PE and BTEC Sport and Exercise Science students enjoyed a trip to Essex University to visit the Human Performance Unit. This visit allowed students to immerse themselves in the world of cutting edge sport science and exercise performance equipment – gaining valuable hands-on experience.
In the Biomechanics laboratory students investigated:
- Different levers in the body and their forces
- Vicon software on the force plates, using reflective markers to analyse an athlete’s movements
- Countermovement jump analysis to measure lower body power of a vertical jump
- Technology to help test velocity of the projectile and angle of release of a shot putt throw carrying out movement analysis
In the Exercise Physiology laboratories students participated in:
- VO2 max testing for elite athletes to predict their maximum fitness level. This allows us to explore how much oxygen can be taken in and utilise at maximum exercise capacity
- Sub-maximal testing on the cycle ergometer for a predicted VO2 max for those that are injured or athletes unable to exercise to their maximum capacity
- Blaze pod reaction time test
- 6 second sprint test on a Wattbike Hub devised to test power output
The students really enjoyed getting involved in the testing and have gained so much experience being hands on in the laboratory sessions. Thank you to Essex University for having us!
