Amy Whited
Biomechanist and Research Engineer (3D Analysis)
From: Falmouth, MA
Hobbies: Kickboxing
Favorite season: Fall
Fun fact: First ever bat girl for Falmouth Commodores (Cape Cod Baseball League)
What caught your interest in the field of sports medicine?
I grew up an athlete myself. When I got hurt, I had to go to physical therapy, and this sort of sparked my interest in sports medicine. When I was going through PT, I realized that this is what I wanted to do. I discovered a variety of other fields that were related to sports injuries, and in the end I decided to school for kinesiology.
Can you briefly explain what your job entails?
Here at The Micheli Center, I run the 3D motion analysis equipment for the 3D pitching analysis. Pitchers who are either experiencing or have previously experienced elbow/shoulder pain come to TMC, and we gather info on their pitching mechanics from the in-depth analysis that we have them go through. I work with Corey to look for the flaws in their pitching mechanics that may contribute to the pain they’re experiencing. The hope is to build more programs like this for other sports, so we can find ways to prevent more injuries from occurring. I also compile research using all of the pitching analyses we have with the hope of preventing future injuries.
What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
Most people haven’t really heard of what I do, so describing the whole process and providing an interpretation of the numbers is tough. Communicating to the athlete how the analysis is important can be difficult. I look at these models and numbers all the time, so it is easy for me to understand, but to explain it to the athlete is much more challenging.
What do you love most about your job?
I really like the collection of the data. We set up the mound, get all of the equipment in place, and we get to spend a lot of time with the athletes. When I explain the whole process to them and show them the numbers, it’s cool to witness them understand it all. I like seeing them enjoy it!