As Covid-19 restrictions continue to be lifted across campus, Bellarmine Knights are returning en-mass to the SuRF Center to pursue physical fitness and mental wellness. In response to this surge in demand for physical activity opportunities on campus, Bellarmine’s Office of Campus Recreation is hard at work meeting the needs of these energetic students while adhering to Covid-19 measures the university continues to enforce.
As a result of Covid-19 mandates placing limitations on large gatherings, group-fitness initiatives sponsored by the SuRF Center saw a significant drop in attendance at the start of the pandemic. With the University’s restrictions on large groups gradually being lifted, resident student organizations and club sports programs have seen a sharp increase in student participation.
“We have some program areas that have seen significant increases. Club sports programs have seen record numbers,” said Director of Campus Recreation Shawn Newton.
To keep students safe in the wake of this boom in fitness participation, the SuRF Center’s staff are continuing to enforce mask mandates, regularly cleaning exercise equipment, positioning equipment in ways that allow for social distancing, and not renting equipment from outside lenders.
With social-distancing and mask mandates continuing to be enforced across campus, the leaders of certain group fitness activities have had to restrict their class plans and hold off on teaching their students about certain aspects of their curriculum. Activities which involve large amounts of cardio and physical contact such as wrestling and boxing are among those most impacted by pandemic measures, due to mask-wearing making breathing difficult.
“I haven’t been able to teach the self-defense part,” said Kyle Rieber, Bellarmine University’s Assistant Director of Public Safety and on-campus intramural Tae-Kwon Do instructor. “I can’t really go full speed because everyone’s going to react differently to their mask type.”
For students who cannot participate in-person in on-campus physical recreation activities due to health or scheduling conflicts, Bellarmine’s Office of Campus Recreation provides multiple alternatives which allow Bellarmine Knights the chance to engage socially in physical activity. These alternatives include personal sessions with one student and one teacher so as to limit potential exposure to the virus, and virtual opportunities streamed via several social media platforms.
“I offer self-defense classes to anyone who wants one,” said Rieber.
“We’ve kept two of the core classes. One is through ZOOM and the other one is through Instagram,” said Bellarmine University’s Associate Director of Campus Wellness Emily Werner. “I think those are the benefits of Covid. If they can’t come to campus, if they’re commuters, they can still participate.”
Bellarmine’s SuRF Center is open Mon-Thurs from 6:00am to 11:00pm, Friday from 9:00am to 7:00pm, Saturday from 9:00am to 7:00pm, and Sunday from 12:00pm to 8:00pm. To stay up to date on fitness initiatives and intramural activities offered by Bellarmine’s Office of Campus Recreation, follow them on Instagram at @BellarmineSuRF, @BellarmineWellness, @BellarmineIntramurals, and on Twitter at @BellarmineSuRF.
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