UWEC CERCA 2026

Gymnastics is a competitive sport requiring athletes to maintain rigorous training schedules. Athletes typically train and compete for one or more events. However, there is minimal research to determine the physiological and nutritional changes during a season. The purpose of the present investigation is to examine body composition, nutrition, and menstrual cycles during a competitive season. Division III gymnasts are completing dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) testing, measuring body composition, at the beginning and end of the season. Weekly nutrition logs are being collected during three months of the season, January, February and March, to determine macro and micronutrient intakes. Menstrual cycles are also being tracked during these months. If any injuries are obtained during the season, they are reported to the researchers. The data collected from this study can help determine physiological and nutritional demands for different events and athletes in gymnastics. This can help improve training practices for sport and strength and conditioning coaches.

Preseason testing for college athletes helps establish training plans and athlete profiles. Jump testing with force plates has become popular, but less is known about the relationship between force and power with body composition in basketball. PURPOSE: This study examined the relationship between body composition and jump performance of Division III men’s and women’s basketball players (MBP, WBP) during preseason. METHODS: 13 WBP and 11 MBP players completed two preseason testing sessions. During session one participants completed double and single leg jump testing on a force plate, which analyzed reactive strength index (RSI), peak power (PP), eccentric duration (ECCD), eccentric force (ECCF), and jump height. During session two, participants completed a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan that measured total/regional body fat percentage (BF), lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM). RESULTS: Results showed significant negative correlations (p

Carbon-plated (CP) shoes have become popular amongst runners with recreational and elite runners using them for training and competition. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of CP shoes on high-speed running performance in collegiate cross country (XC) runners. METHODS: Nine male varsity Division III XC runners (age: 19.1 ± 2.9 years, peak oxygen consumption (VO2): 65.4 ± 5.1 ml/kg/min) completed a VO2 peak test to determine their 70, 80 and 90% velocities of VO2 peak. The test was run in their traditional non-CP shoes (OWN). Participants then completed two experimental trials, in random order, consisting of running three minutes stages at 70% (14.1 ± 0.8 km/h), 80% (16.1 ± 1.0 km/h) and 90% (18.1 ± 1.1 km/h) velocities of VO2 peak in OWN and CP shoes. During each of the trials participants had blood lactate, ratings of perceived exertion, heart rate, respiratory exchange ratio, ventilation, respiratory rate, and VO2 measured. A two way (shoe x stage) repeated measures analysis of variance was used to analyze potential differences. RESULTS: There were no interaction (shoe x stage) effects for any variable (p > 0.05). No main effects were observed for shoe type for any variable (p > 0.05). Specifically, relative VO2 results remained unchanged across each trial (CP: 52.6 ± 5.1 ml/kg/min vs. OWN: 52.6 ± 6.4ml/kg/min, p = 0.991). However, there were significant main effects (p < 0.001) in each variable for stage, showing increases as physiological responses as exercise intensity increased. CONCLUSION: This study shows that while CP are popular amongst runners, there were no differences in high-speed running. Individuals should determine if the CP shoes benefit their individual running needs based on distances and goals.

Background/Purpose: Caffeine is one of the commonly used pre-exercise supplements, yet limited research has examined the optimal timing of ingestion prior to resistance training. The aim of this study is to investigate the optimal timing of ingesting caffeine with habitual consumers prior to engaging in resistance training. Methods: Nine university students participated in one repetition maximum (1RM) testing to calculate the resistance at 70% of 1RM during their leg and bench press sets post caffeine (4 mg/kg) or placebo (flour) trials. Participants underwent four randomized trials including caffeine-ingestion 30-minute prior to exercise (CAF-30), placebo 30-minute prior (CON-30), caffeine 60-minute prior (CAF-60), and placebo 60-minute prior (CON-60). Participants completed these trials documenting three sets per exercise trial until failure. Heart rate (HR) and relative perceived exertion (RPE) were also noted. Results: Outcome measures were averaged across the three sets for leg and bench press repetitions, RPE, and a percent drop in number of repetitions from initial and final sets. A two-way repeated measures analysis of variance revealed no statistically significant difference in these outcome measures across the four trials, p > .05. Conclusions: Caffeine consumption 30-60 minutes prior to resistance training had no impact on muscular endurance, RPE, or fatiguability.

This project highlights two collaborative course design projects within the Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) program. As part of a recent curriculum revision, faculty partnered with undergraduate students to co-create two new PETE courses, integrating student perspectives into content selection, learning activities, and assessment strategies. Throughout the process, the undergraduate students helping to create these courses learned about collaboration, gained insight into their professional beliefs about teaching and learning, and experienced the process of creating a new university course from the ground up. Attendees will learn about the collaborative process, practical benefits, and lessons learned while also gaining ideas for involving students as co-creators in teacher preparation programs. KINS 321: PE Curriculum Models & Teaching Styles prepares future physical educators to better understand the fundamentals of teaching styles and curriculum models while expanding their pedagogical knowledge. Students will engage in authentic learning experiences to apply their knowledge of teaching styles and curriculum models. KINS 322: Measurement & Assessment in PE highlights implementing assessments into the physical education classroom. With students being co-creators, they were able to reflect on their own personal experiences with assessment in previous courses, which helped to formulate different topics that would be discussed.

Nutritional habits prior to exercise can influence metabolic process both during and after an exercise bout. Due to the negative impact of excess body fat on metabolic health, pre-exercise nutrition and exercise interventions that target improved fat oxidation following exercise are warranted. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the combined effects of pre-exercise nutrition interventions with high-intensity resistance training (HIRT) on post-exercise metabolic responses in overweight (OW) females. METHODS: Respiratory exchange ratio (RER) was measured in fifteen recreationally active OW females (n = 15, body fat percentage: 31.3 ± 3.9) at baseline (BASE), immediately post (IP) 30-min (30), and 60-min (60) post-HIRT. The following supplements were consumed by participants prior to completing each HIRT bout: carbohydrate (CHO), protein (PRO), caffeine (CAFF, 3 mg/kg body mass), or PRO+CAFF in a randomized, crossover, double-blind design. RER values were assessed via a 4 x 4 repeated measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: Data are presented as means ± SD. RER was not significantly different between any of the nutrition interventions (p > 0.05). However, independent of pre-exercise supplementation, HIRT significantly reduced RER at 30 (0.74 ± 0.05) and 60 (0.74 ± 0.05) post-exercise in comparison to BASE (0.81 ± 0.04; p < 0.001) and IP (0.77 ± 0.06; p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Collectively, these findings support HIRT as an effective intervention for enhancing fat utilization up to one-hour post-exercise in OW females, independent of pre-exercise nutrition. Given the substantial time demands of traditional resistance training (>60 min), HIRT may offer a more time-efficient strategy for improving fat metabolism.