Free Tours, Workout Classes Available at Wellness Center

NC State’s Wellness and Recreation Center is offering employees free workout classes and guided tours of the facility.

The Wellness and Recreation Center offers a myriad of wellness activities, from its Outdoor Adventures program to personal training sessions, making it a critical part of the university’s multifaceted wellness strategy. The center is offering all employees free guided tours and classes to remind them that they can use the facility to exercise, relieve stress and anxiety, and even build community.

“Honestly, the facility is amazing,” said Tanna Engle, a fitness coordinator for Wellness and Recreation.

University Human Resources has partnered with Wellness and Recreation to offer employees free classes in yoga and high-intensity interval training. Yoga class participants will go through a sequence of poses to increase strength, flexibility, endurance and balance. The HIIT class is an intense 30-minute full-body workout session. To register for a yoga session, HITT class or both, go to the Wellness and Recreation website.

You also can take a staff-led tour of the center to learn firsthand about everything the center offers. Registration is not required to go on a tour. 

Employees can take advantage of the many wellness activities and programs the center offers by purchasing a membership. The membership fee is $25 a month if paid via payroll deduction or $30 per month if you pay it at the center. You can purchase memberships for up to three household members aged 18 years or older for $25 or $30 a month, depending on how you pay. Some of the center’s programs require additional fees. Children under 18 can visit the center free on Fridays from 2 p.m. to closing and all day on Saturdays and Sundays.

“Most gyms don’t offer all the features we do at our facility,” said Mary Yemma Barnhart, associate director of Wellness and Recreation. “To get those features, you may have to join one gym that offers cardio and strength equipment and another boutique gym that offers cycling. I think the beauty of our facility is that we really do have a lot of different options for people interested in different things.”

Here are some of those options:

Take a Group Fitness Class

Certified instructors lead a host of group fitness classes, including an array of dance classes (e.g., hip-hop and Zumba), TRX total body resistance training classes, BODYPUMP workout classes that incorporate the use of light to moderate weights and more. Private group fitness classes also are available.

Climb a Wall

One of the center’s most popular activities is scaling the modular climbing walls in the center of the building. You can tackle the 40-foot-high rope wall or the 20-foot-high bouldering wall.

Play a Sport

The Wellness and Recreation Center and the Carmichael Gym, which is next door to the center, offer facilities to play all kinds of sports, including basketball, badminton, racketball, squash, table tennis and outdoor tennis.

Go for a Swim

You can swim in the 50-meter Olympic-sized pool or the 25-yard pool. The Aquatic Center offers private and semiprivate swim lessons, and members can purchase swim lessons for their children.

Work out with a personal trainer

Work Out With a Personal Trainer

Certified personal trainers can help you meet your wellness goals. You can purchase individual or semiprivate personal training sessions that last up to one hour.

Learn How To Live Well

The Healthy Living Series is a four-week educational seminar that will help you prioritize your health and well-being and make lifestyle changes that will help you achieve your wellness goals.

Exercise in Front of an Echelon Mirror

An Echelon Mirror is a vertical screen that plays prerecorded workout videos, including strength and cardio training sessions. You can see a reflection of yourself on the screen as you work out. The center has two Echelon Mirrors mounted on walls in private workout studios.

Go on an Adventure

You can rent gear (e.g., backpacks, tents, stoves, kayaks, canoes and paddleboards) to go on adventures like camping, hiking and biking by yourself or with family and friends. The center also offers organized group adventures that range from taking a bike trip to the State Farmers Market to doing stand-up paddleboard yoga.