Impact Of Adding Another Fitness Center To Towson University

IMPACT OF ADDING AN ADDITIONAL FITNESS CENTER TO TOWSON UNIVERSITY

Prepared for
Tia Freiburger, Campus Recreation Services Department
Associate Director of Facilities and Operations
Towson University
Towson, Maryland

Prepared by
Rob Scatorchio
Undergraduate Student
Towson University

May 19, 2013

May 19, 2013

Tia Freiburger Campus Recreations Services, Associate Director of Facilities and Operations Towson University Towson, MD 21252

INTRODUCTION: PURPOSE OF REPORT
This study is designed to observe the direct health benefits and the increase in university appeal that building an additional fitness center would bring to Towson University. The study is aimed to find solutions for the following questions:
How would building an additional fitness center at Towson University impact the health of Towson University students?

How would the addition of another fitness center impact the physical activity levels of students?

BACKGROUND: CURRENT SITUATION AT TOWSON UNIVERSITY

Towson University has a student population of 21,950 and an even more alarming number is that 83% of these students are undergraduates. These undergraduate students seem to spend a lot more time on campus and play a larger role in defining what Towson University stands for. Towson University has seen an increase in student population and student applications over the last decade. More importantly there has been a significant increase in out of state students, which is a direct result to the growing national attention Towson University has been gaining.
Directly related to the growing student population there comes a need for the increase of campus services provided by Towson University. A major concern is the lack of fitness centers available on campus. Currently Towson University has a single fitness center that could be used by students, which is known as Burdick Hall. Burdick Hall is known to have limited equipment and is always too crowded due to the high student population. The vast development of the West Village region of campus over the past three years is a great location for the much needed additional fitness center.

MENTAL HEALTH BENEFIT
There has been a direct correlation between mental health and exercise. Mental health factors such as anxiety, stress, depression, and low self-esteem effect college students across the country. The constant work load and deadlines can cause students to experience high levels of anxiety and stress. The journal of mental health conducted a study and it was reported that the college demographic experienced the highest levels of stress (Tyson, 2010).
Also a study performed by the University of Hertfordshire located in England showed a direct relationship between exercise and the lowering of stress and depression levels. A group of 100 undergraduate students reported significant decreases in stress and depression levels after three weeks of monitored exercise (Tyson, 2010). The results are described below, as you can see the line indicating the decrease of these levels after three weeks of exercise.

*Chart from (Tyson, 2010)

The addition of a second fitness center at Towson University would help fight the high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress that appear on college campuses. The gym would provide equipment for aerobic (walking, jogging, running) and anaerobic (weight training) exercise that both have been proven to positively impact mental health. The fitness center would provide resources for the students to relieve stress and maintain positive mental health attributes.

PHYSICAL HEALTH BENEFITS
The additional fitness center would offer significant ways for students to increase their physical health at Towson University. Towson University has been promoting physical health with their “Healthy Alternatives “diet campaign that has been appearing in every dining hall on campus. The addition of another fitness center would accompany this diet campaign for a healthier Towson University. The fitness center would supply sufficient and safe equipment that would allow students to impact their overall physical health in a positive way.

Studies have shown a direct link of exercise to a number of important physical health characteristics. The cardiology department at Georgetown University conducted several studies that have proved that exercise has a direct result on lowering the risk of heart disease, increasing immunity, lowering obesity rates, and increasing respiratory rates (Kokkinos, 2012). Most importantly exercise has been linked to increasing life spans.

*chart from (Kokkinos, 2012)

The new fitness center that would be located in West Village would allow students to increase physical health while at school. Students would be able to leave college in better shape than they were coming in. The benefits of achieving and maintain a good level of physical health at Towson University would benefit students for years after college. It would set them up for a continued healthy lifestyle and an organized structured way of exercising efficiently.

INCREASING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEVELS
Physical activity levels seem to decrease once students graduate from high school and enter college. This is due to a number of perceived barriers that people cannot overcome. The American Journal of Health Behavior conducted a survey and the two most common perceived barriers can relate to the problems associated with Towson University currently. The two leading factors that prevent people from performing physical activity are lack of time and lack of fitness resources (Brown, 2005).

Lack of time: A college student must budget their time responsibly. The time it takes to complete a sufficient workout at Burdick Hall is unsatisfactory for a major university.

Lack of resources: Besides being the only fitness center on campus; Burdick does not have the adequate amount of treadmills, squat racks, dumbbells, and barbells to supply the large population of students enrolled at Towson University.

The new fitness center would increase physical activity levels of Towson University students because it would provide them with a sufficient amount of student resources. The new fitness center would allow students to complete workouts in less time. The number of students working out at Burdick Hall would now be divided into two gyms. This means that both Burdick Hall and the new fitness center in west village would experience less crowded weight rooms. Lowering the crowds in these fitness centers would allow the resources in each gym to be used efficiently.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Analysis of the health benefits of adding an additional fitness center to Towson University leads to the following conclusions and recommendations:

Overall mental health would be raised. Exercise has a link to decreasing stress, anxiety, and depression levels all of which are prevalent on college campuses.

Physical health would be increased. Exercise lowers the risk of many diseases, increases immunity, and has been proven to lengthen life spans.

Physical activity levels would increase because the additional fitness center would provide proper fitness resources for students to use.

The building of an additional fitness center would strongly correspond with Towson University’s current campaign of striving for a healthier campus.
On the basis of these findings, I recommend that Towson University constructs an additional fitness center located at the West Village region of campus. The increasing number of students enrolling at Towson University combined with the lack of fitness resources provides evidence that there is a need for an additional fitness center on the campus of Towson University.

REFERENCES
Brown, S. A. (2005). Measuring Perceived Benefits and Perceived Barriers for Physical Activity. American Journal Of Health Behavior, 29(2), 107-116.

Kokkinos, P. (2012). Physical Activity, Health Benefits, andMortality Risk. ISRN Cardiology, 1-14. doi:10.5402/2012/718789

Tyson, P., Wilson, K., Crone, D., Brailsford, R., & Laws, K. (2010). Physical activity and mental health in a student population. Journal Of Mental Health, 19(6), 492-499. doi:10.3109/09638230902968308