The UTM Fitness Challenge is a 9-week program with a T-shirt incentive to help motivate students to continue to work out and stay active after midterms.
The UTM Fitness Challenge began Oct. 8 and continues through Dec. 7. Students can no longer register for the UTM Fitness Challenge, but are encouraged to continue to come to the classes offered. The Fitness Challenge is to complete 25 of the fitness classes offered at the Student Recreation Center in 9 weeks. Those who complete the challenge will receive a UTM Fit T-shirt.
Kimberly Olive-Milligan is the fitness coordinator of Campus Recreation and came up with the idea.
“After midterms, our numbers tend to drop. I wanted to come up with something to motivate students to continue to work out. The T-shirt is that motivation,” Olive-Milligan said.
The fitness classes offered are ways to get students to work out. If students are with other students working out, there are opportunities to socialize and motivate each other, and the best part is that you just have to swipe your Skyhawk card to get in.
Olive-Milligan used the old phrase “it’s all about the carrot” when asked about the fitness challenge.
“Put a carrot in front of a horse, and it will run, gallop and sprint in order to reach that carrot. Same thing goes for the t-shirt. If I put an incentive in front of the students, they will more likely work towards it.”
If you did not register in time to participate in the Fitness Challenge, do not feel left out. There is currently a pull-up challenge every day until Oct. 30. To participate in the pull-up challenge, simply go up to the desk at the Student Rec Center and say you would like to participate. Get as many pull-ups in 1 minute as you can, and they will record it. You can go once a day until Oct. 30.
Olive-Milligan is in the process of creating the brand “UTM FIT.” She has a lot of support for this and hopes it will be a concrete name associated with UTM.
Three current programs for UTM FIT include group fitness classes, fitness challenges and private group fitness. Private group fitness can be one organization or sports team who want to just work out within that group. Fitness challenges have incentives to keep students motivated and in the gym. Group fitness classes are meant not only to motivate students, but also create a social environment for students to find friends who can help each other work towards goals.
To wrap up everything about working out and fitness in general, Olive-Milligan stated with certainty and encouragement, “After you work out, you are never sorry.”
For a schedule of fitness classes visit http://www.utm.edu/departments/campusrec/fitnesscenter/groupfitness.php.
