Lexington-based University of Kentucky Sports Medicine Research Institute received a $4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense and Office of Naval Research to expand research on optimal, physical and mental fitness in elite U.S. military members.
Here are five details:
1. University of Kentucky SMRI has worked with the Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command for the past three years on the Marine Corps' human performance program at Camp Lejeune, N.C., which studies injury prevention and how to optimize physical performance.
2. With the new grant, SMRI will research optimal preparation for tactical training and deployment based on physical and mental performance.
3. SMRI Associate Director of Research Nick Heebner, PhD, said the new project is different than the institute's previous work with the Marine Corps, which focused primarily on musculoskeletal health recovery and injury prevention.
4. In addition to musculoskeletal health, the new research incorporates physical performance, cognitive performance and psychosocial health.
5. University of Kentucky College of Health and Sciences Dean Scott Lephart, PhD, said SMRI faculty have been working with the DOD and special operations forces for 15 years, and SMRI has received more than $10 million in funding from the DOD since 2015.