Kinesiology tape is one of the most widely used therapeutic, sports products currently on the market. Most people have either seen the tape worn during televised or live sporting events, or maybe they’ve even worn the product themselves. Athletic trainers apply it to their athletes, professionals endorse the product, drug stores even carry the tape, it’s everywhere. KT tape is said to help prevent injuries, aid in a recovery period, and overall, just enhance performance, yet there is little clinical evidence that the product lives up to its claims. There is a need for more research so we can be sure of this product everyone is purchasing and using. More information needs to be available to the consumers and the professionals applying the tape. To determine the effectiveness of kinesiology tape on improving physical performance, specifically the measurement of power.

Nearly half of U.S. adults suffer from some form of cardiovascular disease. Previous research has shown that exercise is an essential lifestyle intervention to improve cardiovascular health and heat therapy, in forms of hot baths or saunas, may provide numerous cardiovascular health benefits. The purpose of this research was to investigate how the combination of exercise and heat therapy impacted ambulatory blood pressure, compared with heat therapy or exercise alone. The study consisted of three trials in a randomized, counterbalanced order in which each subject partook in all three treatments: exercise alone, heat alone, and the combination being exercise followed with heat therapy. Each exercise trial consisted of treadmill walking for 30 minutes at 60% effort. Each heat therapy trial consisted of 45 minutes in a hot (42C) leg bath. The combination session consisted of the exercise trial followed by a heat therapy trial. Following each session, subjects ambulatory blood pressure and heart rate variability was taken overnight to assess the outcomes that the interventions had on the subjects. Exercise alone had no change in systolic pressure with the average night blood pressure across all subjects was 117 mmHg and the post-trial blood pressure average was 118 mmHg. Exercise alone did lower diastolic blood pressure by 3 mmHg from 67 mmHg to 64 mmHg. Heat alone lowered systolic blood pressure from 117mmHg to 113 mmHg showing a 4mmHg difference. Heat alone also lowered diastolic blood pressure by 4mmHg from 67mmHg to 63mmHg. It was found that the combination of exercise and heat therapy had no change in systolic blood pressure, but the largest impact was on diastolic blood pressure lowering it by 8mmHg.

The purpose of this research was to determine if incorporating dance into elementary school classrooms increases academic achievement and enjoyment. Throughout this project, an experiment was done with second graders that supported this idea that by adding dance into classroom lessons, students achieve more. These students scored higher on an assessment after including movement into the lesson. Some of them enjoyed the lessons more with dance and others did not. Previous research found that dance helps the student learning process due to its ability to meet diverse needs, its effect on the memory, and increase on student engagement. Dance also connects to Bloom's Taxonomy and Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Students with different disabilities have also shown higher academic achievement when dance is used in their classrooms. It helps with attention and stimulating the brain. Along with this research, four mini units are attached that incorporate dance for teachers to use as examples as to how to incorporate dance into their lessons. These include English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies lesson made for second graders using Massachusetts State Standards and National Dance Standards for second graders. Through the experiment, research, and creation of lesson plans, it can be said that incorporating dance into elementary school classrooms increases academic achievement and may increase overall enjoyment.

Miley Cyrus is the pop music industry's current puzzle. The public cannot seem to figure her out and neither can other music professionals. Her goody-two shoes image was birthed through her role of Disney Pop Princess, Hannah Montana when Cyrus was 12. Since then, she has created four studio albums, released 26 singles, taken a break from music, made headlines for raunchy behavior, chopped off her hair, completely recreated her image, and released a triple-platinum single that also won Video of the Year at the Music Television Video Music Awards in 2014. Miley Cyrus has found the key to success. She is learning the art of success in her industry as she manages to make herself happy while resonating with audiences and selling albums. I created a four-minute piece of dance choreography that reflects the research I have done on the industry and the conclusions I have drawn about the career of Miley Cyrus. See video of performance at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHOUdK2E9xc&list=UUlTKJEjwiSoObx0KXhTFVQA

Introduction: The ACL is one of the two intraarticular ligaments within the knee joint that provides stabilization and resists against anterior translation of the tibia on the femur and rotation. There are many risk factors that may predispose an athlete to an ACL tear or increase their risks, however excessive motion at any plane may cause an ACL rupture. Over the last decade, several research studies have found that the rate of ACL tears following reconstruction surgery has increased compared to previous decades. Objective: The primary objective of this systematic review was to determine the rate of ipsilateral and contralateral ACL ruptures following ACL reconstruction surgery in both males in females. Background: A literature search was performed using PubMed, Medline, Academic Search Premier, and CINAHL databases. Twelve articles met inclusion criteria and minimum score on the Modified Downs and Black for Study Quality checklist. All articles included in this systematic review include findings on the incidence of rupture rates on both the ipsilateral and contralateral ACL tears including percentages within the last 12 years and included both males and females within their study design. Results: Comparison of twelve studies included 6,901 post-operative ACL reconstruction patients, 57% male and 43% female. Patients were followed for an average of 6.9 years, with a follow-up windows ranging from 1 year to 15 years. The ipsilateral ACL re-rupture rate was 6.07% and contralateral ACL re-rupture rate was 6.89%. Overall rate of re-rupture following ACL reconstruction is 12.97% with a range of 5.96% to 35.8%. Conclusion: Post-operative ACL reconstruction patients have nearly a 13% risk of sustaining another ACL injury. Studies that followed patients for longer period of time reported higher injury rates comparatively. The research suggests that patients are more likely to tear their contralateral ACL compared to the ipsilateral following ACL reconstruction. Future longitudinal studies are needed to further examine risk of rupturing the ipsilateral or contralateral ACL following an ipsilateral reconstruction surgery, as well as, investigating possible risk factors for re-rupturing the ACL.

Objective: With the technological advances in today’s society, active videogames (or exergames) have become more commonplace. Virtual reality (VR) exergames have begun to emerge with more readily available, affordable technology that can be bought online and in stores. This study focused on the popular VR game Beat Saber (Beat Games 2018) and its overall effectiveness in getting individuals to exercise in comparison to a treadmill condition one can do at a gym. It was hypothesized that participants will have similar heart rates, equally high perceived exertion, higher intrinsic motivation to exercise, and have more time spent exercising in Beat Saber than on the treadmill. Methods: Twenty young adults (male or female) were asked to participate in this two non-consecutive day study. Participants underwent two conditions in a balanced order, with half completing the exergame condition first, and the other half completing the treadmill condition first. Participants completed the remaining test condition during their second visit. The participants were evenly divided into two different groups (Group A and Group B). Those in Group A started with an exergame protocol while those in Group B started with a treadmill protocol. All participants had their heart rates, perceived exertion levels (RPE), motivation to exercise, and time spent exercising measured in both conditions. Results: A paired t-test (p < 0.05) found significant differences in mean heart rate (p = 0.003), in the intrinsic motivation subgroups of Interest/Enjoyment (p < .05) and Perceived Choice (p < .05), and in average time spent exercising (p < 0.001). The paired t-test also found no significant differences in the most active twenty-minute period mean heart rate (p = 0.92), in mean RPE (p = 0.53), or in the intrinsic motivation subgroups of Perceived Competence (p = 0.37), Effort/Importance (p = 0.48), and Value/Usefulness (p = 0.21). Conclusion: As hypothesized, the exergame Beat Saber can be considered a viable, alternative form of exercise that is also more engaging than running on the treadmill.

The proposed business model for the Tender Love and Care Yoga Studio (TLC) was developed as a part of an Honors Thesis by the author, Cameryn Tierno. TLC strives to provide its students with accessible yoga classes that are relaxing and rejuvenating. TLC’s staff and environment fosters relaxation and acceptance, while also offering practical stress-relieving techniques that are beneficial to all. The report presents the various methodologies and tools used for developing the business model and states the individual development plan for Cameryn Tierno as a yoga instructor and business woman before embarking on the journey of becoming a business owner. The report is concluded with Cameryn’s personal reflection of her experience completing this project.

Introduction: This thesis is part of a larger study on the effect of foam rolling on several variables. This thesis specifically discusses the effect of foam rolling on pulse wave velocity. Foam rolling is becoming an increasingly popular form of self-myofascial release, which may have an effect on autonomic function. Pulse wave velocity is a measure of arterial stiffness, which can indicate the possibility of a cardiovascular event to occur. Arterial stiffness is affected by autonomic function. Foam rolling may be able to affect arterial stiffness via the autonomic nervous system. The purpose of this study is to determine if foam rolling has an effect on pulse wave velocity, a measure of arterial stiffness. Methods: There were 40 participants, both male and female, randomly placed in either the foam rolling condition (FR) or control condition (CON). Pulse wave velocity was measured in both conditions once each day for eight days. Those in the foam rolling condition foam rolled the quadriceps, hamstrings, gastrocnemius, medial thigh, iliotibial band, and gluteus each for 60 seconds per leg every day after pulse wave velocity measures were taken. A two-tailed Mann Whitney U test was used to compare the change from the baseline area under the curve between FR and CON. Results: The results concluded that there was no significant difference in pulse wave velocity measures between the foam rolling and control conditions (p > 0.05). Discussion: This research suggests that foam rolling does not influence pulse wave velocity 24 hours after a bout of foam rolling. Further research is necessary to determine the amount of time necessary to see an effect on pulse wave velocity.