[Each week at ProfHacker, George Williams hosts an open thread discussion devoted to a particular topic, often one suggested by one of our readers. The Commenting and Community Guidelines still apply. And remember that you can always suggest topics or ask us questions via email: ProfHackerCHE@gmail.com. —Ed.]
It should come as no surprise to regular ProfHacker readers that we try to fit in some talk about exercise and physical health here along with all of the other topics we cover. Being able to manage stress and maintain some kind of balance in life are both, after all, an important part of academic life. For example…
- Natalie’s written about how to keep up your exercise routine while attending a conference and has encouraged us to keep our hands fit in this age of handheld devices
- Erin has sung the praises of walking her dog.
- Guest author Meagan covered the importance of “nurturing the mind-body connection,” and
- Kathleen offered some tips for “prioritizing exercise.”
One of the easiest ways to incorporate regular exercise into your day–provided you work on only one campus, which is not the case for a large percentage of higher ed faculty–is to use the facilities on campus. While I was in graduate school a new fitness center was built on campus, and I started referring to it as a cathedral because it was huge, featured a great deal of glass, and had soaring ceilings in places.
The advantages of using the campus gym include convenience and (usually) price. Disadvantages could include feeling like you’re still at work as well as the possibility of running into students changing in the locker room.
Do you use the campus gym? Why or why not? What do you find the advantages and disadvantages to be? Let’s hear from you in the comments!
[Creative Commons-licensed flickr photo by Taras Kalapun]
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10 Responses to Open Thread: Do you use the campus gym?
kcfeminist - October 20, 2010 at 1:10 pm
When I manage to get to the gym (which is mostly in the summer and winter as I prefer to walk outside in fall and spring), I do use the campus gym. It’s super cheap and if you go early in the morning, the danger of running into students is slim. Also, we’ve got separate faculty/staff/community locker rooms, so that makes a big difference. I don’t think I’d use it if we didn’t have those.
The only thing I don’t like about it is when I run into colleagues who walk to talk business? I do not want to talk to you about work when I’m bleary-eyed on the treadmill.
heatherwhitney - October 20, 2010 at 2:10 pm
I do use my campus gym, as does my husband. It’s free for both of us, which is a big plus. It’s also convenient, as I can just head across the street before or after work.
I don’t use the locker rooms, though. But I would if we had a separate faculty/staff option.
brianborchers - October 20, 2010 at 2:50 pm
I’m a regular at the gym on my home campus, as are many other faculty members. I don’t have any problem sharing the locker room with students. Many of my colleagues do the same. It’s cheap (actually free to faculty and staff), the director is a skilled trainer who really knows her stuff and the equipment is in good shape. In fact, it’s the nicest gym in our small town of 10,000.
This semester I’m on sabbatical leave at UCLA, and using the much larger gym at UCLA’s Wooden Center. It’s nice having access to this incredible facility, but because this is a much larger campus, the gym is much more crowded and the atmosphere is less friendly.
xtedx24 - October 20, 2010 at 5:13 pm
My school just opened a new $40 million dollar gym in January. It’s beautiful and spacious and provides a great incentive to make the time to work out. I rent a locker for $10 a semester and being able to keep my things there for a nominal fee is a great benefit, too.
The hardest thing for me about working out is bringing all my clothes to campus. I wear one type of clothes to my acting class, another to my public speaking course, and another to work out. I have to be very disciplined and pack all my clothes the night before. Whenever I try to pack in the morning, I find myself forgetting a belt, clean socks, etc.
lsura - October 20, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Yes. At my former workplace I didn’t, because the gym was just far enough off my normal path that I wouldn’t go, so I paid for a membership close to my house. My current job I walk past it on the way in and the way home. I generally get there shortly after they open at 6 AM and it’s very simple to get in, work out, shower and get to work. Or, I can go on my way home just as easily. My payroll deduction includes my membership and locker rental, and costs significantly less than other gyms in the area.
I don’t worry about seeing students or not – though if one started showing up and asking all kinds of questions, I’d have to put a stop to that. Gym time is very much me time. I’ll smile and say hello, but I’m focused inward, not outward.
@xtedx24 I have to be highly disciplined about prepping stuff at night too: work clothes, layout workout clothes, prep lunch, breakfast and water. If I don’t prep, chances are I’ll talk myself into hitting snooze several times.
drnels - October 20, 2010 at 7:41 pm
No, I don’t use the campus gym. I use one near home. I would never use the campus gym because I still have horror stories in my head of sitting in one of my undergrad classes and hearing a guy telling one of the women about the sizes of the penises of the three profs he’d seen in the shower. And PE was required at my school. I took racquetball ran into another prof for a class I was currently taking in the shower room, and couldn’t help but think about it for the first few classes after that (no, not in a sexual way; just in a “I know what he looks like under there” kind of way.)
I will admit that being gay is part of the issue for me. I have had male students refuse to come to my office because they refuse to be alone with me, door open or not. If I were to run into any of those kind of students when they were naked, it would be too much for all of us. They would freak. I would be uncomfortable and also agitated because I wouldn’t want them to think I’m looking, and it just brings up all the problems of homophobia and assumptions about predatory gay men and all that.
blendedlibrarian - October 20, 2010 at 9:29 pm
Yes I do. My IHE has a great facility, and I try to get their by 7 am. It’s a great way to start the day.
At 50+ i’m a bit older than most of the students (not many staff use the gym). In the old days, no one really cared about wearing a towel in the locker room. Seems the current generation won’t go anywhere in the locker without one – even into the shower room. What’s your take on the current towel culture? Should I get with the program or keep it natural?
csgirl - October 21, 2010 at 10:16 am
Our gym is really crowded, mainly with 18 year old boys pumping iron. There is NO WAY I would be seen in that place.
I run, and mainly do it at night when I get home.
kfoxt11 - October 22, 2010 at 6:50 pm
My teaching days are full and hectic, but I manage to get to the campus gym on those days. Usually because I need to unwind. in order to get to the gym after my classes, I have to plan ahead and pack a gym bag. It’s a bit cumbersome, but I’ve done pretty good this semester.
awadewit - October 23, 2010 at 6:26 pm
I use the campus gym because it is cheap and nearby; I lift weights early in the morning and thus the gym is relatively empty, which is nice. I only use the locker room to store my bags–I wouldn’t use the shower. I prefer to keep some things personal and private.