All posts by kfh24

Wellbeing

Walk, wheel or jog the City2Surf with UC

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Join in the fun and spirit of the Christchurch City2Surf and celebrate UC’s 150th year with a free entry, a t-shirt to run in, and support programme to get you over the line!  No fitness or experience necessary! 

Runners of all levels at the start line for City to Surf 2021
City2Surf 2021 – an iconic Christchurch event
How do you get all this for FREE? 

Easy – simply head over to the Rec&Sport website and register with us.  The first 150 UC Staff and UC Students will get the full package ABSOLUTELY FREE!   We want to see our UC team wearing UC Colours with pride on the day! 

What if I am number 151 to register?

You can still join in the fun, and our programme groups, but the cost is $45 for students/staff or members of the RecCentre, and others can join us for $65.  This includes the support groups, training programme and entry fee.  Sorry no t-shirt!  So don’t delay, sign up today! 

What is the City2Surf? 

It’s an iconic fun run/walk hosted in the city every year.   You can choose to do 6km or 12km, and you can opt to walk/wheel or jog/run.  We have options and training plans for all abilities and choices.  Just indicated on the registration from what you’re interested in trying.   This is ideal if you’re thinking about your first event, consider yourself ‘not a runner’ or get puffed after 20secs of jogging!   With a safe training plan, we’ll get you over the finish line of your preferred event in just six weeks! 

All good, what are the details?

More info is available on our website, and once you register, we’ll be in touch regularly to keep you on track.   But here’s what you need to know:

  • Event day is Sunday 19th March, 2023 in the AM 
  • Group walk/wheel and jogs are offered twice weekly, usually Tues/Thurs evening 
  • First group walk/jog is Tuesday 31st Jan 
  • You can start remotely, and follow the plan from wherever you are, and once you’re in the city, you can join in with our groups 
  • Group sessions are highly recommended, but we understand if you can’t make them all. 
  • You’ll be out and about 3-4x per week (2 with us, 2 on your own) 
  • There’s a special facebook group to share tips and ask questions

So, what are you waiting for?   Register today, and maybe get your flatmates signed up too! 

Ngā mihi
UC Rec&Sport | Te Ratonga Hākinakina 

Wellbeing

It’s time… time to get back to (or start a new) routine!

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Happy new year! We hope you’ve had a nice mental and physical break with family and friends. Perhaps it’s now time to think about getting back into your routine, which we’re also hoping includes a little bit of exercise! 

Why exercise?

Just in case you forgot the basics in your holiday haze, a regular exercise routine helps you to:

  1. Manage your mental health 
    Some of the biggest benefits of physical activity are actually found in your mental state.    It releases chemicals (happy hormones) like endorphins and serotonin which improve your mood.  It also makes you get out and about for the day, perhaps even saying hello to another fellow human, and we all know that connecting with others is one of the five ways to wellbeing! 
  2. Manage your physical health 
    Whether you want to make gains, lose weight, or stay just the way you are, exercise can help you do just that.   If you’re experiencing unusual aches and pains, stiffness or are just out of breath going up stairs, physical activity is the best way to reduce pain, allowing you to live your best life day-to-day. 
What exercise to do? 

Anything that makes you happy! Seriously. If you’re not currently moving, start with just getting out and about, with a bit of purpose. A brisk walk, a game of frisbee golf, or a trip to the gym for whatever – just try to get some daily movement, and you’ll start to feel better. Who knows where you can go to from there? 

UC Rec&Sport – Home of the UCRecCentre, your FREE student gym 

Ok, so technically you’ve paid for the gym via your levy, but that doesn’t catch your eye as much as FREE does it?! Once you’ve paid your student fees, it includes your student levy.  A small portion of your levy helps pay for the base membership and activities. 

Once you’re in, most stuff is free, some stuff isn’t (but we keep it really cheap). Best way to find out is to head to our website and have a browse, or just pop over and give us a go. 

We have everything your standard gyms have and more! Courts, climbing wall, boxing area, classes and of course weights and cardio.  

How to register

To register, it’s pretty straight forward. Head to this page and you’ll find out how. Takes only a few minutes.  

If you’ve got any questions, just reach out. We’re here to help you with your physical and mental health, so that you can enjoy your student life! 

Ngā mihi
Te Ratonga Hākinakina | UC Rec&Sport 

 

Health and Fitness, Health and Wellbeing

Christmas Hours at the UC RecCentre, what’s new in 2023, and a very heartfelt thanks

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As we come to the end of 2022, we would like to remind you that as a UC Student,  you can enjoy continued access to the RecCentre over summer, until 1st March, 2023*.

To continue to access the gym, you’ll need to re-register.  It’s online and takes only a minute or so.   Then, on your first visit, we need to activate your card for the new tap and go access, and this takes just a jiffy.

Christmas Hours

Last day for 2022:  Wednesday 21 December, 9pm
Opening day for 2023:  Wednesday 4 January, 6am
Group Fitness classes:  Check and book via the app

Along with the rest of UC, we also close for two weeks.  This is so we can all take a solid break to spend time with family and friends, and to rest and restore our hearts, minds and bodies.   We also rely on and collaborate with many other departments and staff in the university, whose māhi enable us to do what we do.   Without them, we simply cannot operate all of the services we do, and maintain a safe facility for you.   A big thankyou to all those teams.

New stuff for 2023

With life returning to somewhat normal, we will see the return of our Group Fitness Challenge,  a new and improved spin studio (including a new suite of bikes with metrics), and a complete refresh of all new  connected Technogym Cardio equipment.  So exciting!

Got suggestions?

We would love to know how we can help YOU, your friends and whānau be more physically active, either at home, on campus or at the gym.    If you’ve got a great idea that you think might help get more people active,  please have a chat to us or drop us an email.  

Thankyou for your ongoing support

We realise that even though your membership is student levy funded, you do still have the choice to go elsewhere.  We are super glad that so many of you  signed up and came to the gym (no matter how many times).  It shows good intentions to look after your own wellbeing.  Ka pai!

We know we’ve had a few disruptions this year – RecLITE, new software, new gates etc.  We really appreciate the patience everyone showed with our staff and other members, as we all continue to learn a whole new software and ways of doing things.   There’s more great stuff to come, so watch this space!

Ngā mihi and meri kirihimete!
UC Rec&Sport | Te Ratonga Hākinakina

* All UC Students who have paid full year levy (ie Sem 1 and Sem 2) will have access until March 1, 2023.   Sem 1 only student memberships expired at the end of Sem 1.   Some postgrad enrolments have also expired.  Talk to us if you are not sure, or the system doesn’t allow you to join.