Rec center fair puts students on fast track to fitness
Matthew Bauer
Issue date: 4/8/09 Section: News
The Donald S. Spencer Student Recreation Center hosted the fourth annual Health and Fitness Fair on Tuesday, April 7, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sophomore social work major John Murphy was at the rec center exercising and decided to check out some of the booths.
"I was curious about body fat and obesity," Murphy said. "In our nation, these are becoming problems and I just wanted to see where I sit."
Assistant Director of Fitness Kelley Kenady discussed founding the event in order to educate the public on health information from a variety of resources.
"The goal of the health fair is to educate students, faculty and staff about health, wellness, and fitness topics," Kenady said. "Before I started in 2005, there was an employee health fair, but not one for the entire campus community."
At the event, there were over 15 resource booths presenting information regarding many health and fitness related themes, including Beu Health Center, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Department of Kinesiology at Western Illinois, Women's Center, Campus Recreation, Heart and Diabetes Institute and Sodexo, among others.
Topics ranged from breast and prostate cancer awareness to the importance of exercise and eating healthy. Other issues presented were diabetes awareness, body fat information, hearing problems, alcohol and tobacco addictions and organ and tissue donations.
"The student number coming to the fair has remained steady from year to year," said Sodexo marketing department representative Kathy Dougherty. "There is an increase in the number of students wanting to eat healthier." Dougherty mentioned how this, along with an increase in health issues in general, may be the reason people keep returning each year.
Accompanying the vast array of information were several free health screenings that students and faculty could take. These included blood pressure check, hand grip evaluation, blood glucose test, body fat assessment and hearing screenings.
Ashley Rossiter, a communication science and disorders graduate student, explained there was a fairly decent amount of student participation in the free screenings offered.
"There seemed to be a lot of students nervous at first," Rossiter said. "Students were hesitant, but if you're friendly they are more willing to take the screening."
Health education graduate assistant Wade Brown, who was tending the Alcohol and Other Drugs booth, explained how the booth set-up was great for getting students the information they need quickly and easily.
"It's a way to walk in and receive bits of information from different sources," Brown said. "The event increased awareness about health needs and threats."
For more information regarding these topics, or any other health-related issue, visit Beu Health Center's Web site at www.beu.wiu.edu, or the rec center's Web site at www.crec.wiu.edu.
Sophomore social work major John Murphy was at the rec center exercising and decided to check out some of the booths.
"I was curious about body fat and obesity," Murphy said. "In our nation, these are becoming problems and I just wanted to see where I sit."
Assistant Director of Fitness Kelley Kenady discussed founding the event in order to educate the public on health information from a variety of resources.
"The goal of the health fair is to educate students, faculty and staff about health, wellness, and fitness topics," Kenady said. "Before I started in 2005, there was an employee health fair, but not one for the entire campus community."
At the event, there were over 15 resource booths presenting information regarding many health and fitness related themes, including Beu Health Center, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Department of Kinesiology at Western Illinois, Women's Center, Campus Recreation, Heart and Diabetes Institute and Sodexo, among others.
Topics ranged from breast and prostate cancer awareness to the importance of exercise and eating healthy. Other issues presented were diabetes awareness, body fat information, hearing problems, alcohol and tobacco addictions and organ and tissue donations.
"The student number coming to the fair has remained steady from year to year," said Sodexo marketing department representative Kathy Dougherty. "There is an increase in the number of students wanting to eat healthier." Dougherty mentioned how this, along with an increase in health issues in general, may be the reason people keep returning each year.
Accompanying the vast array of information were several free health screenings that students and faculty could take. These included blood pressure check, hand grip evaluation, blood glucose test, body fat assessment and hearing screenings.
Ashley Rossiter, a communication science and disorders graduate student, explained there was a fairly decent amount of student participation in the free screenings offered.
"There seemed to be a lot of students nervous at first," Rossiter said. "Students were hesitant, but if you're friendly they are more willing to take the screening."
Health education graduate assistant Wade Brown, who was tending the Alcohol and Other Drugs booth, explained how the booth set-up was great for getting students the information they need quickly and easily.
"It's a way to walk in and receive bits of information from different sources," Brown said. "The event increased awareness about health needs and threats."
For more information regarding these topics, or any other health-related issue, visit Beu Health Center's Web site at www.beu.wiu.edu, or the rec center's Web site at www.crec.wiu.edu.
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