Hello
To read more about my journey up to this point, and why I decided to focus on this project, see below.
My Story
After graduation, I entered the fitness / strength and conditioning industry at Sheffield Hallam University. A few years later, after completing my MSc in Sport Physiology, I started working as a civilian in the Occupational Health Unit at South Yorkshire Police (SYP). Here I helped officers and staff prepare for the physical demands of their roles. Part of this work involved my exposure to neuromuscular / functional movement screening for the first time, where I would screen for areas of mechanical dysfunction in individuals, enabling corrective exercise plans to be implemented in order to help improve performance and reduce potential injury risks.
After working for SYP, I moved to Lincoln College where I taught both FE and HE programmes, focusing on sport and exercise physiology. I helped write and taught on our Sports Therapy degree, bringing my previous professional industry experience and research focus into an education setting.
In order to start developing my own research portfolio, I left full time teaching at the end of 2017, where I moved back into industry, again, focusing on the physical and emotional wellbeing in occupational settings. Along side this role, I started my doctorate at the University of Gloucestershire.
Successfully completing my taught element of my doctorate degree allowed me the time to move back into full time education in 2020, firstly at The Sheffield College where I managed a variety of programmes for individuals who wanted to progress into careers as an allied health professional, before latterly taking up my current role at the University of Sheffield, as a Learning and Teaching Manager.
In addition to the above, I have worked in a fitness / strength and conditioning role in the academy of both current Championship and League One football clubs, and it is here where my passion for “pre-habilitation” and movement screening really developed into a clear idea for future research projects, especially focusing on the paediatric population, who you could argue need it the most!
Finally, was I a good player myself?…. Nop!