Is It Your Time to Change?

The Biggest Loser. Everyone has either seen the reality TV program, or they know about it. An obese person loses weight and wins $250,000. 

 

But for you, it’s not about the money. It’s about the transformation, the weight loss, the lifestyle change. Because you are now where the Biggest Loser contestants have been: overweight and unhealthy. 

 

But you are not defeated. You know that it’s your time to make a change. You are motivated and resolved. You are just unsure about how to start, and figuring out what to do on your own seems daunting.

 

We are here to help! Our Time to Change Program is an 8-week program (February 9th – April 10th) that is geared towards UK students like you who want and need to lose weight. During the program, participants will work with personal trainers in a small group setting where we will help you reach your fitness goals and gain confidence in your ability to continue to work out on your own. 

 

And because you have made the decision to make a change for yourself, the entire program is FREE of charge! This is what you will receive:

• 16 Small Group Training Sessions with a Certified Personal Trainer ($320 value)
• 8 Large Group Training Sessions ($160 value)
• 2 Fitness & Wellness Assessments ($20 value)
• Group Meeting with a Dietician 
• Optional Education Sessions throughout the semester
• Optional use of a Health Coach and Accountability Partner to assist in Goal Setting and support

In order to qualify for this program, participants must be current UK students who have a

Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or more, and be motivated and committed to the program for the entire 8 weeks.

Ready to get started? You can register here. Are you wondering what to expect? Check out some of your fellow UK students who have participated in the program.

Need some more information or want to ask a question? Casey Gilvin, our fitness director, is happy to answer your questions. Contact him at casey.gilvin@uky.edu or call 859-257-3928.

Barbells, Barbells, and Barbells

CC BY-NC-SA 2.0     Shared by Aberro Creative

Deadlift, Bench Press, Squat, and Overhead Press. These exercises make up the foundation for any weight training routine. In a fitness center, you can observe hundreds of variations of them daily, involving various types of equipment. But there is one piece of equipment that has been a part of resistance training since the nineteenth century, and continues to serve as a mainstay in the weight room. The Barbell. Combine that with the movements listed above and you have the perfect recipe to improve your athletic performance and prevent injury, become stronger or increase muscle mass, and improve your overall well-being. However, there’s more to this story than just grabbing a barbell and attempting to "Press like Arnold" in the weight room. The difference? Technique.    

So with this in mind, you search “Deadlift” on You Tube, and you find hundreds of videos. You watch a couple of them and you say to yourself, “I got this, how hard can it be?” But then, after completing a few repetitions, you find you’re not so sure of yourself, so you ask some guy in the weight room that looks like he knows what he is doing, but you still feel lost. Face it: you need help. You need direction.  

Well, we’ve got you covered. 

This fall, UK Campus Recreation is proud to announce our new program, “Starting Strong: An Introduction to Barbell Strength Training”, which will be held November 5th- December 5th. This free series will meet every Wednesday and Friday, from 3:00-3:50pm, in the Johnson Center Group Fitness Studio. These eight sessions are designed to provide hands-on training in foundational barbell movement, and information on how to design an effective resistance training program. The series will be led by certified strength and conditioning specialists and personal trainers. Register for this program before November 5th in the main Campus Recreation office, room 177 Johnson Center, Monday - Friday, 7am - 6pm. Registration will also be taken at the first session on November 5th, if space is still available.

Yoga for Athletes

My name is Kristi Faber and I am the Graduate Assistant of Group Fitness and the co-creator of Yoga for Athletes, along with Jenn Salamone, our certified Yoga instructor. Yoga for Athletes is a four week program that is available to all Johnson Center members. The following Yoga for Athletes classes are scheduled on Tuesdays, 6:30pm, in the group fitness studio:

Oct. 28, Runners
Nov. 4, Weight Lifters
Nov. 11, General Fitness
Nov. 18, Restoration/Recovery

Our goal for Yoga for Athletes is to teach the participants how to recover using yoga and how to add it to their workout programs. Each week will focus on a different sport and joint action. For example, our first class is inspired by runners. Jenn has designed a routine incorporating hip, knee and ankle dominated poses in order to teach the participants how to actively repair those joint areas and muscle groups. The rest of the class will focus on joint groups, like the shoulders, and muscle groups, such as the core.

We hope to strike interest in people who think yoga is not their forte. However, this is not just for athletes alone. We encourage all members to join in on this unique event. There will be a take-away flyer for each of the participants, so they have something to reference and keep after the Yoga for Athletes class is complete. As an added incentive, anyone who attends all four sessions of the Yoga for Athletes event will be entered in a chance to win a FREE Personal Training Package, worth over $50! This class will be a great stepping stone for those gym-goers who are looking to improve their fitness to the next level. We hope to see everyone there! For more information contact me, Kristi Faber, at Kristi.Faber@uky.edu.

Hike Up Your GPA

Waterfall at Raven Run Nature Sanctuary  photo by K. Rose

“Organic Chemistry is killing me,” you moan as you try to refocus on the page in front of you. You’ve been studying for hours, and now nothing makes sense.

The solution? Take a hike. As counterintuitive as that may seem, taking an exercise break, even for 10 minutes, could be just what you need to reset and recharge your brain. Harvard Medical School psychiatrist John Ratey explains the cognitive benefits of exercise in his book, Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. Accordingto Ratey, "Exercise is the single best thing you can do for your brain in terms of mood, memory, and learning." And while it’s been shown that exercise improves learning, it also reduces stress and lifts depression.

But why hiking? Research by Berman, Jonides, and Kaplan, found that “simple and brief interactions with nature can produce marked increases in cognitive control.” So if exercise itself produces cognitive benefits, then choosing a hike as your form of exercise is just icing on the cake—or the “+” sign next to your “A”.

And here’s the best part: there are four hiking locations in Fayette County, all within 1 – 15 miles from the Johnson Recreation Center:

Paved path at the University of KY Arboretum   photo by K. Rose

UK Arboretum

Hours: Open most days from dawn ‘til dusk.
Distance from the Johnson Center: 1 mile (directions here)
The Good: The two-mile paved loop is minutes away from the JC, with ample FREE parking. “Trails” off the main paved path showcase Kentucky’s biodiversity, and a large wooded area gives you a forest feel right in the middle of campus.
The “Meh”: Although you can interact with nature, there’s a little too much pavement and not enough forest path.

Large pine tree at the Lexington Cemetery   photo by K. Rose

Lexington Cemetery

Hours: Open daily, 8am – 5pm
Distance from the Johnson Center: 3.3 miles (directions here)
The Good: The Lexington Cemetery is known nationally, not only for some of its famous “residents,” but also for the beautiful old trees located within its boundaries. The cemetery’s tree map (be sure to pick up a guide at the cemetery office) will take you on a walk to visit 42 different species, some of which have been around since the Declaration of Independence was signed. And nothing says “freedom” like fresh air and wide-open spaces.
The Creepy: Well, it’s a cemetery, so you’ll be walking around tombstones as you stroll among the trees. And with Halloween approaching, it might be a little intense…

Bur oak tree at McConnell Springs  photo by K. Rose

McConnell Springs

Hours: Open daily, dawn ‘til dusk
Distance from the Johnson Center: 4 miles (directions here)
The Good: The two miles of wooded trails lead you to a natural spring, complete with a bubbling “blue hole.” Further down the trail you’ll find a large bur oak that’s over 250 years old.
The Bummer: You leave wanting more.

Raven Run Nature Sanctuary

Hours: Open most days 9am – 5pm (trails close at 4:30pm)
Distance from the Johnson Center: 15.5 miles (directions here)
The Good: Trees, meadows, creeks, waterfalls, wildlife, over 10 miles of trail, a beautiful river overlook—this place has it all! Load the trail map on your mobile device or pick up a map at the trailhead.

The Challenge: You’ll need a vehicle or a hiking buddy with a car to take advantage of this great natural area.

River overlook at Raven Run Nature Sanctuary     photo by K. Rose

Hazing Prevention Week 2014

 

Wildcats: Do you know what day it is?

 

Across the country many universities are recognizing today as the start of National Hazing Prevention Week.  According to StopHazing.org, hazing is defined as "any activity expected of someone joining or participating in a group that humiliates, degrades, abuses or endangers them regardless of a person's willingness to participate. Hazing rituals include physical abuse, kidnapping and abandonment, forced consumption of drugs or alcohol and many others.

 

While some acts may seem harmless, hazing has several detrimental effects including sleep deprivation, decline in grades and coursework, physical and mental instability, erosion of trust and even death. Hazing expert Hank Nuwer has tracked hazing deaths for over 30 years and reported that 82% of these deaths result from heavy alcohol consumption. Fortunately, strides are being made in effort to prevent hazing in several forms.  Forty-four states have implemented anti-hazing laws and prevention programs/campaigns have been initiated on numerous college campuses.  However, there are still concerning incidents happening daily and a dire need to stop hazing all together.

 

So Wildcats, what does this mean for YOU? What can YOU do to prevent hazing from happening on our campus?

 

You can help by stopping by one of these locations on campus from 10am-2pm to sign the anti-hazing pledge (Student Wellness Ambassadors will be present to answer all questions):

• Monday, September 22: Student Center Patio
• Tuesday, September 23: Whitehall Classroom Building
• Wednesday, September 24: Student Center Patio
• Thursday, September 25: Mining and Minerals Building
• Friday, September 26: Whitehall Classroom Building

Additionally, you can use the hashtags #UKYendshazing and UKYrespect to show your commitment to end hazing.

 

Other University of Kentucky resources include:

• Stophazing.uky.edu
• UK Police: 257-SAFE (8573)
• Student Conduct: studentconduct@uky.edu or 257-3755
• Hazing Coalition: Coordinator, Marie Hartke - marie.hartke@uky.edu
• UK Counseling Center: 257-8701

Let's make this National Hazing Prevention Week one to remember - stand up, take the pledge and say NO to hazing!

Physical Activity & Your Performance in the Classroom

Hey Wildcats!

Do you want to know what would help you study for a test or perform better during your English presentation?

According to Action For Healthy Kids, children and adults who have an active lifestyle perform better in classrooms, have more energy to perform and behave better. These results increase when eating healthy is involved. By promoting a healthy diet and moderate exercise each day, performance in the classroom can increase.

As a UK Student, I don't really have much time to take health into account when running from class to class. So what can we do to make an easy transition to a healthy diet and easy exercise? Most of you are already doing it!

On average, it takes about 15-20 minutes for students to walk to class from their dorm or house. While the amount of calories you burn depends on your weight, you could burn as much as 80 calories just walking to class. Add in those 19 flights of stairs for you freshmen in the towers and you have burned at least 5 calories per flight. So for those of you taking the elevator and having a roommate drive you to class, think about the calories you could burn walking and taking the stairs. Not only will calories be burned, but your heart rate will rise. Most college students between the age of 18-20 having a resting heart rate of 70-78 beats per minute. The maximum heart rate target for our age is 200 beats per minute.

So what does this all mean?

Physical activity and being healthy contributes to brain activity and cognitive performance. Students who are doing more physical activity have an improved cognitive performance over their lifespan.

Things you could do to make the change:

1). Take the stairs/walk opposed to elevators/driving
2). Increase your heart rate (Netflix watching heart rate: 120 - Taking a run: 170-200)
3). Add a KHP class to your schedule to make time for exercising when you don't have free time.
4). Stop by the JC during a break for classes or in the morning to start your day with a boost of energy and healthy heart rate.
5). Exercise before you study - small physical activities will help your memory and cognitive thinking.