Nearly 90 physical activity and wellness classes are available for Ohio University students to attend for academic credit.
Classes on ice skating, football, ultimate frisbee, tennis, golf, badminton, archery, horseback riding and many more are offered for students to take at no additional cost.
Joseph Abon, a graduate teaching assistant for the Recreation and Sport Pedagogy Department, teaches three physical activity and wellness classes: soccer, jokgu and futsal. Abon is currently teaching two soccer sections and one jokgu section.
He said it is important for students to take the classes to become healthy, active, mentally and physically fit, and to focus on their academics.
“We created these classes to give enjoyment, for students to meet new students and for people to interact,” Abon, who is a graduate student studying education leadership and administration, said.
He wants students to participate in the seven-week class, as they might need a break from their regular classes. According to research published by Purdue University, students who go to the gym and exercise tend to have higher grade-point averages than students who don’t.
“From there, they can forget all their hectic times and challenges and can focus on their studies,” Abon said.
Audrey Rodawig is the graduate teaching assistant for aqua aerobics and for fundamentals of swimming. She currently teaches 60 students in four classes.
Rodawig said there is strong attendance in all of her classes because half of the class grade depends on attendance.
She finds it interesting that OU offers credit for workout classes and said it is important to take the classes because it increases knowledge and helps students to stay active. That is why she wants more students to sign up for the classes and not to be afraid to try it.
“It’s a safe environment to try something new with the assistance of the instructor,” Rodawig, who is graduate student studying communication sciences and disorders, said.
She said aqua aerobic exercises can help students build cardiovascular strength and muscles, and said jogging in water leads to less impact on the knees when compared to exercising on hard ground.
Josephine Sweeney-Rogers, a junior studying marketing and finance, has taken aqua aerobics and swimming classes. Sweeney-Rogers said she enjoyed the class, as she got to swim in the pool.
She said she would take the class again because she had a really good time, and it motivated her to stay active.
“It gets you active even when you don’t feel like it sometimes,” she said.
She also wants other students to take the classes as it helps to clear their minds so they don’t have to think about their academics.
“Everyone should take a PAW class,” she said. “They’re really fun, and you meet people that you wouldn’t normally meet in your everyday classes.”
