To become a member and work out at the downtown Dayton YMCA, a person must fill out an application that determines how much money they must pay based on income. To workout at the Sinclair Community College weight room students must make a one time payment of $3 to access to the equipment for the entire the quarter.
Athletic Director Jack Giambrone said the Sinclair weight room , open after 7 p.m. from Monday through Thursday, offers a great resource to students whatever their fitness goals may be.
Staying active
Monica Nesbitt, 75, has been working out at Sinclair for the last 12 years and said one advantage of working out at the college is the detailed explanations instructors give on how each exercise affects the body.
“It’s like having an in-depth personal trainer,” Nesbitt said. “Sinclair is not lacking in equipment either. There’s never a time you have to stand in a line and wait.”
Nesbitt said her fitness goals are basically to keep her legs in shape and to improve her hand strength because she has arthritis. Nesbitt also said exercising gives her more energy throughout the day.
“When you feel like taking a nap, by the time you’re done working out you have the energy like you’ve taken a nap,” she said. “But you probably used your time more productively.”
Losing weight
Student Tammy Richardson works out for an hour at home every day, but said she didn’t start losing weight until she signed up for a weight training class at Sinclair this quarter.
“I’ve lost five pounds so far,” Richardson said. “Now I just got to learn how to keep it off.”
Richardson said exercising also helps her with her eating habits.
“Sometimes I say to myself, ‘Do I really want to put all this garbage back into my body after I worked this hard to get it off of me?,’ ” she said.
Increasing strength
When Sinclair student Deon Hunter started using the Sinclair weight room in 2006, he used to work out by himself and was only bench-pressing between 135 and 150 pounds.
“I didn’t want to go higher because I didn’t have a partner,” Hunter said. “Then my (weight training instructor) John Benfield started working with me and encouraged me to add more weight. By the end of that quarter I was benching 285.”
Hunter said his fitness goal every quarter is to add 25 lbs to his bench press and is currently benching 455.
Staying motivated
Students Jessie Mascotti and Alex Daluton exercise together and said their goals when working out are to make all their muscles hurt. Mascotti and Daluton said it’s beneficial to work out with a partner because it keeps you motivated.
“The days I don’t feel like coming in, I come in because I know it’s affecting my partner’s workout as well as mine,” Daluton said.
Mascotti said another way to stay motivated is by keeping your workouts fresh.
“Benfield is always showing us new exercises,” Mascotti said. “He’s the kind of teacher that never quits learning, he constantly keeps educating himself which keeps it fun because when you have variety you never get bored.”
Weight training classes
There will be 22 Weight Training classes in the Summer A and B terms that will run from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Giambrone said open hours for the weight room will be decided in June, but Hunter has a suggestion for students new to working out.
“I encourage students to take it as a class if you’re not used to lifting weights,” Hunter said. “That way you can get proper knowledge on how to use the equipment.”