by Jessie Santer
Come January 1, the gyms are over flowing with people eager to get started on one of societies most common New Year’s resolutions: getting in shape. For UMass students, this means a dramatic increase of students at the Recreation Center during the first few weeks of classes, and now those of us who have been faithful to the gym for much longer than the first month of the year are faced with working out elbow to elbow with these new gym-goers.
The UMass Recreation Center has seen a big increase in daily attendances in the past year let alone the beginning of the spring semester.
“February 6, 2013 compared to February 6, 2014, we’re 39,000 plus more visits total,” said John Blihar, director of campus recreation at UMass Amherst. Since the 2014 spring semester started, the gym hosts a little over 600 students at 5 p.m.; making this hour of the day an inconvenient time to workout. According to Blihar, the Rec Center is at maximum capacity when holding between 600-800 students.
The gym’s prime time is between the hours of 2 p.m. -7 p.m., but from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. there is a steady stream of incoming students, causing it to reach maximum capacity, especially in the early months of the semester.
“We’re busy from 6 p.m. on. A lot of that has to do with the honors college right next door. We get a lot of students, it’s easy, and close. That has positively impacted the numbers,” says Blihar.
“As February unfolds, it will decrease a bit because either people have just given up on their resolution or academics rears its head and so less time to come,” he adds.
While avoiding a crowded gym may seem like a simple task, many students find that it doesn’t always fit into their already busy schedule, forcing them to sacrifice areas of their workout, if not the entire thing.
“Between classes and work I only have a certain amount of time to spend there,” said UMass sophomore Elizabeth Weithofer. “If there is a machine I want to use or an area is too crowded I have to skip that part of my workout to be able to make it to class or work on time.”
“You don’t even want to get on the treadmill and then you look around and all the treadmills are full so you have to delay that torture for a little while, you have to just stroll around until someone gets off,” said UMass junior, Victoria Mosolgo.
As an alternative to the machines and stretching areas, the Rec Center offers an abundance of classes are held almost every hour and all are led by fellow UMass students. From spinning to belly dancing to yoga, almost every type of group fitness experience is offered and all will leave you sweating and satisfied.
“Students who engage in campus recreation programs or work for campus recreation programs do much better in school than students that don’t because they’re healthier, they learn time management skills, they just seem to be on top of things. People find a way to fit it into their schedule if it’s important to them” said Blihar.
With or without the New Year’s resolution-ers, the UMass Recreation Center is going to be busy, but that may not necessarily be a bad thing. In the words of Blihar, “It’s a good problem to have.”
Jessie Santer can be reached via email at [email protected].