Jacob Onken, Contributing Writer
The Wellness Center is one of the newest buildings at Saint Leo University. It had its soft opening on Mar 7, 2022. The objective of the Wellness Center is to keep students and staff healthy.
The executive director at the Wellness Center, Kathleen Pantalone, said that the building does not just focus on physical healthiness but also on “the mind, body, and spirit” of students and staff.
One of the biggest draws that the Wellness Center has is its modern fitness floor. The floor includes spots for cardio, free weights/machines, a HIIT area (which is short intense bursts of cardio), and the Group X studio.
The area for cardio contains equipment like treadmills, cycles, stairmasters, etc. For students interested in lifting plates and selectorized weights, the free weight zone would be their forte. The HIIT area (high-intensity interval training) has a tire to flip, and boxes used to jump on. The Group X studio is where hand weights and weighted bars are at.
Noah Hill, a freshman at Saint Leo University, said that he could work out “everywhere” at the gym and “utilize” whatever he needs to work out.
Another Freshman, Victor Parada, agreed with Hill’s sentiment saying that the Wellness Center “provides everything I need” to work out.
A lot of equipment is presented on the main fitness floor, but the Wellness Center provides even more.
When asked about what equipment was offered at the Wellness Center, Pantalone said that “students can also sign out” things like “basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, and soccer balls” along with weightlifting belts and pool tubes.
Not only does the Wellness Center provide the equipment needed for a successful workout, but they also have classes and personal trainers to help. The Wellness Center offers a multitude of classes which are not limited to yoga, spin, introduction to the gym, self-defense, and classes that target different parts of the body.
Once a month, the Wellness Center will also be “offering CPR/first aid” and lifeguard certification, Pantalone added. For students and staff, the classes offered at the Wellness Center are free.
There are two different ways that students and staff can sign up for classes: through the Wellness Center app or through welness.saintleo.edu.
There are three different personal trainers that work at the Wellness Center. Signing up with a personal trainer is done the same way as with the classes. A personal trainer works one on one instead of in a group setting.
Students get other options like the community pool, basketball courts, counseling services, and the university ministries for free until they graduate. Once graduated, former students get a discount if they want to buy a membership.
They are “approximately 25 percent off the community rate,” according to Pantalone.
The Wellness Center offers different ways for students to stay healthy. Weight equipment is important, but it is not for the masses. With all the options, it is clear the Wellness Center really does focus on the mind, body, and spirit.
