Current Research

• This semester both Dr. Ratamess and Dr. Kang are conducting studies in the Human Performance Lab. Additionally, Dr. Faigenbaum is conducting a study in the Ewing elementary schools.
• Many fitness professionals and major health organizations recommend integrating both aerobic and anaerobic exercises into workout routines. The challenge with this is determining the optimal intensities when performing a single workout session containing both an aerobic portion and resistance exercises. To better understand this, Dr Ratamess’ study looks further into the acute fatigue hypothesis which states aerobic exercise may prematurely fatigue an individual when performed prior to resistance training leading to reduced effort and intensity. To do so, data (including repetition number, power, velocity, and lactate) will be collected as the subjects in the study perform multiple diverse aerobic exercises prior to the same resistance protocol consisting of five different exercises.
• Previous studies have shown that whole-body vibrations (WBV) are effective in enhancing performance when performed prior to exercise because the vibrations activate neurological and muscular function. Dr. Kang’s study is unique in that it is exploring dose-response relationship between WBV and cardiorespiratory and metabolic responses. Subjects will perform 10 sets of 10 squats on the PowerPlate at different amplitude and frequency combinations (30Hz Low Amplitude, 40Hz Low Amplitude, 50Hz Low Amplitude, 30Hz High Amplitude, 40Hz High Amplitude, 50Hz High Amplitude) followed by 20 minutes of biking at a speed equivalent to 60% of the subject’s VO2Reserve. It is hypothesized that there will be a positive and linear relationship between the vibration frequencies and the cardiorespiratory and metabolic responses.
• Dr. Faigenbaum has worked extensively with youth and with other professors at TCNJ he has designed an intervention to reduce both the number of overweight children and the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes in youth. The project is entitled Smart Nutrition Activity and Conditioning in Kids (SNACK) and incorporates fitness training as well as nutritional education. The data gathered from this study will be used to observe how sustainable these interventions are when they are introduced in early childhood.