Curves Signs $1 Million Grant At Texas A&M Lab Grand Opening

Curves Founder Gary Heavin signed a $1 million grant to kick off the grand opening of the Exercise and Sport Nutrition Lab (ESNL) at Texas A&M University on Thursday, April 30. The grant is a two-year extension of the Curves Women’s Health and Fitness Initiative, previously a five-year, $5 million grant to study the efficacy of the Curves diet and exercise programs. While the programs will continue to be studied, the extension’s primary goal is to develop an open database which will allow researchers to monitor the long-term effects of participation in Curves on health outcomes.

More than 1,500 women have already participated in the ESNL studies. In 2008, Curves launched a new technology, CurvesSmart, which allows for data collection at the club level. Currently, more than a million women in several different countries are using the CurvesSmart technology, and the number continues to grow. All of their data will be available to help researchers understand the role of exercise, diet, and weight management on health markers, disease prevention, and quality of life.

The grand opening reflects the ESNL’s recent move from Baylor University in Waco, to Texas A&M in College Station. According to laboratory director and head of the Department of Health and Kinesiology, Dr. Richard Kreider, “While I enjoyed my time at Baylor, I simply could not pass up an opportunity to lead one of the nation’s largest, most prestigious, and most influential health and kinesiology departments. The opportunities to collaborate with world class faculty and make an impact on the nation’s health are unparalleled. It is a perfect home for our lab to continue our work on investigating the role of exercise and nutrition on health, disease, and performance.”

Texas A&M College of Education dean Douglas J. Palmer, university faculty, administrators, and students, as well as all ESNL collaborators, attended. Special guests included Curves Founder Gary Heavin, President Mike Raymond, VP of Continuing Education and Research Cassie Findley, and Curves’ Registered Dietitian, Nadia Rodman.

Heavin, Findley, and Rodman signed complimentary copies of their new book, “The Curves Fitness and Weight Management Plan,” which is based on the most recent findings of the ESNL’s research. Notable findings include the scientific basis for a shorter Phase I—the lowest-calorie phase of most programs when dieters are most vulnerable to cheating—and the revolutionary idea that taking a regular break from dieting can actually help you lose weight and maintain it.