"Love many, trust few, and always paddle your own canoe"
An anonymous quote found on a dove bar candy wrapper by a friend
My name is Constance (Connie) Mier and I was born in Michigan. My education led me
to other parts of the country; Tuscon, Austin, and St. Louis. Eventually I made my way
to Miami where I have lived for the past 14 years and which I consider to be my
permanent home.
My profession as an exercise physiologist
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences at Barry University. My specialty is exercise physiology and I have been teaching
and conducting research from the Human Performance Laboratory for the past 14 years. My exercise physiology education began at the University of Arizona,
where I learned from some of the top scientists in the field. I completed a thesis while there; studying dietary habits and body composition in female athletes. In
1990 I moved on to The University of Texas at Austin where I eventually earned my Ph.D in 1995. My dissertation involved the study of cardiovascular responses
to endurance training in men and women. While in the lab, I did some research in thermoregulation in the heat for a grant supported by the US Air Force. During
my doctoral education, I learned from top scientists in the sub-fields of thermoregulation, cycling performance, nutrition and performance, cardiovascular responses
to exercise, and glucose & fat metabolism.
After earning my doctorate at UT, I moved to St. Louis, where I worked as a Research Fellow at the Washington University’s School of Medicine. While there, I
studied cardiovascular function in both young and elderly adults. After 3 years at St. Louis, I began my first faculty position at Barry University in Miami Shores,
Florida. I chose Barry University because it places its greatest emphasis on teaching, rather than research. I made the career changing decision to leave the
research track and take the challenge of running an exercise science undergraduate program, teaching courses I never taught before, running a human performance
lab without another exercise physiologist, and developing a master’s degree program. After a couple years, I did get another fulltime exercise science faculty and
we grew from 19 undergraduate students to over 100 undergraduates and 15 graduate students. Our human performance laboratory has also grown, from about
$50,000 to over $300,000 worth of equipment.
I have taught several courses in exercise physiology from sport nutrition to cardiac rehabilitation to energy metabolism. I hope that my teaching skills will offer my
readers something they can value. I want to provide you good information on training for endurance activities, sport nutrition and exercise physiology in general. I’ll
do the footwork for you; as an experienced researcher I know where to look, I have the knowledge to critically analyze studies and information, and I can synthesize
what I have found to present it to you in a meaningful way.
I am also a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (National Strength & Conditioning Association) since 1999 and a Health & Fitness Instructor (American
College of Sports Medicine) since 1998.
My passion for the Everglades
As a nature enthusiast, I appreciate my location everyday because I can easily get out of
the city and find myself in one of two invaluable national parks within minutes, The
Everglades or Biscayne Bay. And of course, there is the Big Cypress National Preserve
just a short drive north of here. In 1997 my career led me to Miami, where I immediately
fell in love with the Everglades. Ironically, I found it similar to the desert in many ways; a
bit prickly, full of fierce looking animals, and wild landscapes with monotonous tones. I
have committed myself to exploring, caring for, and understanding the Everglades.
As a kayaker and canoeist
I’ve been a recreationally competitive athlete as a runner and cyclist, but it has been over 20 years since my last competition. For about 5 years, I competed in
USCF cycle races, various running events and biathlons (now known as duathlons). I never ventured into triathlons for one simple reason, I am afraid of the water.
Because we are surrounded by water in Miami, I had to overcome my fear and get in it. I faced those fears and learned to scuba dive. Later, I took a sailing class
and finally, I bought a kayak and eventually a canoe. By no means do I claim to be an expert paddler. Rather, what I hope to share with you are my adventures in
the Everglades and offer some useful information for planning trips in the Everglades National Park. As an exercise physiologist, I hope to provide fellow kayaker
and canoeist (especially those of you who compete in long-distance events) some useful information concerning training and performance.
As an amateur photographer
It all began in the Everglades with the thought of permanently capturing its essence
from a kayak (and eventually from a canoe). For the past 7 years, photography has
become a passion and I've combined it with my paddle explorations in the
Everglades and Biscayne Bay. If you are a novice photographer, a photographer
who wants to get off the boardwalk and get into the deep Everglades, or someone
who likes nature photos, I’ll have some things to share with you. In the past 6
years, I've gone from a pocket-size waterproof digital camera to thousands of
dollars worth of camera equipment, including two SLR cameras that I carry on the
boat with me. Explore this hobby of wilderness photography from a kayak or canoe
as I share my learning experiences, mistakes, revelations, and photos.
All Rights Reserved. Copyright Constance Mier, 2007-2011
|