Evan Johnson, a former graduate researcher with UConn\u2019s Human Performance Lab, led the exercise study. (Sean Flynn\/UConn)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nResults of Johnson\u2019s six-week study included both losses and gains. Overseen by Johnson, the 40 men who followed the ACSM\u2019s recommended 150-270 minutes per week of moderate- to vigorous-intensity exercise lost an average of 3 pounds and 0.6 percent of body fat. They also increased the distance they were able to run in 12 minutes an average of 780 feet\u2014the equivalent of a little more than half a lap on a standard outdoor track. The majority also decreasedtheir running pace by one minute per mile during the same 12 minute running test.<\/p>\n
Before the study, none of the participants exercised more than 90 minutes a week. Several didn\u2019t previously exercise at all, and all were classified as overweight, based on the National Institutes of Health\u2019s body mass index calculator.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlso significant is that participants saw an average 10 percent improvement in maximal oxygen consumption, which is a measurement of the amount of oxygen a person is able to use during aerobic exercise,\u201d Johnson explained. \u201cThis number is especially important for competitive athletes, because the more oxygen you can use, the more work can be completed for a given unit of time. It\u2019s also important for non-athletes, as higher oxygen levels are related to a more efficient cardiovascular system and better overall heath.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, most people don\u2019t realize the important role of intensity in a workout.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo achieve the weight loss and disease prevention benefits most people desire, reaching appropriate intensity levels is necessary,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cSome people with medical conditions should limit themselves to lower-intensity workouts. And our data shows that when a heart rate monitor was utilized, participants were able to more accurately replicate prescribed intensities when they were lower. Therefore, the only way to know for sure that you\u2019re not over- or under-doing it is by using a heart monitor.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things that excites me most about this study is that everyone got healthier and fitter,\u201d Johnson continued, adding that only about 20 percent of adults perform the kind of regular exercise a body needs. \u201cAnytime you get evidence that a person\u2019s health can be significantly improved in just six weeks it is a great thing. It also gives us stepping stones for future studies.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Douglas Casa, UConn Athletic Training Education director and a kinesiology professor within the Neag School, Johnson\u2019s study helps illustrate the Kinesiology Department\u2019s dedication to advancing overall health and fitness. UConn\u2019s kinesiology doctoral program is ranked No. 1 in the country by the National Academy of Kinesiology.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\nConducted through UConn\u2019s Korey Stringer Institute, Johnson\u2019s research was part of a three-year, five-part study launched through a UConn-Timex partnership. Similarly committed to improving public health, the sports performance monitor and timepiece manufacturer joined forces with UConn to investigate links between health, performance improvements and monitoring devices.<\/p>\n
While Johnson\u2019s part focused on monitor use by those in the general public, others have focused on the roles GPS units, calorie trackers and similar devices can have on elite athletes, such as those who compete in the Ironman Triathlon World Championships and play for professional sports teams like the New York Giants.<\/p>\n
Recently graduated, Johnson has taken the knowledge and expertise he acquired from the Neag School to the University of Arkansas, where he is working as a post-doctoral fellow studying the relationship between fluid intake and physical health. Yet he\u2019s not fully leaving the Neag School behind. Over the next several months, Johnson and Casa will be fine-tuning at least one journal article about the heart rate monitor study, which they hope to publish in a scientific, peer-reviewed journal.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe message people need is to not just exercise, but to achieve their prescribed dose which includes adequate intensity,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cBefore exercising, a person should talk with a health expert to get that prescription. Once the level is known, heart rate monitors can be a great tool to ensure that maximum exercise benefits are achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For his doctoral research project, former kinesiology student Evan Johnson wanted to know whether people exercising without a monitor could feel or perceive when their bodies reached a prescribed level, as this method has been suggested as a surrogate for heart rate monitoring in the past. The results surprised him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":204748,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2424,1855],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2455],"class_list":["post-204747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neag-community-engagement","category-neag"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-07 03:43:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204747","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/190"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204747"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204747\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":204749,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204747\/revisions\/204749"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/204748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204747"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=204747"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=204747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Evan](\"http:\/\/education.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/timex_2.jpg\")
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