VCU news

By Anthony Langley
Office of Development and Alumni Relations

Edmund Acevedo, Ph.D, professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University, has always been passionate about athletes and health.

He recalls a trip to Athens, Greece, where he told a colleague he wanted to find an opportunity to work out. Later that day, after it had cooled down, Acevdeo’s colleague brought him to a clay track in the middle of the city. Acevedo was energized to find nearly 300 people walking and socializing together. 

“You just walked in and worked out,” he said. “It was tremendous, it was crazy. And I thought to myself, ‘This works. All you do is open the gate, and people will come.’” 

After witnessing people in a large, urban environment spending free time exercising together, the wheels in Acevedo’s mind started to turn. How could he get people here as interested in exercising? His first thought was to share information with the general public that he and his colleagues learned at the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences’ yearly science symposiums. 

 We said to ourselves, ‘If we’re the sport and exercise science people, what can we be doing to support this race?’

With the UCI Road World Championships approaching in September, the time seemed right. 

“We said to ourselves, ‘If we’re the sport and exercise science people, what can we be doing to support this race?’” Acevedo said. 

He and colleague Robert Franco, Ph.D, wanted to make sure that everyone from casual to professional cyclists understood the best ways to keep their bodies in shape. They thought a video would be a effective way to do that. 

 

This is just the latest effort by the department to spread information to the public. Previous efforts have included work with both the VCU men’s and women’s basketball teams and various projects sharing their expertise in nutrition and exercise with local runners. 

Acevedo approached Jon Becker, J.D., Ph.D., director of the VCU Alt Lab, who had worked with Acevedo on earlier projects. Becker pointed Acevedo and Franco to Molly Ransone, assistant director of learning media innovation at the Alt Lab, who loved the concept they had in mind. The professors and Ransone — a critical part of the team — now plan to bring the best cyclists in the world together to make a series of exercise science videos that are both entertaining and informative. 

Their first interview is with former professional cyclist Christian Vande Velde, a former U.S. Olympian who twice finished in the top 10 in the Tour de France, about his passion for cycling and what he envisions for the future of the sport. The professors are planning more videos on topics such as nutrition, biomechanics, training and road safety. 

Acevedo sees the potential for the videos to go further than just cycling and the UCI Road World Championship race, but to delve into other sports and locations around the world as well. 

 

Featured image up top : former professional cyclist Christian Vande Velde.

 

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