A’Naja M. Newsome is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences at the University of Central Florida. She received a BS in Exercise Science from Georgia State University and earned a doctoral degree with an interdisciplinary concentration in exercise physiology and public health from the University of South Florida.

Newsome’s research focuses on the assessment and promotion of physical activity and exercise behaviors among women across the lifespan with a specific emphasis on maternal cardiometabolic and psychological health outcomes. Her current projects leverage wearable devices and ecological momentary assessment to capture free living physical health behaviors, autonomic regulation, psychological distress, and recovery processes. She also examines psychosocial and perceptual determinants of exercise adoption and maintenance, including affect, self-efficacy, and motivation. She also brings more than a decade of leadership experience in collegiate recreation, clinical exercise physiology, and sport performance coaching.

Newsome is a Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach and trained clinical exercise physiologist who has worked in clinical settings to integrate physical activity into patient care and rehabilitation. She is committed to advancing the ACSM Exercise is Medicine® initiative and increasing the integration of physical activity assessment and promotion as a standard in healthcare practice.