Over my time at Miami University, I have realized a campus-wide issue firsthand. The conflict I am talking about is the lack of exercise facilities on campus. The lack of gymnasiums available to students (especially ones not involved in sports) affects their physical and mental health which can tremendously take a toll on one’s academics. Isn’t college the place where we are driven and encouraged to succeed both academically and personally? The inability to get proper exercise is hindering our lives as students in Oxford, Ohio both in and out of the classroom and must be dealt with.

Miami University has one exercise facility for its students, called the Recreational center- or as most students call it, “the Rec”. It has three floors, equipped with bicycles, ellipticals, treadmills, a weight room, fitness classes, a track, a rock climbing wall- the list goes on. It is located at the end of campus, close to many off-campus housing units, but not many dorms. This makes it difficult for students in dorms- mostly freshmen and sophomores to access the Rec. As a first-year student, I am located at McBride Hall on East Quad. This is on the very opposite side of campus. To walk from my dorm to the Rec, it takes about twenty to twenty-five minutes, with no delays at traffic signs. Yes you could call the walk to get to the Rec a “warm-up” or “exercise” however it takes a significant chunk of time that most days I do not have time for. Because I am placed across campus, it takes an extra hour out of my day to get to and from the Rec, just to work out. With 5 different courses, both scheduled in the morning and at night, it is hard to carve out time to get to the Rec, workout, and get home with enough time to get to my next class. In addition, if I spend this much of my day at the Rec, it leaves little to no time to eat, do homework, relax, or hang out with friends. It is evident from the reasons I have just expressed that, for a student like me, the current way to exercise on campus is inefficient and improbable.

The inability to exercise as a college student then leaves many other issues. Without the recommended 30 minutes of exercise five times a week, students can develop physical issues, like obesity and heart problems. Livestrong, a national organization dedicated to promoting health and well-being states, “One of the major risk factors for heart disease is inactivity. Because the heart is a muscle, it grows stronger with exercise and is able to pump blood to all parts of the body more effectively.” (Betty Holt). Exercising also helps control your weight and can maintain your nutritional balance. Muscles that don’t move as much as they need to are at risk for Arthritis, which makes it harder to move and be active. The physical side effects of not exercising enough is only the start to the problem.

Along with physical issues, students may experience mental health problems. College students always have countless things on their plate and on their mind. This never-ending list of tasks feels overwhelming and can build up anxiety; I know from experience. Students need a stress-reliever to free them of this built-up uneasiness. That’s where exercise comes in handy. “Exercise is a natural and effective anti-anxiety treatment. It relieves tension and stress, boosts physical and mental energy, and enhances wellbeing through the release of endorphins.” (HelpGuide) The constant feeling of exhaustion, overwhelm, and hopelessness that most students get from the loads of work on their mind can be released or at least reduced by the effects of exercising.

Lastly, the accumulation of all the negative side effects from not working out, is the lack of academic performance. Mental and physical health affect how a student pays attention in class, interacts with others, is motivated to do work, is curious to learn, and in many other ways in the classroom. As a college student that enjoys to work out, I have found that after a workout, I can pay much more attention in class, can focus on the material being taught, and is generally more motivated to succeed. American Intercontinental University says that exercise benefits students in three main ways: brain cell development, memory retention, and focus and concentration. (http://www.aiuniv.edu). The New York Times states, “ A sensible new report from the Institute of Medicine, a unit of the National Academy of Sciences, shows how shortsighted this trend can be. It found that exercise can significantly improve children’s cognitive abilities and their academic performance, as well as their health.” (NY Times)

It is clear that the lack of exercise in college students is an issue, especially at Miami, so what is the answer to this problem? What I propose is another Rec Center. I suggest that we build another Rec center across campus- far away from the original, so we give students the ability to workout quickly and easily everyday. The Rec center we have now is of the highest of quality, however, it is always packed because of the lack of other exercise facilities. Especially at peak times- the morning around 9am, afternoon around 4pm, and night around 8pm, every machine is taken. With adding a new Rec center, it would be able to spread out the amount of people in the 16,000 students at Miami that want to work out and give everyone a chance to use the facilities. Not only because I live on East Quad, but because it is directly across campus from the current Rec Center, I suggest the new facility goes between East and North Quad, behind the parking garage. This would greatly encourage people that don’t want to walk a half hour to the rec (especially in bad weather) to workout and get their necessary daily exercise.

In opposition to this proposed to solution, the new Rec Center would cost a fortune. Miami University already has countless things they need to spend money on like building North Quad, the addition to Armstrong, adding new professors, improving specific academic departments. Adding a new Rec Center is not at the top of the list of priorities because it would cost the school a chunk of money that they don’t have. In addition to cost, there is already contruction in many parts of campus that is a hassle to deal with both for the students and those visiting so the University would to like to try to avoid that.

Another rebuttal to this argument is that students can just exercise outside. There is plenty of land that students can run/walk/bike on. However, this does not offer variety in one’s exercise routine and is unrealistic for those who are injured- like me. I have knee issues and which I was instructed by a doctor not to run, that’s why the elliptical is so helpful for me. The machines the Rec has is easy on my knees and can allow me to get a great workout in; the outdoors cannot offer this.

Lastly, in Oxford, next to Kroger there is an “AnyTime Fitness.” It can be argued that students may use this gym as an outlet for their exercise needs. However, the membership costs money that many college students do not have, and it is located off campus- which many undergraduates cannot access. University students should not have to pay to get proper exercise.

I stand firm in my belief that this is an issue on Miami University’s campus and believe that if a new Rec Center were to be built, the money would be put to good use. I full-heartedly believe there is a way to raise money for this proposed solution. We must make it known how important exercise is to humans, especially stressed out students in college, and the effects on us as a society if we don’t work out. The physical mental and academic downsides to the lack of exercise is too significant to just sweep this under the rug. As a Miami University student that has firsthand experience of the inability to efficiently incorporate a normal workout routine on campus, I believe that it is not just beneficial, but necessary to build a new Rec Center for the students in Oxford, Ohio to help us as a society become healthier and more active human beings.

Works Cited

"5 Reasons College Students Should Make Time For Exercise." 5 Reasons College Students Should Make Time for Exercise. N.p., 14 Sept. 2012. Web.

The Editorial Board. "Exercise and Academic Performance." The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 May 2013. Web.

Holt, Betty. "Negative Effects of the Lack of Exercising." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 19 Oct. 2015. Web.

Robinson, Lawrence, Jeanne Segal, and Melinda Smith. "The Mental Health Benefits of Exercise." : The Exercise Prescription for Depression, Anxiety, Stress, and More. N.p., Apr. 2016. Web.