Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Article Archive
Women who train in gyms expressed both positive and negative emotions, from feeling “always on display” to “sometimes empowered”, in a survey study that explored women’s body image and gym experiences. Female researchers from Ireland and the U.K. reported these findings after studying why, in spite of all the benefits of regular exercise, women are…
Read More
Encourage restless kids to run, jump and play. Not only is it good for their bodies, it’s also good for their minds. Active pre-school children demonstrate better working memory, less distractibility and more cognitive flexibility to adapt to new rules, when compared with sedentary peers. A study by researchers from the Public University of Navarre…
Read More
We’ve all experienced mental fatigue—that feeling when you’re too tired to pay attention or make decisions. Mental fatigue can lead to increased accident risks and poor choices. Elite athletes practiced brain endurance training (BET), a form of training that combines cognitive and physical training to improve endurance sports performance. BET differs from typical endurance training.…
Read More
Better sports performance is consistently linked with superior working memory performance, according to findings published in Memory. Researchers from University of Jyvaskyla, in Jyväskylä, Finland, conducted a meta-analysis of 21 studies with 1,455 participants. The review provides more evidence of the relationship between sports participation and improved attention, perception and decision-making among athletes. Working memory…
Read More
Fit or fat? The conversation continues. Fit pros know that fitness is important, yet many people focus on weight rather than physical activity. A recent systematic review of 20 studies with a sample size of 398,716 adults published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine adds more evidence to share with clients about the value…
Read More
New exercisers face the challenge of sticking with a new activity program. Personal trainers are all too familiar with clients who quit when they don’t experience fast, visible results. Sharing information about the “invisible” benefits of exercise helps. Explaining that habits can take up to one year to form may also be helpful. “In our…
Read More
Many assume that menopausal women will respond differently to a resistance training program than younger mid-life women. New research suggests that body weight and resistance band exercises can improve muscle mass, strength, balance and flexibility in healthy women regardless of pre-, peri- or post-menopausal status, as reported in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.…
Read More
Longer steps while lunging and striding maximize muscle recruitment, according to a small study of young, healthy male and female adults published in Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology .Researchers primarily from California State University in Sacramento compared muscle recruitment patterns among lunge variations in 20 subjects. Gluteus medius activation was significantly higher with long…
Read More
What programming, services or accommodations do you or your facility make for people who are differently abled? For example, in addition to making facilities and equipment accessible or you offering programs for people in wheelchairs? Or, for example, do you offer adaptive water fitness programs? If you’re a personal trainer with special training, how are…
Read More
Australian Conor Johnstone MSc, personal trainer in Australia, who has cerebral palsy and who competed in the 2024 World Para Jiu-Jitsu Championships;… A pickleball program at the YMCA of the Suncoast in Tampa, Florida that is helping cancer survivors improve health and wellness, as reported in the journal Healthcare; … A Safe Space Studio, founded…
Read More
New research shows benefits of one or two days a week of concentrated physical activity. Weekend warriors rejoice. Formerly, experts viewed weekend only training as less valuable than consistent exercise throughout the week. Harvard Medical School researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital recently found that a “weekend warrior” training pattern is equally effective at reducing disease…
Read More
Incontinence is one of the most common health issues for women as they age. Yoga and low impact exercise for at least 12 weeks significantly reduced incontinence episodes, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine (2024) Researchers from leading universities including University of California, San Francisco, and Stanford University, investigated whether yoga exercises…
Read More
Long-time exercisers have healthier belly fat than new exercisers, in new study. Exercise benefits people even when they gain extra weight. Researchers from the University of Michigan wanted to evaluate whether exercise impacts fat tissue’s structure and function. In a study of 32 subjects with obesity, they examined the differences in belly fat tissue among…
Read More
Physical activity, particularly aerobic exercise, is known to reduce depressive symptoms, but how is not understood. Researchers from University College London reviewed multiple studies on depression, exercise, motivation, dopamine transmission, and inflammation. Study authors theorize that exercise’s anti-depressant effect comes from its tendency to reduce inflammation, improve dopamine transmission and boost exertion of effort—both physical…
Read More
More good news promotes the value of exercise. A recent 3-year-long study by University of Eastern Finland researchers focused specifically on men with a high genetic risk of type 2 diabetes. Investigators tracked nearly 1,000 men between 50 to 75 years in either a health-promoting lifestyle group or a control group. The prevalence of type…
Read More
Many exercisers enjoy treadmill running, but often suffer from shin splints. Outdoor gait training and home exercises significantly reduced pain for subjects in a 4-week study conducted by University of Virginia researchers. Gait training exercises reduced ground contact time, increased cadence, and decreased stride lengths. For home conditioning, participants did single-leg squats and lateral step…
Read More
Vigorous exercise suppresses hunger more than moderate exercise for healthy adult men and women, according to a small study described in Journal of the Endocrine Society (2024). Among a group of healthy men and women in their mid-thirties, scientists measured ghrelin levels and perception of appetite after no exercise, moderate- and high-intensity exercise. Ghrelin is…
Read More
New research provides even more reasons to motivate mothers to exercise during pregnancy. For the first time, scientists show a link between maternal exercise and nearly half the likelihood of a child developing asthma, when the pregnant mother exercises at least three times a week. This discovery was independent of other maternal and environmental factors.…
Read More
Higher levels of motor and aerobic fitness in childhood are linked with better cognitive performance and mental health in adolescence, as reported in Sports Medicine (2024). Researchers from University of Eastern Finland conducted a longitudinal study with 241 boys and girls beginning from the ages of six to 9 years old over an 8-year follow-up…
Read More
Training adolescent black girls as peer physical activity leaders in high school promoted health, fitness and community, according to a small, qualitative study published in Journal of Healthy Eating and Active Living (2024). Researchers from Towson University, Baltimore, Maryland, in collaboration with Baltimore City Public Schools trained 3 peer leaders to lead Tabata group fitness…
Read More