The Equivilent of Christmas Morning to an Exercise Science Major:

MEMORIAL HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE CENTER.

That is where I will be spending my free time as an intern this year. I was looking forward to it, and am even more excited now that I went and visited the place for my first time today.

I drove downtown to busy South Bend, and on my way there was silently praying that there would be other parking spots besides parallel parking available. Well, there wasn't, so I resorted to a parking garage a block down. As I'm walking down the street [umbrella in hand since it was raining] among prestigious businessmen and ritzy shoppers, I was looking for a small building that I pictured this clinic to be. When I reached the correct address, I was AMAZED! This place is 4 stories!

I have never seen anything like it. I was told that I would have my own clients and would have everything in the facility to my disposal. I interpreted that as a good assortment of exercise equipment and some physical therapy tools...which left a lot of room for creativity, which takes a lot of work some times. But no, I have 4 stories worth of stuff!

The first floor is geared towards children...administering therapy and helping kids stay fit. It also has a restaurant-type deal that serves ONLY healthy food!

The second floor is a nutrition facility. Clients can get free sessions with a nutritionist and then can work with a specialist on how they can exercise and eat better to improve their health.

The third floor is a workout facility. It's huge! It has a cardio room, weight room, bike room, pilates room, basketball and volleyball and racquetball courts, a group fitness lab, and a lap pool. And since I "work" there, I get a FREE one-year membership!

The fourth floor is more medically based...there are doctors that see patients for orthopedic and cardiac issues, massage therapists, occupational and physical therapists, and exercise physiologists. There are many tools available in order to help patients get back to health.

I am so excited...ALL of that to my disposal! Also, I have to come up with a program to get the public more fit. For example, last year's intern came up with a Biggest Loser's program...now it's my turn to get creative. I don't have an idea yet, so if you have any, I'm up for suggestions!