ATLANTIC PROVINCES EXERCISE SCIENTISTS AND SOCIOCULTURISTS 2026 (APES+ 2026)

Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS

March 27–28, 2026

General Conference Information

Location

• Collaborative Health Education Building (CHEB)
  5793 University Avenue, Halifax

• Tupper Link & Theatre B (Sir Charles Tupper Medical Building)
  5850 College Street, Halifax

• T-Room (Social Location)
  Sexton Campus, Gymnasium Building
  1360 Barrington Street, Halifax

Location Maps

• CHEB – Google Maps

• Tupper Medical Building – Google Maps

• T-Room (Social) – Google Maps

Dates

Friday, March 27 and Saturday, March 28, 2026

Conference Schedule

Banquet & Social

• The banquet will be buffet style with chicken as the main protein and will be located in CHEB C170.
• Please indicate any special dietary needs during registration.

Following the reception, a social will take place at the
T-Room.

If interested, please select “yes” and add $8 to your conference registration cost.

Parking

Parking is limited around the conference location.

⚠️ Unauthorized use of hospital parking may incur a $500 fine.

We recommend:

• Using the on-street parking location map
• Downloading the HotSpot app
• Parking at Dalplex (6260 South Street, Halifax) via the HotSpot app

Conference Hotels

Participants are encouraged to secure accommodations early.

Due to a large minor hockey tournament in Halifax during this weekend, we were unable to secure a hotel block.

We recommend booking as soon as possible.

Hotels to consider:

• The Lord Nelson
• Atlantica Hotel Halifax
• Halifax Marriott Harbourfront
• The Westin Nova Scotian
• Four Points Sheraton Halifax

You may also explore vacation rental services.

Conference Registration

• Registration fee: $100
• Optional social drink ticket: $8
  • Enter 108 in the payment form if purchasing both.

To register, please complete the registration and abstract form:

Registration & Abstract Form

Payment options:

• Online via PayPal (below)
• Onsite registration (PayPal only)

Biomechanics Stream Awards

The Canadian Society for Biomechanics / Société canadienne de biomécanique (CSB/SCB) is sponsoring:

Travel Awards

• 10 Student Travel Support Awards ($100 each)
• Must incur expenses to attend APES+ 2026
• Must be a student member in good standing of CSB/SCB

Presentation Awards

• Undergraduate: $100
• Master’s: $200
• Doctoral: $200

Three finalists per academic level will be selected based on abstracts.
Recipients will be chosen following conference presentations. To apply, click - Here

Abstract Submission and Presentation

• Abstract submission is completed via the registration and abstract form.
• Deadline: Friday, March 6, 2026
• Oral presentations: 10 minutes + 2 minutes Q&A
• No poster sessions.

Example Abstract

ÉVALUATION DE LA VALIDITÉ ET DE LA FIABILITÉ D’UN AMPLIFICATEUR À BASE DE MICROCONTRÔLEUR À FAIBLE COÛT POUR MESURER LA FORCE MUSCULAIRE DES MEMBRES INFÉRIEURS ET SUPÉRIEURS

Julie Gaudet & Grant Handrigan

École de kinésiologie et de loisirs, Faculté des sciences de la santé et des services communautaires, Université́ de Moncton, Moncton, Canada

Introduction: Muscle strength is an important measure of functional ability. There are several methods of measuring muscle strength, ranging from manual tests to sophisticated instruments. Recently, there has been a proliferation of inexpensive tools that can adapted to measure muscle strength. This study aims to evaluate the inter- and intra-session validity and reliability of a low-cost microcontroller-based load cell amplifier for measuring maximal isometric muscle strength in the lower and upper limbs.

Methods: The low-cost microcontroller-based amplifier was compared to a commercial-grade signal conditioner and a hand-held force gauge.

Results: The microcontroller-based device correlated almost perfectly with the other instruments, and had a good to excellent ICC association for inter- and intra-session reliability.

Conclusion: The low-cost microcontroller-based amplifier is comparable to the commercial signal conditioner and hand-held dynamometer for measuring maximal isometric muscle force.

References:

1. Jaric, S. Muscle Strength Testing. Sports Med. 2002, 32, 615–631.
2. Moss, C.L.; Wright, P.T. Comparison of Three Methods of Assessing Muscle Strength and Imbalance Ratios of the Knee. J. Athl. Train. 1993, 28, 55–58.
   

Acknowledgements: We would like to thank all our participants for volunteering their time to assist with this project. Also, all members of the Biomechanics, Ergonomics and Analyse du Mouvement (BEAM) laboratory for their assistance and encouragement during data collection. This research was partially funded by the Canadian Frailty Network Catalyst Grant CAT 2018-15. and the CFN-NBHRF Summer Studentship 2020 SSA grant as salary support for J.G.