Category: Announcements

Graduating Senior Rachel Stepien

Labeled a natural athlete by her youth / school coaches and teammates, Rachel Stepien says she’s been in sports her whole life. In her hometown of Robbinsville, NJ, she grew up hearing she was very coachable and a good athlete. She enjoyed playing sports and making friends in her small hometown and it became part of her every-day life.

Rachel’s parents considered her to be an energetic child. They first enrolled her in pee wee soccer and she progressively moved into other sports. In high school she played basketball, lacrosse, softball, and track. In fact, Rachel made Varsity Basketball as a freshman. She says school sports are where she made most of her friends.

After arriving at Mason, Rachel began working out at the Mason Recreation fitness centers. Spring of 2012, she applied to be an official for intramural sports and soon after began working on a regular basis. Rachel says, “I’ve always been independent, so when I came to Mason from out of state, I wanted to make sure I was financially set. I was at the gym working out and playing ball anyway, so I thought working there would be the perfect fit!” She says while being involved in sports her whole life, being an official is completely different. “It makes you look at play from a different perspective. You can’t have any biases.” Since then, she’s worked for Mason Recreation as an official for intramural sports and is currently also working as a program assistant and supervisor.

Rachel says, “Mason Recreation made my transition from a small town to such a large school easier. Working out at the Recreation facilities, and then also working for them, helped me find a positive niche. It’s a place to go to and find friends to connect with.” She recommends both working out and working for Mason Rec. “You just have to take the initial step to get involved. Everyone here is doing the same thing so it’s easy to make friends. I feel like In college everyone is in the same place – finding themselves, so being able to experience that with people who have similar interests gives you a group to rely on.”

She believes she’s learned a lot from working at Mason Recreation explaining. “I’ve learned time-management as well as other transferable skills such as conflict resolution and prioritizing. Plus I’ve learned you can’t make everyone happy. You need to prioritize what’s really important to you. Too many people try to make everyone else happy and put others first. I learned that I need to think about what’s important to me and to not try to impress others.”

Rachel is graduating in May with a degree in Psychology and a minor in business.

by Jennifer Lehman, MS RYT

We Need your Help: Our Future Depends on You

Partner Workouts Work! by Jennifer Lehman, MS RYT

Are you looking for better results from your work outs? Recent research shows that having a workout partner or a virtual partner can make a difference in your workouts. From being accountable to someone to pushing yourself harder, working out with a partner is proving to be the way to go.

Research shows that exercisers not only achieve better results when working out with a partner, they achieve even greater results when working out with someone who has a higher fitness level. Additionally, when the exerciser is put on a “team” who works out with someone at a high fitness level, the results are even better. Results vary with some doubling their workout times and intensities up some even quadrupling their efforts. This not only suggests that greater results are achieved by partnering, but group exercisers often see the most dramatic results.

Other reasons to work out with a partner are:

You’re more likely to go to work out if you’re accountable to someone
You get to socialize while working out
Workout partners tend to keep each other “honest” with their nutrition goals
Partners who vow to make healthy life changes are more likely to succeed
Partner exercise preferences may vary providing opportunities to engage in activities you may not normally choose to do.

Whether you work out with one or more people, or you prefer a virtual partner, results show that more than likely, you’ll see better results. Below are a few virtual apps to choose from:

Runkeeper.com

Mapmyrun.com

Zombiesrungame.com

Sports-tracker.com

Spring Training for Club Baseball

Mason Recreation’s Club Baseball team is headed to Florida over spring break to participate in NCBA’s Spring Training 2015 Showcase. While there they’ll play against five of the 27 teams attending that week. During the four week event, 63 teams from all over the country come together to practice, train, and play the great game of baseball.

Nate Berlin, Club Baseball’s president and a junior majoring in Finance, says most of the 20+ player team is going to Spring Training. Following last year’s District 3 win, Nate feels like the trip will make the team even stronger. “Our team is talented and we work well together. The trip will be good prep for us to do even better than we did last year.” He adds, “While we play for the love of baseball, we also know that by attending Spring Training, we show that George Mason’s Club Baseball team is strong and competitive. It gets Mason’s name out there.”

Because the team is considered “young” due to its number of freshmen and returning sophomores, Club Baseball has a good chance to have another very successful season that could continue into one or two more years. Nate says that baseball is a very strong sport and they have lots of interest from both freshmen and transfers. He credits the interest to its timelessness. He explains, “Baseball has no age limits. It’s available for young and old. It truly is for everyone.”

Club Baseball’s season begins Saturday, March 14 when they’ll play the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg. Game time TBA. If you are interested in joining the club, please contact Club Baseball via email.

Article Written By: Jennifer Lehman, MS RYT

Should You Workout with a Partner?

We hear it all the time, whether it is from our super fit friend or one of the trainers at the gym, “workout with a partner!” Is it worth it? Does it actually help you maximize your workout potential? Or is iShouSht just another way for your best friend, Amanda, the marathon addict, to keep pestering you about going on a run with her? Mason Rec dug into some research to answer these questions for you and we found a resounding “yes!” Here is some of the most compelling research we came across:

The Maryland Athletic Club (MAC) has five huge reasons why you should workout with a partner:

A workout buddy provides motivation. The days you don’t want to work out, he or she will get you out the door. The days he/she feels like skipping, you will get her to the gym. When you want to give up completely, he/she will talk you into sticking with your plan.
They serve as spotters. Your partner can help spot you, keeping your workouts safer yet more challenging at the same time.
They increase your exercise arsenal. There are numerous strength moves you can do with your partner, like crunches with a medicine ball, partner pushups and leg tosses. These are fun and very effective.
They provide companionship. Working out can be lonely, especially long cardio sessions. Having a friend next to you to talk with while you slave away on the elliptical can make the time fly by.
They provide competition. Let’s be honest: We as human beings like to compete with one another. Try finding a workout partner who is just a little more fit than you are. By trying to keep up with them, you will challenge yourself in ways that you cannot do alone.

If these five reasons don’t get you to the gym with your newfound workout partner, maybe this will:

In 2012 The Society of Behavioral Medicine conducted the following study and found some pretty strong evidence that we should be partnering up before we hit the gym more often. Their study consisted of three groups of people that rode bikes in three different conditions. The first group rode their bikes independently. The second group rode their bikes with a virtual workout partner—a screen that looped video of someone also riding a bike (therefore the virtual partner could never rest before the live partner). The third group rode their bikes with a partner and was also informed that their performance would directly affect their partner’s. What were their results? The first group lasted an average of 10.6 minutes before having to rest, the second group lasted 19.8 minutes, and the third group lasted 21.9 minutes. That’s an 87% difference between riding independently and with a virtual partner, while riding with an actual partner doubled the amount of time spent riding. Quite literally, then, exercising with a partner can double your results.

By now, you’re searching for your ultimate workout partner! Once you’ve found them, be sure to head to the RAC’s Cage Gym on February 10^th at 8pm to take part in Be My Fit Valentine. If you find yourself still searching by Tuesday morning, come anyway! Partner planks are an awesome first date! Mason Recreation encourages all couples to attend, whether you want to workout with your boyfriend, your sister, your teammate, or your best friend, we will see you there!

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!