As the music blares through the speakers and the sweat continues to fall, more than 30 students try to master the latest Latin dance moves.
Aside from the basketball courts, racquetball courts and numerous exercise machines, the new recreation center offers 25 different group-exercise classes. Each class is taught by a certified instructor and the lengths range from 30 minutes to an hour long.
“(A class) gives you a plan and a lot of people going to the gym don’t have a plan so they become unproductive,” said Brooke A. Malone, senior kinesiology major and fitness instructor. “It gives motivation and it also gives you a sense of competition when you have people in the class doing it.”
PROPOSE CLASSES
At the facility, instructors are able to propose classes according to their interests and specialties that widen its scope to different people with different interests.
“When you have an instructor teaching you how to do a certain format, you learn how to do the exercise correctly,” said Kristi Calhoun, group exercise coordinator.
Another positive feature of the fitness classes is they are designed to cater to individuals at the beginner or advanced level.
According to Malone, it is a goal to instruct the class so that anyone would be able to participate.
In a cycling class, participants will be challenged with sprints, climbs and jumps. However, being able to control the level of resistance allows people from all levels of fitness to participate.
In “Zumba” or “Blast,” Latin or hip-hop music is used to achieve a workout by cardiovascular dances.
BUILDING MUSCLE
For those looking to build muscle or tone, the center offers “Circuit Breaker,” “Interval Intensity” or “Glutes & Guts” classes.
“Circuit Breaker” combines resistance training with high-intensity aerobics in an easy to follow interval class. “Interval Intensity” is similar to “Circuit Breaker,” however, there are no weights used in the class. “Glutes & Guts” alternates exercises focusing on the gluteal and abdominal muscles.
The center also offers classes that provide good stretching and low-impact workouts, such as “Mind and Body Flow” and “Power Stretch and Masculine Moves,” a class designed specifically for men that would be ideal after a workout for them to stretch and lengthen their muscles.
“They’re great for a full-body workout that’s not intense, but challenging,” Calhoun said.
Class schedules are available at the front desk of the recreation center.
