JAT Chat | Exploring Health-Promoting Behaviors: Insights from Former NFL Players

Welcome to JAT Chat, presented by the Journal of Athletic Training, the official journal of the National Athletic Trainers' Association. In this episode, Dr. Shelby Baez is joined by Dr. Sam Walton as they delve into health-promoting behaviors among former National Football League players. The paper discussed in this episode, "Health-Promoting Behaviors and Their Associations With Factors Related to Well-Being Among Former National Football League Players: An NFL-LONG Study" is available open access in the February 2025 issue of JAT.   Article: https://doi.org/10.4085/1062-6050-0537.23   Guest Bio: Dr. Samuel (Sam) Walton is a certified athletic trainer who studied at the University of Southern Maine (B.S. in Athletic Training, 2008) and the University of Virginia (M.Ed. in Athletic Training, 2013; Ph.D. in Sports Medicine, 2019). He has 11 years of clinical experience with three different NCAA Division I universities and he completed postdoctoral research training at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill (2022). Currently, Dr. Walton is an Assistant Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation with the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and a Research Associate with the Richmond Veterans Affairs Medical Center. His current research focuses on 1) the short-term, long-term, and cumulative effects of concussion among athletes and military personnel, including a specific focus on sex-differences, 2) promotion of brain health and well-being across the lifespan, and 3) guiding transition experiences to life after sport & military service. He also provides service for marketing, promotions, and communications efforts to the World Federation of Athletic Training and Therapy (WFATT) and the Concussion in Sport Group (CISG).