Campus Rec has joined the 2020 Recreation Movement along with 60 other universities to offer numerous digital fitness programs during the pandemic, live and recorded.
The movement is sponsored by National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association and TikTok.
“Campus Rec is about promoting health and well being to the UH community,” Assistant Director of Marketing Maria Avila said.
“So, this is another outlet that allows students to participate in something a little outside the UH community and bring other students to know about what we’re offering at the University,” Avila added.
Campus Rec principally uses Facebook to stream its fitness programs. There are also videos posted on the Rec’s page and have plans to use TikTok soon, said Assistant Director of Fitness Programs Andrew Jones.
“We plan to keep the videos there for the foreseeable future even after we’re back on site, we still plan to have [the videos] available for those who aren’t able to make it in for a workout, they always have that resource,” Jones said.
The fitness classes are directed by Andrew Jones, fitness coordinator Courtney Rorex and fitness instructor Zareah Horton.
The Campus Rec team regularly hosts live classes including yoga, Zumba, HIIT cardio and strength training. The most popular classes have been yoga and Zumba with typically 10-15 participants, Horton said.
“In a week we go live seven times…twice on Mondays and Wednesdays, once on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays,” Horton said. “We also post smaller versions of group fitness and at home workouts on Mondays and Wednesdays.”
Students can log their activity time on the Rec Movement website and win prizes.
“When you make an account you can log up to 120 minutes a day …a nd at the end of the week the Rec movement picks five winners of who logs the most minutes and gives each a $10 Amazon gift card,” Horton said.
The collective goal of UH and the Rec movement is to reach five million minutes of movement by May 31, Horton said.
“It’s giving us a goal to shoot for,” Jones said. “People perform better when they have a goal.”