Staying Fit!

Keeping Fit Counts!

Yes, it helps mentally as well as physically. The phrase “Freshman 15” happens; it may not be 15, it may just be 5 or 10 extra pounds gained that first year of college, but there is a way to keep fit. College is a completely new experience for the majority of freshmen; it’s their first time out in the world with nobody making decisions for them. Students can make a choice to eat ice cream for breakfast and have a soda at 6 am. Even with the amazing fitness centers available to today’s students, many students do gain weight. My daughters chalk it up to late-night pizzas (after drinking) and the French fries from the dining hall.

I am not here to pass judgment as not every student will gain weight and not every student drinks. My main purpose is to say that even for students on a tight budget, it is possible to eat healthy, exercise and not gain the freshman 15. Let’s address exercising. FAU’s recreation and fitness center is a 77,000 square foot state of the art facility. I do not know if students today realize how fortunate they are to have a facility that includes strength and conditioning rooms, basketball courts, badminton courts, cardio room and weight machines, yoga, pilates, spinning, locker rooms, and a social corridor to help them stay comfortably fit.  The Rec Center also boasts a leisure and lap pool as well as outdoor basketball courts, rock wall, climbing course, tennis courts, fields, and a track.

Staying fit has never been so easy. The fitness center also has all types of classes including boot camp, cardio, cycling, kickboxing, HIIT class, spin, yoga and meditation, Zumba, barre, and more. These great fitness options aside, many students prefer to run stadiums, a tradition of FAU students. This involves running down the steps in the stadium and then back up moving from section to section. It is free for students and an amazing workout. An added advantage is being able to watch the football team in practice if they time it properly.

Many of the sororities and fraternities also have competitive sports teams as well. And for those students who can’t quite give up their at-home workouts, Boca Raton has two Orange Theory locations – my daughter’s friends go to Orange Theory choosing the two sessions per week package.

Fanatics

For the Crossfit fanatics, there are several locations all around Boca Raton, many within a 3-mile radius of FAU. My daughters belonged to LA Fitness. If your student belonged to YouFit, you will be happy to know that Boca Raton has a location about 5 minutes from campus. Depending on their membership, they may be able to use it at this location provided it is not a single club access membership.

Finally, the FAU campus offers outdoor runners some beautiful running and walking trails. FAU’s walking trail, The Tortuga Trail, is open from dawn to dusk.   The Tortuga Trail breaks off into three separate trails, the green, blue, and red, all varying distances. The website, Mapmyrun, created by other runners, shows courses that take you around the entire campus, some as long as five miles. Of course, it is always advised to run with a buddy especially if you are running in the early morning or at dusk. Safety should always come first.

And, of course, you will want to combine exercise with that healthy eating regimen. Check out our suggestions in our blog Eating Healthy.

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