Nils Eckardt

Nils Eckardt
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Nils verified their affiliation via an institutional email.
Verified
Nils verified their affiliation via an institutional email.
Leibniz Universität Hannover · Institute of Sports Science

PhD
Always open and interested in new and exciting collaborations, particularly when you think out of the box

About

25
Publications
7,684
Reads
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400
Citations
Introduction
Nils Eckardt currently works at the Institute of Sports Sciences, Leibniz University Hannover. Nils does research in Biomechanics, Motor Control, Executive Control, Gerontology and Exercise Science using, besides others, multijoint coordination techniques (i.e., UCM, TNC).
Additional affiliations
August 2018 - March 2020
Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg
Position
  • Research Associate
March 2013 - July 2018
University of Kassel
Position
  • PhD Student
Description
  • - Strength and conditioning at school - Track & field / athletics - Trampoline - Kinematic Motion Analysis in Sports and Beyond
June 2012 - September 2012
Brunel University London
Position
  • Visiting Researcher
Education
October 2007 - September 2012
University of Münster
Field of study
  • Sport & educational science
October 2005 - September 2007
University of Münster
Field of study
  • English & Philosophy

Publications

Publications (25)
Article
Full-text available
The need to move over uneven terrain is a daily challenge. In order to face unexpected perturbations due to changes in the morphology of the terrain, the central nervous system must flexibly modify its control strategies. We analysed the local dynamic stability and the modular organisation of muscle activation (muscle synergies) during walking and...
Article
It is crucial to understand age-related degenerative processes that affect dynamic postural control and ultimately increase the risk of falling for older adults. Mediolateral stability during gait, which requires active control of foot placement, may be particularly diminished with age. Using the uncontrolled manifold-analysis (UCM), we aimed to qu...
Article
Full-text available
Locomotor stability is challenged by internal perturbations, e.g., motor noise, and external perturbations, e.g., changes in surface compliance. One means to compensate for such perturbations is to employ motor synergies, defined here as co-variation among a set of elements that acts to stabilize, or provide similar trial-to-trial (or step-to-step)...
Article
Full-text available
Aging is associated with declines in physical and cognitive performance. While there is no doubt about beneficial effects of physical exercise on proxies of strength and balance, the overall evidence for positive effects of resistance and balance training on executive functions is rather inconsistent. Whether the simultaneous exercising of strength...
Article
Full-text available
Motor flexibility, the ability to employ multiple motor strategies to meet task demands, may facilitate ambulation in complex environments that constrain movements; loss of motor flexibility may impair mobility. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of obesity (a specific model of mobility impairment) and advanced age on motor flex...
Poster
Full-text available
Das Sturzrisiko im Alter ist mit Nachlassenden Fähigkeiten in Kraft-, Gleichgewicht und Koordination assoziiert. In Kombination mit reduzierten kognitiven Ressourcen kann die Fähigkeit, flexibel und robust auf interne und externe Störungen zu reagieren, negativ beeinflusst sein [3]. Einbußen in motorischen und kognitiven Funktionen können zudem daz...
Article
Full-text available
›Using resistance training on unstable supports or with instability devices athletes aim to prepare their neuromuscular system for sudden and unforeseen impairments in equilibrium impeded by the environment or through sports partners. In contrast to athletes, older adults aim to avoid such situations impeded by instability to reduce a possible risk...
Article
Full-text available
Interpreting other's actions is a very important ability not only in social life, but also in interactive sports. Previous experiments have demonstrated good estimation performances for the weight of lifted objects through point-light displays. The basis for these performances is commonly assigned to the concept of motor simulation regarding observ...
Article
Full-text available
Sensorimotor control simultaneously engages multiple cognitive processes, like decision making, intention, processing, and the integration of multisensory signals. The reciprocal relationship of cognition and sensorimotor learning is well documented. However, little is known if the status of cognitive skills relates to immediate sensorimotor perfor...
Article
Full-text available
Purpose: The effectiveness of the whip-like coordination in throwing might be influenced by the inertial properties of the athlete's arm. This preliminary study investigated the acute effect of attaching mass to the upper arm on the distance achieved in a modified javelin throw. The aim was to identify the optimum upper arm mass that maximizes thro...
Article
Background During everyday locomotion, we cope with various internal or external perturbations (e.g. uneven surface). Uncertainty exists on how unpredictable external perturbations increase noise within the motor system and if they are compensated by employing covariation of the limb joints or rather due to decreased sensitivity of an altered postu...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
Instability resistance training (RT) or exercising within an unstable environment is a popular training modality and frequently used in training, rehabilitation and prevention settings. Yet, due to the reported reduced force output during exercising within unstable condition, instability RT is said to lack the necessary overload to induce meaningfu...
Article
Full-text available
Is the control of movement less stable when we walk or run in challenging settings? Intuitively, one might answer that it is, given that challenging locomotion externally (e.g. rough terrain) or internally (e.g. age-related impairments) makes our movements more unstable. Here, we investigated how young and old humans synergistically activate muscle...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
A means to compensate for perturbations is to employ motor synergies that act to stabilize or provide similar trial-to-trial output. Whereas evidence exists that synergies related to the upper extremities can be trained, the extent to which lower limb synergies can be altered remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether resist...
Preprint
Full-text available
Is the control of movement less stable when we walk or run in challenging settings? Intuitively, one might answer that it is, given that adding external (e.g. rough terrain) or internal (e.g. age-related impairments) constraints to locomotion makes our movements less stable. Here, we investigated how young and old humans synergistically activate mu...
Preprint
Full-text available
Is the control of movement less stable when we walk or run in challenging settings? One might intuitively answer affirmatively, given that adding constraints to locomotion (e.g. rough terrain, age-related impairments, etc.) imply less stable movements. We investigated how young and old humans synergistically activate muscles during locomotion, when...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
In our daily life, we regularly walk and run in complex environments. To deal with unexpected perturbations, the central nervous system must adaptively modify its control strategies. However, the continuous integration of sensory and motor information likely undergoes some simplification for achieving precise control, possibly by activating muscles...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
Healthy older adults have shown to stabilise the trajectory of the swing foot by kinematic synergies during walking across an even surface. Since surface configuration (e.g.,uneven surface) can alter lower limb kinematics, walking across an uneven surface may affect kinematic synergies, particularly with age. Therefore, the purpose of the study was...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
Understanding how to control stability when running, particularly when being exposed to uneven terrain, is vital to prevent falls and to get an insight into compensatory strategies while running on uneven terrain. The purpose of this study was to assess surface related differences of the margin of stability, kinematics of hip and knee and upper bod...
Article
The accurate detection of gait events is essential for clinical gait analysis. Aside from speed, surface characteristics like planarity and compliance can affect gait kinematics. Therefore detection of kinematic gait events on uneven surfaces may be inaccurate. To date, no study has investigated the possible influence of surface characteristics on...
Article
Full-text available
Background It is well documented that both balance and resistance training have the potential to mitigate intrinsic fall risk factors in older adults. However, knowledge about the effects of simultaneously executed balance and resistance training (i.e., resistance training conducted on unstable surfaces [URT]) on lower-extremity muscle strength, po...

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