The University Recreation Center is offering a special edition of its Achieve More Together program to help students meet their goals of getting in shape by spring break.
Achieve More Together, or AM2, is a program designed to help students get the maximum fitness experience with a licensed personal trainer, while also providing the benefit of training alongside their peers.
Jason Casey, coordinator of fitness at the Rec Center, said the personal training staff tries to meet the demands of so many students wanting to get in shape for spring break.
“We are offering the AM2 specials to allow clients the ability to work out with friends and receive expert personal training at a low cost to the client,” Casey said.
With the AM2 spring break programs, students can pay $200 per person for training twice a week from Feb. 4 to March 21. This package also includes a before and after BodPod Body Composition Test. Through another program in partnership with Outdoor Recreation, students can pay $115 for training twice a week from Feb. 5 to March 7, ending with a two-day backpacking trip March 8-10.
Other options include traditional one-on-one personal training and partner training offered in private studios to provide a less crowded space. Casey said many clients come in with unrealistic expectations about losing weight and getting in shape, and his staff discourages fad diets and quick weight loss schemes.
“We hope that individuals involved in our program do not just focus on the numbers and realize that we are here to help them develop an overall healthy person,” Casey said.
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Although students may desire to lose a drastic amount of weight in a month’s time, Casey said that is unattainable. He said a healthy and attainable weight loss would be one to two pounds per week, achieved through increased physical activity, a proper exercise program and an improved diet.
“We want to promote proper, healthy fitness and wellness practices and not encourage individuals to set and try to attain unrealistic goals for any reason, including spring break,” Casey said.
Turner Pyle, a junior majoring in public relations, started using the Rec’s facilities more often this semester to get in shape for a summer job that requires her to be physically fit. However, she said her sporadic schedule would make it hard to have a scheduled session with a trainer.
“I would be interested in it if I knew that the trainer could be flexible to my schedule,” Pyle said. “Especially since it’s pretty expensive.”
Braxton Billings, a junior majoring in health care management, had a personal trainer at the Rec last spring and plans to have one this semester as well. He said the accountability of a personal trainer provides more motivation.
“Not only does a personal trainer put you on an accurate pathway to reach your individual goals, but he or she gives you a sense of accountability,” Billings said. “In the early stages of training, that accountability is everything.”
Registration for the AM2 spring break program ends Jan. 31. For more information about personal training and fitness services at the Rec Center, visit urec.ua.edu.
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