It is becoming more important for everyone to “move more” and “sit less” because regular physical activity promotes good health and bolsters immune function. #KIPMichTech #UPandMoving #HRI_MTU #superiorideas #ExerciseisMedicine @ACSMEIM
Click here to learn more: https://www.superiorideas.org/projects/up-and-moving
Attention undergrad and grad students, the Summer Track A: COVID-19 UN 3990 Course (1 credit) still has seats open.
Houghton, MI – Michigan Tech University is one of only 153 universities and colleges around the world to be honored by Exercise is Medicine® for its efforts to create a culture of wellness on campus. Michigan Tech’s “UP and Moving” Program played a large part in helping the university to earn a silver level designation from the Exercise is Medicine® On Campus (EIM-OC) program and the COVID Conqueror badge, a new honor given to campuses that demonstrated creative adaptations to physical activity programming during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are thrilled to recognize these campuses’ commitment to make movement a part of daily campus culture and equip students with tools to cultivate lifelong physical activity habits, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Robyn Stuhr, vice president of Exercise is Medicine. “These campus programs are nurturing future leaders who will advance a key tenet of Exercise is Medicine: making physical activity assessment and promotion a standard in health care.”
The UP and Moving program offers free virtual home-based physical activity workouts to keep students, staff, faculty, and community members physically active during the COVID-19 pandemic. Steven Elmer, Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology, emphasized, “Physical activity is a critical strategy to combat COVID-19. Engaging in regular physical activity is considered as a “form of medicine” that can promote good physical and mental health, bolster immune function, and potentially improve prognosis in those individuals infected with COVID-19.”
Currently, the UP and Moving community-based physical activity program offers guided live workouts six days a week through Zoom and Facebook Live. Workouts are led by a team of graduate students at Michigan Tech and range from muscle strengthening exercise (i.e., weightlifting) to aerobic exercise (i.e., walking) to yoga and everything in between. The live workouts are also recorded and available to watch anytime on the program’s website, designed by Jamie Phillips, a master’s student in Kinesiology. The program goal is to help adults stay physically active during the pandemic. For substantial health benefits, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults engage in at least 150 min of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity each week and limit the amount of time spent sitting. Team member, Isaac Wedig, a doctoral student in Integrative Physiology, emphasized, “Any amount of weekly physical activity, even levels below this range, are still beneficial compared to no activity.” The home-based workouts do not require any specialized equipment and are easily adapted to fit a wide range of ages and ability levels. “Moving forward, the UP and Moving program at Michigan Tech has expanded their efforts to deliver workouts on local TV (ABC 10) and even include a DVD option for community members who are without internet,” explained Jenna Phelps, a master’s student in Kinesiology.
Of the 153 campuses recognized this year, 73 received gold, 59 silver and 21 bronze. All gold, silver and bronze universities and colleges will be officially recognized in June as part of the 2021 virtual Exercise is Medicine World Congress, held in conjunction with the American College of Sports Medicine’s Annual Meeting. Professor Caryn Heldt, Director of the Health Research Institute at Michigan Tech, said, “We could not be prouder of Dr. Elmer and the Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology students who are having a positive impact on Michigan Tech. Through two initiatives on campus, the Michigan Tech Forward Initiative in Health and Quality of Life and the Health Research Institute, we are promoting a culture of health and well-being for all and this award exemplifies that we are making positive progress.
EIM-OC calls upon universities and colleges to promote physical activity as a vital sign of health and encourages faculty, staff, and students to work together to improve the health and well-being of the campus community. EIM-OC launched its recognition program in 2014 to honor campuses for their efforts to create a culture of wellness. Schools earn gold, silver or bronze status based on their activities. Gold level campuses have created a referral system where campus health care providers assess students’ physical activity and refer students as necessary to a certified fitness professional as part of medical treatment. Silver campuses engage students, faculty and staff in education initiatives and make movement part of the daily campus culture while bronze level campuses promote and generate awareness of the health benefits of physical activity.
View a complete list of EIM-OC recognized schools and learn more about the UP and Moving program at https://www.exerciseismedicine.org/support_page.php/eim-on-campus/
About Exercise Is Medicine
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) co-launched Exercise is Medicine® (EIM) in 2007 with the American Medical Association. ACSM continues to manage the global health initiative, which seeks to make physical activity assessment and promotion a standard in clinical care, connecting health care with evidence-based physical activity resources for people everywhere of all abilities. EIM is committed to the belief that physical activity promotes optimal health, is integral in the prevention and treatment of many medical conditions and should be regularly assessed and included as part of health care. Visit www.ExerciseisMedicine.org for additional information.
About the American College of Sports Medicine
The American College of Sports Medicine is the largest sports medicine and exercise science organization in the world. More than 50,000 international, national and regional members and certified professionals are dedicated to advancing and integrating scientific research to provide educational and practical applications of exercise science and sports medicine. More details at www.acsm.org
Congrats to Joshua Gonzalez on receiving the 2021 CNS Steven M. Horvath Professional Opportunity Award from #APSPhysiology. He’ll present his abstract here: http://apsebmeeting.org/eb2021/session.cfm?id=1286
Steven M. Horvath, Ph.D. was a 64-year member of the American Physiological Society, joining in 1943. Dr. Horvath obtained a B.S. in chemistry from Oberlin College, a B.A. in chemistry and physical education, as well as an M.S. in physiology from Miami University of Ohio. In 1939, Dr. Horvath commenced his Ph. D in Biological Sciences at the Harvard Fatigue Laboratory, under the tutelage of Dr. D. Bruce Dill. Dr. Horvath worked on the proposal to establish the Center for Aging Research at University of California, Santa Barbara. In 2001, Dr. Horvath became Professor Emeritus at the University of Buffalo, SUNY. Dr. Horvath took great pride in the achievements of his students, post-docs and colleagues, and during his career he authored over 550 book chapters and peer-reviewed manuscripts.
The Steven M. Horvath Professional Opportunity Award was established by his three children after his passing on March 21, 2007. This award provides funds for junior physiologists to attend and participate fully in the Experimental Biology meeting, and is granted to the top ranked underrepresented minority graduate student or postdoctoral fellow applicants of the Caroline tum Suden/Frances Hellebrandt
Professional Opportunity Awards.
Are you an extremely motivated student? Take a big leap forward with the Kinesiology Accelerated Master’s (BS-MS) program!
The Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology will hold a brief informational session about our Kinesiology Accelerated Master’s (BS-MS) program. This accelerated degree plan allows you to combine a bachelor’s degree from Michigan Tech in exercise science, sports and fitness management, biological sciences, or biomedical engineering with a coursework-based master’s degree in kinesiology (4 + 1 = 5 years total). Together, the two degrees help students strengthen their admission applications to professional graduate programs (e.g., medical school, physical therapy school) and gain a competitive edge for careers in industry (e.g., cardiac rehabilitation, strength and conditioning). Current undergraduate students (2nd, 3rd, and 4th year) who are interested are strongly encouraged to attend one of the upcoming informational sessions
Thursday February 18
3:00 – 3:30pm
Zoom ID: 998 1757 1160
Passcode: kip2021
OR
Friday February 26th
2:30 -3:00pm
Zoom ID: 998 1757 1160
Passcode: kip2021
Stay for the KIP Department Seminar at 3pm
Our first spring seminar will be Friday February 12th. KIP faculty will provide a brief 3-4 min snapshot of their research/scholarly work. Please join us to learn about the breadth and depth of research from “cell to society” here in KIP.
Let’s start off this new semester by congratulating our KIP faculty and graduate students who were honored by Provost Huntoon for being in the top 10% of all instructors University wide in the Fall 2020 teaching ratings based on student evaluations. Dr. William Cooke (KIP 5500), Dr. Kevin Trewartha (KIP 4300/5300), PhD candidate Jessica Bruning (BL 2011) and PhD student Isaac Wedig (KIP 3100); these 4 individuals especially excelled this term.
This has been an incredibly challenging time to teach and the entire department has done a phenomenal job with instruction. Thank you all!!
Please join us in congratulating doctoral students Josh Gonzalez, Jessica Bruning, and Isaac Wedig on their recent publications and awards. These accomplishments speak to the hard work our graduate students and faculty are doing during this very challenging semester.
Joshua Gonzalez, PhD student, had his article published investigating the acute effects of electronic cigarettes in the American Journal of Physiology – Heart and Circulatory Physiology. The publication was part of a Call for Papers on Environmental Inhalants and Cardiovascular Disease. Note that this is a very prestigious journal in the suite of American Physiological Society journals. Great work Josh and Dr. Cooke! See link below for the full article. “Acute Effects of Electronic Cigarettes on Arterial Pressure and Peripheral Sympathetic Activity in Young Non-Smokers” https://journals.physiology.org/doi/abs/10.1152/ajpheart.00448.2020
Jessica Bruning, PhD Candidate, had an article Published on the American Physiology Society’s national blog – I Spy Physiology. This spotlight article highlighting Microbiome is aimed at expanding the interest of physiological sciences within the scientific community and general public. Nice work Jessica and Dr. Qinghui Chen with this outreach piece! https://ispyphysiology.com/2020/10/21/spotlight-on-microbiome/
Isaac Wedig, PhD student, had his article published on Exercise is Medicine COVID-19 infographic in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (impact factor = 12). The infographic has gained traction as it 1) was requested for use by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and 2) is being reproduced for use in a new COVID-19 home-based cardiac rehabilitation pamphlet in which 5,000 copies will be circulated to clinicians and patients across the United States. Way to contribute to the pandemic response Isaac! https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2020/11/11/bjsports-2020-103282.full?ijkey=h1cWS7WTWFddcp4&keytype=ref
Please join us this Saturday, November 14th, from 11:00 am – 4:30 pm to preview the programs offered by the Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology Department via the Zoom link here: https://zoom.us/j/94582277587?pwd=Nnl2OWRjME1UMEd2aTFkb0lkZWVxQT09
More information regarding Pre-Health and other degree options can be found by registering here: https://www.mtu.edu/admissions/visit/open-house/