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Based in Greater Western Sydney, Blacktown is home to thousands of high school students, university students and businesses. ACU Blacktown sits at the heart of this vibrant community, allowing you to study where you’ll feel at home.
ACU teaches the Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science and Bachelor of High Performance Sport degrees from the Blacktown Exercise Sports and Technology (BEST) Hub.
Co-designed by ACU in partnership with Blacktown City Council, BEST houses specialist teaching labs as well as purpose-designed exercise physiology, biomechanics, and strength and conditioning labs.
It allows students to develop knowledge, skills and experience in exercise and sports science, and it will provide the greater community with access to our expertise.
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Eastern Road, Rooty Hill NSW
Access BEST via Gate A on Eastern Road. BEST is located 100m down the access road. Walk through the main entrance where you will be met by an ACU representative. If you arrive early, there is a cafe.
| Service description | Cost | Duration | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Body composition | ||||
| DXA Scan | DXA can be used to accurately measure your bone mineral density and assess your total body composition, which is useful for monitoring muscle mass and fat content following a training regimen. Participants lie on a bed for about five minutes while being scanned. It is a completely painless test after which you will receive a printout of bone, muscle and fat measures. You will need to fast overnight before this test. | $70 | 30 mins | Book now |
| Dietitian (online consultation) | Dietitians at our Melbourne High Performance Hub provide actionable guidance to help you reach your best possible self. We specialise in offering nutritional guidance to enhance overall wellbeing or customise plans tailored to your specific athletic goals. Our dietitian will assess your profile, such as medical conditions, symptoms, body composition goals, athletic needs, eating patterns, and provide strategies to help you achieve your goals. | $150 | One hour | Book now |
| Dietitian - follow up consultation | This service is for individuals that have already completed an initial dietitian consultation and are reviewing their progress with a follow up appointment. | $100 | 45 mins | Book now |
| Strength and conditioning | ||||
| Strength and power (HUMAC) | Our comprehensive strength testing service uses a device called an isokinetic dynamometer - the gold standard for measuring strength and power - allowing us to accurately measure your upper and lower limb strength. This service is for you if you want to understand your strength and power profile to aid and improve performance or following recovery from injury. | $300 | 60 - 90 mins | Book now |
| Biomechanics and movement analysis | ||||
| Gait analysis | In our state-of-the-art biomechanics laboratories, we can measure the way you move when you are walking, jogging or running. We do this through an approach called optimal motion capture, where we affix small reflective markers to various sites on your body to track how you move. This service is for you if you want to enhance your running technique and performance and/or detect issues following injury. | $750 | 2 hours | Book now |
| Force plates | Our advanced force plates offer precise measurements of ground reaction forces, key for understanding an athlete's interaction with the ground, for a wide range of movements. They provide vital data on force production, power, impulse, balance and movement symmetry. These insights have practical applications in enhancing athletic performance. They can help optimise training, improve techniques and monitor rehabilitation, catering to a wide range of sports to push athletes towards their peak potential. Our force plate technology is not just a measurement tool, but a pathway to excellence in human performance. | $100 | 1 - 2 hours | Book now |
| GPS assessment (for teams) | Global Positioning Systems (GPS) are widely employed in sports for tracking and analysing athletic performance. Athletes and coaches use GPS technology to monitor metrics such as distance covered, speed and acceleration during training and competitions. This data aids in optimising training, assessing fitness levels and developing game plans. Team sports like soccer, rugby league and union, and Australian football can all benefit from GPS applications, enhancing performance analysis and overall athletic development. | $2,000* | Usually 2 - 3 hours | Book now |
| Exercise physiology | ||||
| VO2 max test | Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2 max) is a measure of an athlete's aerobic and endurance capacity. A high oxygen ceiling is one of the key ingredients for all endurance and team sport athletes, and essential to sustaining high aerobic power outputs. | $200 | 1 hour | Book now |
| Lactate threshold test | A lactate threshold test assesses the exercise intensity at which you can train at to maximise endurance performance. This test involves repeated finger prick blood tests during cycling or running at increasing intensities and is useful for determining individual lactate responses that can inform training and pacing strategies. | $200 | 1 hour | Book now |
| Wingate Anaerobic Test (on a bike) | The Wingate Anaerobic Test measures your power output from energy pathways that do not require oxygen. This is a useful benchmark for power-based athletes or endurance athletes wishing to understand their sprinting capability and potential. | $70 | 1 hour | Book now |
| School visits and workshops | ||||
| High school student experience | Looking to offer Year 9 & 10 PASS students a unique learning experience using state-of-the-art facilities? We can tailor learning content that aligns with the curriculum to provide your students with a hands-on experience to reinforce learning concepts. Learn from the experts as they share their evidence-based knowledge and skills. | From $25* | 2 - 4 hours | Enquire now |
| Year 11 Student Enrichment Day - Health and Movement Science | Expose students to practical activities to gain a deeper understanding of the research process aligned with the new 2025 Health and Movement Science Syllabus. This is an opportunity for students to become critical thinkers, problem solvers and decision-makers, as they develop their knowledge and skills in health and movement science. | $35 per head person, minimum booking of 10 students | If total number of students is unknown, feel free to book 10 students as a deposit. We will then contact you regarding a suitable date. Final balance will be paid prior to the Experience Day using the same payment method. | Enquire now |
| Teacher Professional Development Day - HMS Collaborative Investigation and Depth Studies | We offer upskilling in planning and managing Collaborative Investigation and Depth Studies in the Health and Movement Science curriculum. This five-hour face-to-face session at the Blacktown Exercise Sports and Technology (BEST) Hub provides teachers with the knowledge and practical experience to guide students in health and movement science, along with well-supported online resources. | $285 per person | Professional Development Days are held on Thursdays however, alternate days can be explored if required. | Book now |
| Packages | ||||
| Runners and cyclists | The runners and cyclists' package is a thoughtfully curated group of assessments to evaluate your ability to run and cycle at your best. Tests included in this package; a DXA scan which assesses your body's composition (fat mass, muscle mass, bone density), a VO2 max test which asses your aerobic fitness (ability to consume and transport oxygen to working muscles) and a lactate threshold test assesses the exercise intensity at which you can train at to maximise endurance performance. |
$450 | 2-3 hours | Book now |
| AFL draft combine | Setting yourself up for success in this year AFL combine and need to understand how you are progressing, will you make your mark? The ACU AFL draft combine package takes you through the same series of tests to prepare you for what lies ahead.
Tests included in this package: a VO2 max test which asses your ability to consume and transport oxygen to working muscles (aerobic capacity), a standing and running vertical jump test to assess muscular strength and power of the lower body, a 20 metre sprint test will provide you with information regarding your ability to accelerate quickly over a short distance and an agility test will evaluate your ability to change direction quickly. |
$200 | 2 hours | Book now |