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Dr. Nina Cherie Franklin (born January 17, 1980), also known as Nina Cherie, PhD, is an American researcher, educator, and lifestyle medicine advocate who has authored and co-authored numerous articles and expert blogs. As a relentless proponent of preventive health and wellness, she preaches a gospel of getting people moving more and eating better in order to improve their quality of life. Dr. Franklin’s experience in health, fitness, and exercise science spans 15 years. She holds a BS in Kinesiology, a MS in Movement Sciences with a concentration in Applied Exercise Physiology, and a PhD in Kinesiology, Nutrition and Rehabilitation with concentrations in Integrative Vascular Biology and Exercise Physiology. She is also a Certified and Licensed Clinical Massage Therapist, an ACSM Certified Health Fitness Specialist, and an AFAA Certified Group Exercise Instructor.

In addition to her academic credentials and certifications, Dr. Franklin is a business owner. In 2005 she started Complete Image, Inc., which in 2010 became Complete Health Solutions, L3C, a hybrid nonprofit health and wellness consulting firm. The mission of this organization is to enhance people’s quality of life through services, programs, leisure activities, and events that promote healthy behaviors and encourage disease prevention. Dr. Franklin also provides best in class consulting and has conducted a wide range of courses, seminars, and lectures for audiences in both academic and community settings.

In 2010, Dr. Franklin established her blog, You, Your Body & Your Health, where she regularly writes on a wide array of topics pertaining to health, fitness, and nutrition. In addition, she publishes a quarterly newsletter, The Wellness Beacon, which provides a researcher’s perspective on a diverse range of health issues that are important to her readers. In 2013 she will release her new book entitled Leaving Your Fat Behind which promotes weight management as a lifestyle.

Biography
Dr. Franklin grew up in the Englewood community on Chicago’s South Side. Like many African-American women she struggled with obesity, leading a lifestyle of physical inactivity and poor nutrition. Inspired by her mother at an early age, Dr. Franklin distanced herself from many peer influences and had the wherewithal to affect real change by embracing healthier habits that have become her life’s passion and profession.

After graduating from high school, Dr. Franklin attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and majored in Kinesiology, the scientific study of human movement. During her tenure at UIUC, she also taught group exercise classes and became a certified personal trainer. Upon completion of her Bachelor of Science degree with honors, Dr. Franklin worked in several fitness centers as a manager, certified personal trainer, and group exercise instructor. During this time, she also pursued a diploma in Clinical Massage Therapy at The Soma Institute in Chicago. After graduating and completing her national board certification exam, Dr. Franklin launched her own business, Complete Image, Inc., for which she provided personal training, group exercise training, fitness consulting, and clinical massage therapy services.

Always having a desire to be an expert, Dr. Franklin decided to pursue a Master of Science degree in Movement Science (an alternative name for Kinesiology) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Her concentration was in Applied Exercise Physiology, which is the study of short- and long-term bodily responses to exercise and other types of physical activity. During this time, she worked in various healthcare settings including physical therapy and cardiac rehabilitation while still running a prosperous business. However, during her graduate studies Dr. Franklin realized that she wanted to contribute more to her field of interest. She had a huge appreciation for exercise as a science and the reality of what a healthy lifestyle can do for an individual. As such, Dr. Franklin became interested in research.

After completing her Master of Science degree, Dr. Franklin was accepted into the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program in Kinesiology, Nutrition and Rehabilitation at UIC with concentrations in Integrative Vascular Biology and Exercise Physiology. Along the way she married and gave birth to a son. As a PhD candidate, athlete, wife and mother, Dr. Franklin gained valuable insight on the potential conflicting relationship between lifestyle and healthy behaviors. As such, she revamped Complete Image, Inc. into Complete Health Solutions, L3C, a hybrid nonprofit health and wellness consulting firm formed with the mission to enhance people’s quality of life through services, programs, leisure activities, and events that promote healthy behaviors and encourage disease prevention.

As a researcher, exercise scientist, and clinical massage therapist, Dr. Franklin’s interests focus on understanding the ways in which exercise training, proper nutrition, and alternative medicine stave off cardiovascular disease and related risk factors including obesity, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes mellitus, primarily among women. Dr. Franklin’s ultimately goal is to change the lives of others, one person at a time.

Philosophy
Dr. Franklin believes that human beings are designed, in their genetic code, to be physically active and that not doing so creates energy imbalances within the body that ultimately contribute to obesity and other health problems. As evidence, over 500,000 people die each year from diseases linked to physical inactivity and obesity. Furthermore, rates of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, type 2 diabetes, and certain forms of cancer have all tripled over the past 30 years corresponding to decreasing levels of daily physical activity and increasing rates of obesity. She speculates that while modern times have improved human efficiency and productivity, many of today’s technological advances support inactive behaviors and laziness in general. People are living longer when compared to hunters and gatherers of the past and are considerably more unhealthy. Although people are no longer required to hunt and gather for survival, this type of lifestyle is embedded in their genetic code. As such, she believes that people must create environments that promotes regular physical activity and good nutrition in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Selected Publications

 * N.C. Franklin, M.M. Ali, P. McGinty, E. Norkeviciute, and S.A. Phillips. Resistance Exercise Training Improves Endothelium-Dependent Vasodilation after Acute Exertion in Obese Women. AHA, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. 2012.


 * N.C. Franklin, M.M. Ali, P. McGinty, E. Norkeviciute, and S.A. Phillips. Moderate-Intensity Resistance Training Improves Vascular Function in Obese Women. APS Intersociety Meeting: The Integrative Biology of Exercise-VI. 2012.


 * N.C. Franklin, M.M. Ali, M. Goslawski, and S.A. Phillips. Reduced Brachial Artery Smooth Muscle Function after Acute Exhaustive Resistance Exercise in Obesity. APTA, Cardiovascular and Pulmonary. 2012.


 * N.C. Franklin, M.M. Ali, M. Goslawski, and S.A. Phillips. Impaired Vascular Function after Acute Exhaustive Resistance Exercise in Sedentary Lean and Obese Women. AHA, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. 2011.


 * N.C. Franklin and C.A. Tate. Lifestyle and Successful Aging: An Overview. Am J Lifestyle Med, 3: 6-11. 2009.

Certifications and Memberships

 * Clinical Massage Therapist, National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB)
 * Health Fitness Specialist and Member, American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM)
 * Group Exercise Instructor and Member, Aerobics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA)
 * Member, American Heart Association (AHA)
 * Member, American Physiological Society (APS)