Brandon Chabot
Equinox Staff
Keene State College’s fitness program, BodyWorks, has progressed immensely over the past few decades.
Before the athletic center had a fitness program distributed on the first and third floor of the Spaulding Gym, the BodyWorks program was situated in a single room.
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Fitness Center Manager Christine Miles said, “The room still exists. It had no windows, no air conditioning, it was on the third floor, and it had all of its cardio, all of its strength training, the free weights, everything in this one space.”
Miles has been a part of the fitness program for 12 years.
Miles said, “The students are now very lucky to have this [fitness center] because 10 years ago, it was an embarrassment.”
“The program is getting better and better every year,” Miles said. “BodyWorks is open to all students, part of your student fees pay for your membership here if you are a matriculated student, and if you are not, campus employees can purchase memberships.”
Continuing Education staff member Heather Jasmin said she’s been a part of the BodyWorks program for two years. Jasmin said, “I think it’s [the program] beneficial, even though I like to think I work out regularly at home, whether it’s rainy, or its cold, or it’s dark, it’s nice to have it here.”
“It is an academic program because I supervise student staff, and those students are in the exercise science major,” Miles said. She added, “They have to be able to create a workout program based on the assessment results or for the needs of the person [trainee. The trainers are also learning interpersonal skills that will help them after they graduate.”
Miles said, “From a staff perspective, this is a lab. This is a chance for the students to do the things they learned in the classroom, they’ve learned the theory. Now they apply it.”
Jasmin said, “The students are very personable. They seem to be really well-trained when I go to meet with them. They seem to have a good understanding about what they are working with me on, and they usually run whatever fitness routine they’ve set up with us by their teachers. I know that its been viewed by somebody who have a lot of experience, so I feel more comfortable.”
BodyWorks trainer and KSC women’s soccer team captain Brittany Croteau has been with the program since last spring, when she took a class requiring 150 hours before she could be placed on the payroll.
She spent last summer here training clients and will work for the rest of the school year at BodyWorks. She said she thinks the hands-on experience was the most important part of the training. “We learn about it consistently throughout the classroom, and we meet everyone for normal class, but the 150 hours goes towards your credits,” Croteau.
Croteau added, “Training clients, getting to meet people, seeing what specific needs a client needs opposed to another, so you learn to personalize workout plans, a lot more than if you were in a classroom learning about it.”
“In order to utilize the BodyWorks training program, students must pay a semester fee of $40. The $40 you pay goes into the general rec sports fund,” Christine Miles said.
Miles added, “It allows us to purchase all of the personal training tools we need. We have hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment in the fitness center and it costs many thousands of dollars to maintain it and upgrade it.”
The program usually runs for about 12 to 13 weeks, and clients usually meet with their trainers a few times a week, depending on their schedules. Workout charts are available to track a trainee’s progression. “It allows for progression, and that is highly motivating, when you can see that progression,” Christine Miles said.
There are currently about 60 participants in the program and over 20 trainers.
Brandon Chabot can be contacted at bchabot@keene-equinox.com