Heather K Vincent, Ph.D.
(352) 733-0111
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Biography
My name is Heather Vincent, PhD, and I am the vice chair of research and director of the UF Health Sports Performance Center at the University of Florida Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. I earned my PhD from UF and completed my postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Virginia. I am an active researcher in the health benefits of exercise and using physical activity to prevent injury and fight diseases, such as obesity and osteoarthritis. Exercise is medicine!
I am an active member of organizations, such as the American College of Sports Medicine, Osteoarthritis Research Society International and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
Patients of all ages and backgrounds see me for fitness and exercise consults, sport and health assessments, including gait analysis, motion analysis, VO2 and lactate threshold testing, and custom bike fittings and/or pedal analysis. As a fellowship-trained expert in the field, it is my goal to keep people active and moving from youth through old age while enjoying life – no matter where you are starting your journey!
To keep myself balanced, I enjoy trail runs and walks, painting, shelling on the beach, landscaping and nature. Most importantly, I love to spend time with my husband and our three sons laughing together.
Education
Postdoctoral Fellowship
University of Virginia
2003-2005
PhD
University of Florida
1995-1999
MS
University of Massachusetts
1993-1995
BS
University of Massachusetts
1987-1991
Honors and Awards
Elected to UF Promotion and Tenure Committee
University of Florida
2021-2023
Selected for UF Leadership Development Program
University of Florida - College of Medicine
2021-2022
Elected to OAAA Steering Committee
Osteoarthritis Action Alliance
2020
Chair
American College of Sports Medicine
2020
University of Florida Term Professor
University of Florida
2018-2021
Committee Member
American Academy for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
2018-2021
Task Force Member
Osteoarthritis Action Alliance Weight Management Task Force
2017-current
Exemplary Teaching Award
University of Florida - College of Medicine
2016-2019
Elected to Faculty Senate
University of Florida
2014-2017
Fellow Status
American College of Sports Medicine
2014
US Bone and Joint Decade Scholar
US Bone and Joint Decade
2009-2011