On Monday, June 25 the Summer Research Institute kicked off! After much discussion regarding the aim of our project we finally came to consensus on a research study that would be performed at the Seniors for Active Seniors.
We began our literature review that helped guide us in the right direction. A proposal was written and submitted to the IRB on July 6, 2012. It was approved on July 12 so we began the following week at CASi.
The main focus of our research is how the lives of seniors are enriched by participating in physical activity. In order to measure this we performed a sit-to-stand test, assessed quality-of-life and memory, and measured heart rate before and after physical activity. Classes assessed at CASi include gentle exercise, line dancing, and Zumba. As of June 24, 2012 we have 52 participants, some of which have recently began exercising and are new to CASi, while others have been here for years.
It has been a great adventure over the past few weeks. We have had the opportunity to learn how to line dance and learn new routines and exercises with Zumba and gentle exercise! We even had our very own research supervisor, Dr. Prosise out on the floor breaking it down with us! We look forward to the upcoming week as we continue to gather data!