There are many components to wellness: financial, personal, emotional, and so many
more. For a moment let’s think about physical wellness.There are many benefits to
making time in the day for physical wellness that coincide with mental wellness and
academic success.
In many cases, the gym can feel overwhelming, intimidating, and uncomfortable. I have
struggled with going to the gym and being involved in a space where everyone is
welcome. In many cases, people who attend the gym go to work on themselves but it is
easy to become anxious about form and general people at the gym. That is why I
decided to try group fitness.
Group fitness allows people to be guided through a class taught by an instructor in said
field. Additionally, there are other people there doing the same workout and focusing on
the workout itself. I have particularly enjoyed spin and cycle classes. I first started taking
classes with my roommate Jill, who teaches cycle classes at the SDFC. This was a
great introduction to spin and what a spin class is like. I later started to take classes at
Rev’d Indoor Cycling Studio that is five minutes away from ASU’s Tempe campus.
In these classes, I became lost in the music and enjoyed the community that came with
spin. By the third class, the instructors remembered my name and shouted me out in
class. These classes are no easy task but they allowed me to see a struggle and know I
can overcome them. The instructors usually only ask for effort and energy. The energy
of all your teammates in the room cheering you on and giving each other high fives after
a tough section of the class shows that no matter what, you will always get through hard
things.
A huge aspect of my life is music. I constantly am at a music festival and or concert.
The mixture of music, energy, and community made me love cycling. I've never felt so
appreciated by a group of people and welcomed. This community is special and I hope
that someone will have the same experience as me with group fitness.
Sammy Cristerna (He/Him)
Junior
Political Science, Psychology and Sociology