By Gregory Hoeft
TR Campus hosted its annual strength and endurance contest April 17 in the Fitness Center.
“Our contestants are mostly guys, and those that show up are pretty fierce competitors,“ said Nick Giovannitti, Fitness Center director. “This is our fifth year, and we are planning on adding more activities next year such as a 5K.”
The competition started with a weigh-in and was organized so that competitors could come within a time window based on their class schedule. The competition accepted entrants until 3 p.m., and competitors found it convenient to come and go as they needed.
“I love fitness,” said TR student Raquel Flores. “I think it’s really good to be fit, healthy … have that good lifestyle and see other people kind of come out … even if there’s not that many girls, for guys, too. You’re setting yourself a goal and you’re competing with other people.”
Activities included squats, bench press, overhand pullups and pushups. Female competitors had the option of swapping pullups for situps. Each competitor was given a scorecard that judges marked up for final placements and rankings.
“We focus on safety first for the competitors because it’s all about their well-being,” Giovannitti said. “We have everyone fill out the proper forms and focus on proper technique and position throughout the event.”
The contest was also intended to promote TCC’s kinesiology degree option that is now offered.
“Many of the competitors we have are affiliated with the department of kinesiology major, so they find it goes hand in hand,” Giovannitti said.