Group fitness classes are a great way to add variety to your workout as well as meet new faces in the gym. The Campus Recreation Complex (CRC) offers over 30 drop-in group fitness classes every week during the summer so you always have a new experience. These classes help you stay motivated and interested in your workout with a guided instructor leading the charge. They allow you to push through your fitness barriers and reach new goals. All classes are carefully created with you in mind. 

June 5th is global running day and a great reason to introduce you to the CRC group fitness class TreadFit. Taught by Becky James at the CRC, this group class focuses primarily on running and takes place on treadmills. TreadFit uses high-intensity interval training to create a more structured class with consistent running and recovery periods as well as higher intensity during the sprint intervals.  Starting with a warmup, Becky leads the class through intense periods of sprints and recoveries until they have finished the workout, ending with a cooldown and stretching.

Lauren Stover, CRC Leadership Challenge Course Coordinator, initially took this class to accomplish her goal of becoming black belt certified. As she continued to take the class, Lauren learned that she grew to love running!  Stover said, “because we are using a treadmill, we can all work our hardest without ‘outpacing’ each other, which creates a great culture of supporting one another. It allows everyone in the class to workout at the same intensity even if they are not at the same speed.”  

This segued into Stover training towards a goal of running up Stone Mountain in 25 minutes.  “This course is incredibly steep, almost all uphill, and about a mile long.  Although it took hard work, I did it,” said Stover.  She also received her black belt certification and is currently working towards her second degree. TreadFit trained her to accomplish these goals and learn to enjoy running. 

At CRC, our instructors are committed to creating inclusive workouts that encourage people of all fitness levels to participate. Elisha Smith, CRC assistant director of fitness said, “we employ inclusive trainers from all different backgrounds to create a comfortable environment for everyone who takes one of our classes. We see students, alumni, faculty, and staff of all ages in our different classes.” If you have a goal in mind the group fitness classes are a great way to reach them. Memberships are available for all CRC members and can be purchased online or at the member services desk. For a list of the classes currently offered this summer or for more information about TreadFit, go to crc.gatech.edu/group-fitness.