Applied Sport and Exercise Science Research Group

The Applied Sport and Exercise Sciences Group was established in 2008 to bring together colleagues whose research demonstrates an application to improving or optimizing athletic or health-related performance. The Group’s research continues to be driven and informed by applied practice from within the field of sport and exercise and attempts to provide scientifically robust solutions to real-world problems faced by sport and exercise practitioners. The multidisciplinary group comprises specialists in the areas of human physiology, movement analysis, biomechanics, human nutrition and statistics. The Group’s broad research focus has centred mainly on the movement, physiological and skill demands of rugby, the female athlete, and the mechanisms of fatigue and recovery during and after high intensity exercise. More recently, the Group has extended its research interests to include the movement and physiological demands of boxing, foot mechanics during running, exercise regulation and perceived exertion and physical activity and health of young people.

Coupled with the provision of scientific support, a key purpose of the Group’s research activity has been to inform applied sport and exercise practice. Accordingly, non-academic users of the research have been elite rugby league clubs (St Helens RFC and Warrington Wolves RLFC) and the governing bodies of the Rugby Football League and the Rugby Football Union, as well as a variety of sporting organizations including the English Handball Association, the English Institute of Sport and the England Touch Association. Relationships between the Group and these high-profile organizations have led to several funded and co-funded projects to support PhD, MPhil and MRes students.

All informal enquiries to study for an MPhil/PhD in the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences should be directed to Professor Jamie Highton, tel: 01244 511189.