My research interests steam from the use of exercise to improve health. One of my main interests is how Bone responds to mechanical stress, with a view to improve bone health via exercise interventions. This includes both traditional impact exercise, which is very good for bone, and trying to utilise High-intensity Interval Training to improve bone health.

While examining how bone responds to mechanical load, I am also interested in the use of biochemical markers of bone turnover, and how these measures related to traditional x-ray measures of bone health. I am keen to examine how these measures correlate, with the view to developing more accurate screening tools for Osteoporosis.

I currently teach a wide range of material within the school, at a variety of levels on a number of different degree schemes. I very much believe in a research-centered approach, trying to challenge students with the most up-to-date research literature, examining problems/areas that are new and exciting. 

My current teaching is focussed on data-analysis skills for undergraduate students, where we use Jamovi to install a sense of students seeing data-analysis as a tool that they are able to use rather than an abstract concept that is totally alien to the rest of their studies. We are moving our teaching in this area towards a more data science driven approach as opposed to this as a seperate skillset from their degree.

I also like to try and engage students with learning outside of the lecture theatre or lab setting, by using a variety of interactive media such as Twitter and YouTube, to encourage students to think in different ways about material covered in class. I also want to try to encourage students to think about the research literature beyond what might be directly relevant to their assignments.

I completed my undergraduate degree in Sport and Exercise Science at Heriot-Watt University in 2008, and during this time I gained experience working in both an applied, as an Assistant Fitness Coach for the Scottish Rugby Union before the 2007 Rugby World Cup, and research setting through my final year project. This developed into wanting to work in academia, after a brief dalliance with the idea of working in Medicine.

I started my PhD in January 2010 examining the effects of exercise and creatine supplementation on bone density, metabolism and body composition in the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at Aberystwyth University. 

Following the completion of my PhD in 2014, I started working for the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences as a Lecturer in Human Physiology, teaching on the Biomedical Science, Biological Sciences and Ecology and Conservation degree schemes.

My primary supervisory interests are in how lifestyle interventions (exercise and diet) can be used to improve health, focussing on body composition, bone and metabolic health. 

I am also interested in open science, and how we can apply these practices (including pre-registration, registered reports and pre-print publications) in order to improve access to publically funded work.