Research study by GVSU professor focuses on runners with jogging strollers

ALLENDALE, Mich. -- Dawn Coe's 2-year-old son, Parker, has logged a lot of miles in his jogging stroller. He's so accustomed to their running routine that he brings her his running clothes nearly every morning.

While Coe, Grand Valley State University assistant professor of movement science, has dutifully pushed the stroller while running, it wasn't until last year she began to think about how many calories she was burning. She's turned her question into a research study and is seeking other jogging-stroller runners.

"Often, runners pushing a stroller will go at a slower pace because you need that extra energy to push," she said.

She plans to test the difference in energy expenditure when running with a jogging stroller compared to running without one. Karin Pfeiffer, assistant professor of exercise physiology at Michigan State University, is a co-author on the study; four GVSU undergraduate movement science students will help collect data.

Grand Valley's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences purchased a mobile metabolic cart that will allow researches to test subjects' heart rates and oxygen levels while they push a stroller.

Coe is looking for about 40 volunteers, ages 18-44 who regularly run while pushing a jogging stroller. The volunteers will perform an exercise test on the first visit and will run one-mile trials with and without the stroller on two subsequent visits; the provided jogging stroller will carry a 25-pound weight. People interested in participating in Coe’s study can send an e-mail to [email protected].

Last year, Coe published a study researching young students and linking vigorous exercise during the school day with improved grades. It was published in "Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise."

Coe can be reached at (616) 331-3023.