After a two-year disruption from the pandemic, the UNMC Center for Healthy Living is resuming in-person fitness classes.
Peter Pellerito, fitness specialist for the center, said the Center for Healthy Living has not provided in-person, instructor-led fitness classes since March 17, 2020. But with COVID-19 cases dropping in the community and UNMC easing some of its safety precautions, the center will resume two instructor-led classes.
Starting Tuesday, March 29, the center will offer a total body fitness class at noon and yoga at 5:30 p.m. Those classes then will be on the schedule for every Tuesday and Thursday.
Masks still are required in the Center for Healthy Living, and the classes will practice social distancing.
"We are very excited to get permission to begin offering instructor-led fitness classes again," Pellerito said. "We have had options available like Fitness On Demand, the internet and DVDs, but people really enjoy the group dynamic of a live fitness class."
Total body fitness is a conditioning class to push participants’ limits with short high-intensity cardio intervals mixed with muscle strengthening movements. It accommodates any level of fitness, allowing participants to modify the movements and intensity to match their abilities.
Yoga uses body poses to develop flexibility by decreasing muscle tension and increasing range of motion. It promotes balance, muscular endurance and improved posture.
As an alternative to those classes, the center still offers courses on demand — hundreds of streaming video classes projected on a life size screen in room 1004. The center also makes available DVDs that can be used in the fitness classrooms and has internet access to allow users access to video media content.
Pellerito said center members have been asking for classes to resume.
Said Pellerito, "We’re fortunate on this campus that we have experts that provide guidance to balance benefit and risk. The situation is dynamic, and the virus is constantly evolving. But we know we can rely on their expertise.
"We want people to come back to the CFHL and enjoy the benefits of a physically active lifestyle."