New Year, New You!

UCalgary offers a range of fun activities to be active on campus

About 80 percent of new year’s resolutions fail by the second week of February. But with the amazing facilities available on campus at the University of Calgary, there is something for everyone who wants to get fit and stay fit in the new year.

One of the perks of being a registered student is you are already a member. Your membership runs concurrent with each semester in which you are registered, and you have many options and facilities to choose from. UCalgary’s Active Living department is one of the largest and most diverse recreation departments based on a North American campus.It boasts a fitness centre with a 200-metre track; an aquatic centre with an Olympic-sized pool five gymnasiums, Canada’s largest university racquet centre and access to the Olympic Oval, which has the fastest ice surface in the world with more world records broken than any other institution.The Oval serves multiple purposes on campus: it’s a speed-skating facility, a research facility and it’s a public facility for the university community.

Active Living offers structured programs for both students on campus and the broader community. For those who want more of a sports-focused experience, there are a number of intramurals and sport clubs. This ranges from martial arts such as aikido, capoeira, jiu jitsu and karate; team sports including dodgeball, Quidditch, volleyball, field and ice hockey, and flag football; as well as individual sports such as figure skating.

There is a variety of classes to sign up to which run the duration of a semester like yoga and pilates, snowshoeing and water fitness. If you’re more of the competitive type, there are Dinos Clubs with plenty of options. The clubs include baseball, cross country skiing, fastball, rowing, golf, ringette, soccer, rugby, synchronized swimming and tennis club.

Fans of the outdoors will love the Outdoor Centre, the largest of its kind in North America. There are more than 30 unique activities to enjoy such as backpacking through the Rocky Mountains, backcountry skiing, caving and ice climbing.The Outdoor Centre offers equipment rentals for many of these outdoor activities as well as classes to help prepare you for the great outdoors including crevasse rescue, backcountry cooking, outdoor survival, navigation and wilderness first aid.

Another great option is the Level Up program, which awards students experience points for participating in activities that enhance both their well-being and university experience. Events run through each semester and are all listed online in one calendar.

For more information, visit ucalgary.ca/activeliving