Moray House School of Education and Sport

Guy Stern, MScR 2020

'When I decided to retire and to try to answer this research question about biomechanical mobility, I looked for staff that are experts in the field.'

Thesis:

A comparative examination of the effect of high-intensity interval exercise and moderate-intensity continuous exercise on biomechanical mobility in healthy males and females aged 50-70 years

Supervisors

Dr Shaun Phillips

Dr Stelios Psycharakis

Where are you from? 

New York, USA

How did you find postgraduate research study at Moray House?

Very challenging. I re-entered academia after retiring from 35 years in the financial industry. Therefore, my undergrad university experience ended in the early 1980s, and in a completely different subject area.  I’ve had to do a lot of catching up, but  I have really enjoyed the steep learning curve.

What made you choose Moray House School of Education and Sport?

When I decided to retire and to try to answer this research question about biomechanical mobility, I looked for staff that are experts in the field. 

Where are you now? What are you working on and how has your time with us influenced your current work?

I’m continuing doing my PhD in the same field and divide my time between the Holyrood campus, the Alps, and family in the US.

What impact did your research have on your area of study?

Through a number of factors, the aging process has an effect on mobility. To learn why, and possibly design therapies that improve mobility as people age, could have an important impact on the quality of life for a large and growing cohort.

Has the Covid-19 experience prompted you to reassess your life or career goals or what's important to you? If so, how?

That’s very difficult to say. I began retirement, started my postgraduate research and went into lockdown all within a 12-month period.  Which has had the greatest effect on my outlook?  Good question.  In many ways, lockdown has been a wonderful opportunity to put my head down and get on with my research and reading.

Alumni wisdom: If you could offer a piece of advice, a tip or simply some words of encouragement to fellow members of the University of Edinburgh community, what would it be?

The 'fellow members of the University of Edinburgh community' are all much smarter and more capable than I am, so I probably can’t offer any good advice.  Perhaps just the old adage that success is the combination of preparation and perspiration.