- Dietary intake modification in response to a participation in a resistance training program for sedentary older adults with prediabetes: Findings from the Resist Diabetes study
- Metabolic consequences of sleep and circadian disorders
- Role of chronic exercise on pelvic floor support and function
- A Coach’s Guide to Maximizing the Youth Sport Experience: Work Hard, Be Kind
- Comparative evaluation of heart rate-based monitors: Apple Watch vs Fitbit Charge HR
- Effect of a 12-week physical activity program on gross motor skills in children
- Feasibility and effectiveness of a wearable technology-based physical activity intervention in preschoolers: A pilot study
- The effect of a comprehensive school physical activity program on physical activity and health-related fitness in children from low-income families