By Alea Fisher

We wait in line in the Student Activities Center to get our food, and then wait in line to get into the SAC gym to burn off the calories. Despite the frustration, this routine has had a very positive effect on my college experience.  It is one of the few things I can control. Each of my professors gives me a syllabus to tell me their weekly plan for what I have to do; they have control over that. In the gym, I get to accomplish my own physical goals. After a long day of waiting for a parking spot, sitting through a lecture and waiting in a long line at McAlister’s, it can be frustrating to then have to wait for a treadmill. There have been multiple times when the gym was so overcrowded that I had to leave before a treadmill was ever vacant, but at least this shows that students are working on their physical fitness.
Of all the goals in the new master plan, one of the top priorities for the Student Government Association is a new recreation center. As I try to imagine a smoothie bar and 21,000 square feet of space, as well as how much impressive features like these will cost us, I can’t help but evaluate the current facilities.
I’m no athlete; I’m not even an intramural sports guru. I consider myself an average student who makes sure to find time for physical fitness. For me, the Humana gym is too far from the heart of campus. I don’t play basketball for an intramural team, so the Crawford gym is unfamiliar territory. The SAC gym is my frequent hangout. The equipment is in good condition. And if something is out of order, it doesn’t stay that way long.
However, if you want a specific machine, there’s no guarantee you won’t have to wait a long period of time for it. Although the equipment seems to be in good condition, I can’t imagine the wear that a large number of people put on a small number of machines, when they use them countless times every day of the week. Buying a few more treadmills would be cheaper than building a whole new recreation center to eliminate the wait. But that’s the root of the problem—there’s no room for more.
To improve our fitness center, we need more space. Whether it’s parking, classrooms, the shuttles or the treadmills, the space is limited. Our recreational facilities do not seem up to par with the grandeur of things, like our football stadium. Improvement to the latter is currently in progress. Gyms affect the daily life of a typical student. With daily stress, coupled with the way obesity has gripped our society, making our gyms more appealing could help promote students’ well-being.
 An indoor track is being considered in the master plan. That feature alone could mean the end of my waiting for a treadmill. I’m already paying for the existing facilities through a student fee. I think I’m willing to pay a little more so that I no longer bump my shoulder on a barbell when I try to a get to a certain weight machine. Whether the majority feels the same way, the SGA and I will have to wait and see.
For me, working out is my own personal time. I turn on my iPod and get in the zone. Without exaggerating, the use of the SAC gym has helped get me through college. That’s why creating easier access to it and adding greater accommodations would only enhance campus life. I have to wait for enough things—I don’t want to wait in the gym. I welcome the improvements. But even for these things, we will probably have to wait at least four years.