Tamara Valenčič

Tamara is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Neuromuscular Physiology at the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, working on the STIM-HD Project.

Improving muscle mass, strength and quality of life, in kidney patients

The STIM-HD Project investigates whether a 3-month intervention of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) of the knee-extensor muscles can help mitigate or even reverse muscle mass and strength loss, and potentially improve quality of life, in haemodialysis patients. The project also explores the neural and muscular mechanisms underpinning any potential NMES-related functional improvements. This research is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research and led by the University of Leicester in collaboration with Loughborough University and three NHS Trust sites, including Leicester, Coventry, and Birmingham. Within the research team at Loughborough University, Tamara works alongside Prof Jonathan P. Folland, Dr Jakob Škarabot, and a Doctoral Researcher Ms Meghan Tanel.

Tamara's academic path began in Slovenia, where she obtained her undergraduate degree in kinesiology from the University of Ljubljana (2019) and worked as a research assistant in an Environmental Physiology and Ergonomics Laboratory at the Jožef Stefan Institute (2019-2020). She then completed her MSc in Exercise Physiology (2021) and PhD in Neuromuscular Physiology (2025) at Loughborough University. Her PhD research, supervised by Prof Jonathan Folland and Dr Jakob Škarabot and funded by the National Rehabilitation Centre and Loughborough University, focused on understanding the long-term effects of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using a hamstring tendon graft on neural control of the knee extensor and flexor muscles.

If you would like to get in touch with Tamara Valenčič about collaborations, you can email her at t.valencic@lboro.ac.uk.