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Rec Sports provides Kats with handful of activities ARTURO MOSQUEDA Campus Culture Editor As part of the Health and Wellness celebration week, we have decided to talk about what the Recreational Sports Center at Sam Houston State University currently offers to students on campus and what benefits many can see by going to the Rec Center. The Recreational Sports Center offers many programs and facilities to students, staff and faculty that allow all to take part in. These include club sports, outdoor recreation, and aquatic center with a lap swimming and leisure area, a rock wall with varying difficulties, group exer-
cising and wellness classes. With a 10-thousand square-foot facility, the RSC houses everything a Bearkat will ever need. The Health and Kinesiology Center accompanies the RSC with four basketball courts, a 1/8-mile indoor running track circling above, 10 racquetball courts and a weight room. Personal training is offered to students from certified trainers if they seek a more one-to-one experience on fitness at the rec center. Additionally, if students are looking for a more outdoor experience, three Intramural sports fields and two sand volleyball courts are located next to the rec center. Tents, sleeping bags, kayaks and more are available for rent if students are
looking to go camp at nearby locations. The Intramural Sports program allows students to compete in individual sports of their liking. Leagues and tournaments are available at different skill levels so you can play against other equally skilled competitors. These include flag football, soccer, basketball, volleyball, racquetball, FIFA, NBA2K and even Fantasy Football. Fitness classes are offered that cover many different forms of exercise such as Zumba, yoga, hip hop dancing, barre and more. These classes and many more are held Sunday through Fridays. With more than 45 classes offered per week, there is something that will challenge
and motivate everyone. Classes are open to all Fitness Passport holders. Purchasing a Fitness Passport allows all-access entry to all group fitness classes during the semester. You can purchase a pass online at rsconnect. shsu.edu. The Department of Recreational Sports values excellence, well-being, service, student development and safety for everybody, all listed on their website. “We believe in a healthy lifestyle that balances body, mind and spirit, and ensure that we foster an environment that provides the tools for others to do the same.” The rec center website states. “We facilitate opportunities for learning, self-discovery, and leadership
development through experiential education, teambuilding and role-modeling.” The RSC hosts numerous events throughout the semester that will keep students motivated and excited to get out and exercise. Events in the past have been the RecFest, Fit Fest, Kat Fit Games, The Color Run and many others. There are several new events and classes taking place at the rec center throughout the semester. You can check it all out at recsports.shsu.edu. “It’s a great opportunity for stress relief, come and be with your friends, an opportunity to learn and gain skills to increase your health and wellness.” Associate Director of Marketing Melissa Fadler explains.
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How to practice good mental health MASEY WHITE Asst. Viewpoints Editor I’m going to let you in on a little secret that nobody may have told you: your mental health is just as important as your physical health. In other words, just as you wash your hands often, use hand sanitizer, avoid sick people, and stay home when you’re physically ill in an attempt to remain at your peak physical health, you should
be making these same strides for your mental health. Mental illness is much more prevalent in America than you may think. According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, approximately one in five adults in the U.S. suffer from some sort of mental illness. However, even if you aren’t someone with a mental illness, you should still be concerned with and work on your mental health. Washing your hands and using hand sanitizer are both ways that you can help prevent transmitting diseases and illness. Comparatively, practicing healthy mental practices can help prevent small stresses and sadness from snowballing into something worse. One way you
can do this is by learning what stress relievers help for you. Anything from painting, reading, watching Netflix, playing video games, writing, and any other healthy activity that you enjoy can help bring down the stresses from day-to-day living. As long as these things are practiced in moderation, they can be incredibly beneficial ways to ensure you’re functioning at your best mental health. Additionally, when you’re feeling sick, you often go see a doctor if it gets bad enough. This same idea can be practiced with your mental health. SHSU provides counselors at the Health Center that are free for you to use. They can be a great resource to drop by and
utilize when you’re feeling particularly stressed or down in the dumps. Therapy doesn’t have to be reserved for extreme cases of mental illness, or even strictly cases of mental illness. All people can actively seek out therapy in order to improve their overall quality of mental living. Therapists can effectively teach you ways to improve your mental health, allow you to talk through feelings and emotions, and provide support as you get through anything you may be facing. Utilizing a therapist to improve your mental health is no different from seeing a doctor when you’ve got a cold. Especially during flu season, anytime you hear someone cough, sneeze, or show any sign
of being ill, you probably try to avoid them at all costs. You can practice this with your mental health as well. Avoiding toxic people that cause you to feel bad about yourself, give you stress, or just make you feel generally unwell is completely justified. You can make efforts to only be around people that uplift and support you, which is something that can make a drastic difference in your overall mental stability. One practice in particular that most people overlook is taking mental health days. It is perfectly acceptable to stay home with you’re feeling especially unwell, so why can’t you stay home For the entire article HoustonianOnline.com
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Photos courtesty Recreational Sports
GET ACTIVE. (LEFT) Any time Bearkats swipe their BearkatOne card in to a Rec Sports activity, they will be eligible to win. The most active Bearkats will be recognized weekly, and all entered to win prizes throughout the semester. (RIGHT) Recreational Sports offers a fitness program that provides comprehensive activities for the Bearkat Community. Programs include Group Fitness classes. Personal Training, Fitness Workshops, Certifications, and a variety of weight room and cardio equipment.
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Sam Houston State University offers wide variety of food RYAN REYNOLDS Editor-in-Chief
Sleep, a good workout, music, video games and hanging out all sound good after a long day of classes, but there is one thing most people can agree on that sounds the best – and that is food. From Old Main Market, to Chick-fil-A, Subway, Grill Works, Moe’s and many more, Sam Houston State University offers a wide variety of food options to faculty and students for a reasonable price. “I enjoy the food on campus,” junior Psychology major Samaria Homes said. “We have a wide variety to choose from, es-
pecially in the Old Main Market. If I had to choose, Moe’s is my favorite place to eat at because I love when they shout ‘Welcome to Moe’s’ in such high spirit.” Students have the choice of signing up for resident or commuter meal plans at the beginning of each semester. There are three different options for each plan and the cost per semester and number of meals and Bearkat Bucks vary for each. Meals in the resident plans are recorded per week while meals in the commuter plans are registered per semester. Resident meal plans: 15 meals per week and $225 in Bearkat Bucks for $1,855 per semester. 20 meals per week and $175 in
What’s your favorite place to eat on campus?
Results from The Houstonian’s twitter poll
Bearkat Bucks for $1,885 per semester. Unlimited dining hall access and $125 in Bearkat Bucks for $1,970 per semester. Commuter meal plans: 30 meals per semester and $300 in Bearkat Bucks for $555 per semester. 60 meals per week and $300 in Bearkat Bucks for $795 per semester. 90 meals per week and $300 in Bearkat Bucks for $1,035 per semester. Students living on campus, except at Bearkat Village, are required to purchase a resident meal plan. Students living off campus may choose any meal plan from both the commuter and resident lists. “I go to the cafeteria two times for meals and my meal plan is 15 meals a week,” freshman Phillip Cooney said. “It works out because I just eat breakfast in my dorm. The only problem is how Old Main Market and General Market close at 2 p.m. on Friday’s. That’s inconvenient.” To go along with Old Main Market, General Market opened its doors last spring to add to SHSU’s premiere meal plan dining options. Paw Print, which is located next to the Lowman Student Center, and South Paw, which is located behind the Chemistry and Forensic Science
LSC TAKEOVER.
Ethan Horn | The Houstonian
Paw Print is packed with students around lunch time. Bearkats gather at Paw Print to eat, hang out, study and play games.
building, also hold a wide variety of food choices. Chick-fil-A Express, Pizza Hut, Grill Works and Subway can be found at Paw Print, while Starbucks and Moe’s are located in South Paw. The Houstonian ran a twitter poll over the weekend with the question “What’s your favorite place to eat on campus?” and Chick-fil-A was the overwhelming favorite with 59-percent of the votes. Moe’s came in second place with 15-percent, Other (Old Main Market, General Market, Pizza Hut, Grill Works,
Einstein Bros) came in a close third with 14-percent and Subway finished last with 12-percent. “My personal favorite is Chick-fil-A,” junior computer science major Caitlyn Landrum said. “You can never go wrong with waffle fries.” Several food and beverage PODs can also be found in the CHSS and Lee Drain. If anyone is craving a bagel, Einstein Bros is on the second floor of the LSC, and the Newton Gresham Library has a Starbucks for all the coffee lovers.
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Intramural, club sports brings campus community together Bearkats can be active, make life-long friendships by getting involved DEMETRE FOSTER Contributing Reporter The Intramural sports program provides students with the opportunity to compete and have fun in various team and individual sports. Leagues and tournaments are organized into varying skill levels to let students get some exercise and enjoy some friendly competition in a competitive, yet laid-back atmosphere. “We provide a fun and inviting environment for students to compete in a variety of different
sports and events throughout the year,” senior assistant director of Intramural and Club Sports Brian Weaver said. “This gives them the chance to interact with their peers and build life-long friendships as well.” As much as Intramural Sports aims to provide athletic outlets and promote an active lifestyle, their competitions have grown to become social opportunities for students to get out and compete with their friends and meet new people, as well. Major team sports feature several divisions. Male Students have the option of playing in league A (Competitive), B (rec-
reational), or Greek divisions. Females have an open division. Co-rec divisions are offered in all major team sports. Intramural sports offers a variety of sports including but not limited to flag football, basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball, racquetball, golf and tennis. Each activity is formatted differently in order to facilitate each of the sports events. Major team sports include flag football, soccer, volleyball, and basketball. Each of the sports have a regular season that consists of three games. These major team sports also play in a four-team round robin league with playoff games at the end. “Our most popular activity during the school year is our intramural basketball league that we offer in the spring semester,” Weaver said. “Our basketball league
offers students, faculty and staff an opportunity to compete in a structured league with the focus being to make the experience enjoyable for all participants. We also offer a unique opportunity for participants to play in the Johnson Coliseum for some regular season and playoff games, which is a very nice perk that we are able to offer to teams who sign up for our league.” Team sport tournaments include indoor soccer, 4v4 flag football, sand volleyball, dodgeball and many more. In most cases one game will be played every week. However, it is possible to have multiple games in a night. Team sport tournaments utilize either a single elimination format or pool play format. One-day tournaments include tennis, racquetball, Xbox 360 games, spike ball and more. Pre-registration for these games is not necessary. Students can show up at the time of the event. The one-day tournaments use single elimination format. Intramural Sports hosts the Bearkat Cup each year to promote friendly rivalries, encourage good sportsmanship and participation, and reward
success. The Intramural Sports Bearkat Cup is a competition to see which team or organization is the best all-around Intramural Sports team. Teams and organizations accrue point throughout the entire school year. The winning teams will have a plaque hung in the Health and Kinesiology building with their team name, accomplishments, and a team picture. Anyone interested in Intramural Sports needs to create a profile on IMleagues.com in order to participate. Team sports play Sunday through Thursday evening at the SHSU Intramural Fields and the Rec Sports center. Some of the other sports events may take place at Pritchett Field, Johnson Coliseum, Bowers Stadium, and Holleman Field. “The games for a lot of our sports really are a social event,” Weaver said. “We had nearly 11,000 spectators come out and watch our events last year, so clearly the social aspect of intramural sports is something that a lot of people value and it is something that we value as well.”
IMLeagues Sign-Up Guide All intramural participants will need to create a profile on IMleagues.com. IMLeagues offers a Support Button on the bottom of every page. Please use this button if you encounter any difficulties. To Create an IMLeagues Profile: 1. Go to rsconnect.shsu.edu 2. Click the sign in button in the upper right hand corner 3. Click the SHSU Network ID Login 4. Once you have signed in you may see your SHSU account information. Click on the Intramurals tab 5. Then click on the IMLeagues banner in the middle of the page 6. Fill in the remaining required information 7. You will then be prompted about the Rec-It App. This app will have all game information listed on it, so you can sign up to receive alerts from this app if you would like. 8. Click the “Intramural Sports” link under “Sam Houston State University” in the upper left hand corner To create/register a team: 1. Go to www.imleagues.com/shsu for information about a particular sport or activity. 2. Log in to your IMLeagues account. 3. Current sports will be displayed on the page. Click on the sport you want to play. 4. All sports longer than one day will be open for registration until the deadline listed on IMLeagues. 5. Once registration has opened for the activity, select the league (Men’s Greek, Men’s A, Men’s B, Co-Rec, Women’s) you would like to join. If the sport is not a one-day event, you will then need to select the division (i.e. Monday 6 PM, Sunday 2 PM, Wednesday 7 PM, etc.) in which you wish to play. 6. Some sports will require captains to take a captains’ quiz in order to register a team. This quiz is being used in place of a captains’ meeting for all of these sports. 7. All registrations are first-come, first-served. 8. If a division is already full, you will need to sign up for a different division or sign up for the waitlist. Adding players to a team or joining a team: 1. Adding players (for team captains) • Captains can invite members to their team by clicking the Invite Members link on the team page. Any invited members must accept the invitation to be added to the team. o If they have already registered on IMLeagues, search for their name and invite them. o If they have not yet registered on IMLeagues, enter their email address and separate each email address with a comma, semi-colon, or by pressing Enter. 2. Joining a Team • Use the Register button at the top right hand corner of every page and Select Join Team. • Click on a League or Division. Then click the Join Team button next to the team you wish to join. • You may also accept a request from a captain to join their team. 3. Join as a Free Agent • You may list yourself in as many divisions within a league as you would like. You will be visible to all members of the site and can request to join teams.