Rutgers Expert Available to Discuss How Exercise Behaviors Changed During COVID-19 Pandemic

New Brunswick, N.J. (April 14, 2021) – Rutgers expert Brandon L. Alderman, who focuses on the science of exercise and its impact on mental health and cognitive function, is available for interviews on how exercise behaviors have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Several studies have indicated that people who rarely exercised before lockdowns were imposed last year tended to increase their exercise frequency during them,” said Alderman, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health in the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University–New Brunswick. “Although most frequent exercisers (before lockdowns) tended to maintain their exercise behavior, regular gym goers exercised less often and showed a decrease in mood and well-being. Similar to pre-pandemic times, the data I’ve seen indicate that individuals who kept exercising throughout the ongoing pandemic reported better overall mood and mental health regardless of whether they exercised before the pandemic. Unfortunately, people who decreased their activity levels from pre-pandemic levels reported worse depression, loneliness and stress levels.”

To interview Alderman, contact Todd Bates at [email protected]

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Broadcast interviews: Rutgers University has broadcast-quality TV and radio studios available for remote live or taped interviews with Rutgers experts. For more information, contact John Cramer at [email protected]

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Rutgers University–New Brunswick is where Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, began more than 250 years ago. Ranked among the world’s top 60 universities, Rutgers’s flagship is a leading public research institution and a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. It has an internationally acclaimed faculty, 12 degree-granting schools and the Big Ten Conference’s most diverse student body.