Author: Jennifer De La Rosa

National Compliment Day – January 24, 2015 by Jennifer Lehman

Compliments at the Recreation & Athletic Complex

Most of us enjoy receiving compliments. “Your hair looks great today!” “That was a great game you played!” “Your presentation was fantastic!” We enjoy the feeling we get when we’ve been sincerely complimented and it makes us feel good about ourselves. Compliments help to build our self-esteem and encourage us to continue to work hard. By genuinely complimenting others, we provide them with the same uplifting experience. We also help to build positive relationships with others, and by making others feel good, we in turn also feel good!

National Compliment Day is January 24, 2105. Think about how you can impact others. Take opportunities throughout that day to sincerely compliment your fellow students, friends and anyone you feel deserves a compliment. As the saying goes, “There is more happiness in giving than in receiving!”

Stay Fit for the Holidays – by Jennifer Lehman, MS RYT

The holidays can wreck even the most dedicated exerciser’s routine. With a schedule filled with visits from friends and family, shopping, and fun, maintaining your regular fitness program can be a real challenge. You can throw in the towel and wait until January to get back to your regular workouts, but that means you’ll lose some of the progress you’ve already made. Instead, you can schedule activities that will easily fit into your busy schedule. Below are a few ways to stay fit for the holidays.

Wherever you are for the holidays, look for ways to keep moving. If you’re in the mountains, ski, hike, or snowboard. If you’re on the coast, spend time walking on the beach or riding bikes. Plan family outings around physical activity that everyone can enjoy and provides time away from the hustle bustle.
Even during the busiest days, most people can schedule 30 minutes of some type of activity. Walking and running are easy to squeeze into a tight schedule. Or if you’re out and about and can swing by your local fitness center for a quick 30 minute workout, do it! Plan ahead and have workout clothes with you just in case.
Before your shopping day begins, take a few laps around each floor of the mall. That will give you time to window shop and work off a few calories!
Buy a short term holiday membership at your local fitness center. Most facilities offer a student or teacher membership for those who are only home for a few weeks.
Put together a body weight workout that can be done anywhere. A quick set of pushups, jumping jacks, squats, and sit ups can help to maintain your fitness level if you don’t have access to a gym.

Finding time to exercise might be a challenge, but it’s absolutely doable. Keep staying active top of mind and you’ll see you have extra time. By carefully planning how you can keep moving throughout the holidays, you will maintain or even increase your fitness level! So stay fit for the holidays!

Home for the Holidays!

You can’t wait to sleep in your own bed and to get a home-cooked meal from Mom! Seeing your family and friends sounds like a dream! But keep in mind that you’ve been on your own for several months and going back home could be a strain on you and on those you love. Keep the following tips in mind when going home for the holidays.

Offer to help. While your parents may be anxious to have you back home and to “take care” of their college student, be sure to chip in and help with things like laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc. This will show them that you’re growing into a responsible adult and will provide everyone with a more shared holiday experience.

Honor your family’s time. Your personal schedule is more than likely different from your parent’s. While home on break, your parents may still be working. Offer to run errands while they’re at work so they have more time to spend with you while you’re home. Also, be sure to keep things quiet at night so that your family can get their needed sleep for work as well as for all the family festivities.

Honor your friend’s time. You’ll want to visit with friends who went off to their own colleges and with those who stayed at home. Remember that those who have been away at school need to spend time with their families too. Be sure to coordinate so that everyone has ample time to spend with all their loved ones.

Maintain, or begin a good diet. This can be challenging during a holiday season filled with cookies, candies, and rich holiday foods, but try to minimize indulging in these foods every day. By eating a mostly healthy diet during the holidays, you’ll decrease the chance you’ll gain holiday weight and you might even decrease your weight since you’ll be eating Mom’s home cooked meals!

Get lots of rest. While tempting to stay up every night with your friends and family, be sure to recover from the hard work you did during the Fall Semester and to prepare for the Spring Semester. Not only will rest allow you to clear your mind and to get ready for Spring, but rest is critical in maintaining good health during the cold and flu season.

Going home for the holidays can be as amazing as you hope it is. Remember to pitch in and be a contributing member of the family. Mom and Dad will appreciate your assistance and will be proud of the young adult you are!

2014 – 2015 Winter Break Hours

Ann Moran – Her Exercise Success

by Jennifer Lehman, MS RYT

Ann Moran has walked consistently for many years. She gets up early every morning to walk her dog Sonny around the Mason campus. Rain or snow, Ann walks the 1.7 mile circle for 30 – 40 minutes to keep herself and Sonny in shape. But several years ago she noticed that even though she was walking, she wasn’t losing weight. Ann found AARP’s book, New American Diet, and began to craft a plan.

In January 2013, Ann made a new year’s resolution to control her diet in addition to her walks with Sonny. By October of that year, she had lost 38lbs going from 188 to 150! That inspired her to begin to consistently use the RAC and the AFC for additional cardio conditioning and calorie burning. October 2014 was her one year anniversary of exercising EVERY DAY for 45 – 60 minutes in one of those locations!

During the Fall of 2014, Ann saw the promotion for “Design Me a Workout” and started working with Olivia, one of the RAC trainers, to put together a strength training program for her and in only a short time, exercising three days per week, she’s seen visible results.

What does Ann attribute her success to? She says, “You have to make it a lifestyle change.” She tells friends and family alike, “You just have to do it! A lot of people have asked me what I have done. When I tell them what I have done and how long it took and what I am continuing to do. I hear “oh that’s a lot of work” and “maybe someday”. I really believe you have to want to do it. You can’t be successful if you don’t have the right frame of mind. Every now and then it’s ok to eat something you wouldn’t normally eat, but then you have to go back to paying attention. ”

On a recent department outing to the EDGE on the PW Campus, Ann was one of several staff members who made it to the top of the Tower! And in May, Ann reached her goal of 135lbs – only 10lbs more than when she was married! More good news is her 10 year old lab Sonny is a slim 85lbs and his vet says he’s in great shape!

Mason Recreation Adopts Two Families for the Holidays! by Alison Peterson

Mason Recreation’s staff is kicking off the holiday season by participating in the campus-wide Adopt-A-Family Initiative. Inspired by last year’s successful project, Mason students and wage staff put together their own Adopt-A-Family project and volunteered their time and energy to raising enough money to sponsor their own child. Together they raised money to sponsor five children this holiday season.

Mason Rec’s full time staff raised $650, allowing them to purchase necessary items such as coats, sweaters, and gloves. And with their extra money, they were able to purchase the children’s wish-list items including a bicycle, an easy-bake oven, dolls, art kits, and gift-cards. The student / wage group were able to buy their sponsored child an iPod! Together, they were able to make five children’s Christmas wishes come true.

Lee Ann Houston, who oversees the Mason Rec Adopt-A-Family program, said that “Helping to put a smile on a child is a really great feeling.” She added that the more she does it the more she wants to do it. Mason Rec hopes to see the campus-wide program spread even further within the department, and hopes that more students will join the initiative next year.

The Gentlemen of Zumba!

What started out as a joke between friends has turned into a hobby and passion for two Mason students. Julius Boateng and Jordan Boyd found themselves in a Zumba class after taking a bet amongst their friends. Mason Recreation had the chance to catch up with Julius and Jordan to talk about their experiences in Mason’s Zumba classes.

Both Julius and Jordan work out differently outside of Zumba classes: Julius plays basketball and claims that the Zumba classes are just as intense as a basketball-training workout. Jordan enjoys lifting weights, usually before or after his Zumba class. Jordan also suffered a knee injury this summer, and believes that Zumba has helped him to build back strength in his recovery.

Despite their differences, both students agree, Zumba is an equal substitute for other high intensity workouts. Julius explains, however, that there is one difference, “Zumba doesn’t feel like a workout, it’s just pure enjoyment.” Jordan uses Zumba to add cardio into his workout regiment; he says that running on a treadmill is way too boring compared to these classes.

Julius and Jordan admit that in most of their Zumba classes, they are the minority. They say their classes are mostly women, but this doesn’t intimidate them. If anything, they say it makes it more fun. Julius explains, “I was comfortable, dancing is an exciting activity. It makes it easy to relax and just be yourself.”

Julius explains that there are no perquisites to Zumba, you can always go at your own pace. Jordan encourages everyone, “Jump right into ZUMBA!”

For the remainder of the Fall 2014 semester, Zumba is offered as follows:

Aquatic and Fitness Center Group Exercise Room

Zumba 15314553575_323f56d1ba_z

Monday 6:30-7:25pm

Tuesday 12:15-1:15pm

Wednesday 5:30-6:25pm

Thursday 6:30-7:25pm

Friday 5:30-6:25

Zumba Toning

Tuesday 6:30-7:25pm

Thursday 2:00-3:00pm

**Zumba Toning is a combination of cardio dance moves and dynamic resistance exercises using 2-3lb weights to give you an overall awesome, redefining, total body workout.**

RAC Multipurpose Room #4 (Yoga/Pilates Room)

Zumba

Wednesday and Thursday 5:15-6:15pm

Click and see when we are open over winter break!