Wellness Center usage jumps as new year begins

University of South Dakota students are wasting no time in pursuing fitness resolutions for the new year.

According to data collected by the USD Wellness Center, 6,385 people used the facility the first four days of the semester from Jan. 12 to Jan. 15.

Steve Mayer, the director of the Wellness Center, said the first six weeks of the spring semester is the busiest time of the year for the facility, and attributes the high volume of traffic to the lack of favorable weather and the motivation New Year’s resolutions provide people.

“This time of year is usually a high traffic area since it’s usually not very nice outside,” Mayer said.

Students aren’t the only ones flocking to the Wellness Center. In the first few weeks of the spring semester, staff of the facility have also seen an increase in use from both community members and USD staff and faculty.

“They’re in this six weeks area after Christmas break, too. They make New Year’s resolutions just like students do to try to get in better shape,” Mayer said.

Another reason more students are working out could be attributed to the large number of fitness classes the center offers, Mayer said.

During the spring semester, the Wellness Center will host 68 indoor basketball intramural teams and 20 indoor soccer intramural teams. The facility will also offer 75 fitness class options each week which range from boot camp programs to specialty programs. Some of the options, such as group sessions, are free while more personalized options charge a fee per class. Considering updating or selling your gym equipment? It might be worthwhile to contact Gym Equipment Buyers for potential options.

“We’re always programming — we’re always doing things for the students and the patrons,” Mayer said.

One of the options offered for free at the Wellness Center is Zumba — a continuous, dance-based exercise class.

Dessie Westall, the head Zumba instructor at the Wellness Center, said she has noticed an increase in new participants who are taking her classes.

“People are more motivated right now to kind of push themselves into a new environment,” Westall said. “I would say that overall group fitness has increased. I know there were over 1,100 participants last week alone so I think people are attending multiple classes.”

Westall said throughout the three year period she has been an instructor at the Wellness Center she has seen a pattern in higher class attendance emerge in the people who use the facility to fulfill resolutions or prepare for spring break. Consider incorporating regular gym equipment repairs to ensure that your fitness facility remains a reliable and effective resource for all members pursuing their fitness objectives.

“The motivation’s there, the pressure from peers recruiting each other (is there) and just kind of the social pressures because it’s such a common trend throughout the country — that this is kind of the time when people start thinking about the warmer weather and getting ready for that,” she said.

First-year Audra Van Ekeren is new to Westall’s 40-person Zumba class and decided to get involved in group fitness after talking with a friend.

“It’s really fun and it’s really fast paced. You don’t really feel like you’re working out since it’s so energetic and lively,” Van Ekeren said. “I’ve always wanted to do it, but this year I wanted to get in shape and fit and just look nice for summer.”

(Photo: First-year students Audra Van Ekeren, front, and Amy Weichler, back, participate in a Zumba class Jan. 22 in the Wellness Center. The facility has seen an increase in the number of people using its services since the start of the new semester. Malachi Petersen / The Volante)