The Moorpark College campus quad was buzzing on Tuesday, Sept. 14, and the topic of interest was students’ health.
Holly Bracken, Health Intervention specialist at Moorpark College, hosted this year’s Fitness Fair, alongside the Associated Students, the student governing body at Moorpark.
Bracken decided to put on the fitness fair due to the results from a survey conducted in the spring of 2010 by the National College Health Assessment, which revealed that 96 percent of MC students were not engaging in enough physical activity.
“Students are not getting enough exercise and not eating enough fruits and veggies,” said Bracken.
“I think that more students need to take an active interest in their health,” said Michelle Craig, 19, physical sciences major. “It is important that the college continue to reach out to the student body with events like this.”
The fair consisted of eight booths. Each booth featured a health guru eager to chat with students and advise them of simple means to living a healthy life. The excitement didn’t end with the booths; there were Jiu Jitsu demonstrations, but the sumo wrestling suits were the true highlight of the event.
The eight booths included Kinesiology students, Gold’s Gym, M6 Fitness, Moorpark Athletic Club, CrossFit- Fitness Athletic Sports Training, DePalma Ju Jitsu, Soul Body Yoga, and a nutrition consultant.
The Kinesiology student’s booth contained a few textbooks and information regarding requirements which need to be met in order to receive certification. They conducted body fat measurements, with a caliper, for those students who were bold enough to participate.
In addition, they observed students perform a basic squat and gave feedback on the status of their flexibility.
Moorpark Athletic Club’s Membership Coordinator, Taz Jones, was at the fair relaying advice on health and wellness.
“Stay active, do something extra, eat well, drink water and do something fun every day,” said Jones.
De Palma Ju Jitsu’s showcased their grappling skills and provided students with entertainment as the demonstrators went head-to-head presenting proper technique and execution of the ground game, Ju Jitsu.
De Palma Ju Jitsu provides instruction in basic self-defense and Ju Jitsu instruction via clinics, classes, and private lessons. College students can sign-up for $99 a month.
M6 fitness shared information about the various exercise programs offered at their gym. M6 Fitness features unique exercise programs like Bride 2 Be Fit; guided by fitness instructor, Claudia Blanks. Classes offered at M6 fitness include: dance, zumba, kickboxing, boxing on the bag, shred class, fitness fusion, step, resistance training and many more.
“We can cater to the needs of everybody,” said Blanks.
Maria Monica ran the Soul Body Yoga booth at the fitness fair. Monica is a fitness instructor at Soul Body Yoga and she was there to inform students about the outstanding benefits that yoga has on a person’s overall health.
“Yoga has been around for 5000 years with maybe a 1000 different poses,” said Monica. “The poses flow from one to the next.”
If you are interested in finding out more information about Soul Body Yoga it is just across from MC next to the textbook store.
Despite the light attendance, the Health Fair offered a wide array of tips and methods students can use to stay active and healthy.
