Cardboard Boats Do Float!
Submitted by Katlyn Mukuda, Assistant Aquatics Director
This past Sunday we held our very first Cardboard Boat Regatta at the Springdale Pool. Kids and parents of all ages worked extremely hard at creating boats to race (and hopefully not sink!) Our hopes seemed to be dashed when the storm clouds came rolling in. But by some strange stretch of luck we were able to hold our regatta later that day. The clouds parted, the sun shone through, and soon some of the most colorful and exciting boats began arriving.There were boats of every shape, size, and color. There were boats small enough for just one captain and others large enough to hold a crew of three! One boat had streamers and bright colors. Another paid homage to our very own Springdale Sailfish. The next boat was a pirate ship complete with a crew of fearsome pirates. There was even a terrifying dragon, ready to gobble up anyone who might cross its path!
Once all of our captains and crews arrived the race was ready to begin. The first race had five fantastic ships: Dragon Behind, the S.S. Moo, the Ro-Boat, the Floater, and B-Rad. The crews entered the water and the race was on! The Ro-Boat was the first to topple, but the crew managed to climb aboard and make it to the finish. The S.S. Moo had a great start, but soon took on too much water. B-Rad took off down the lane and left a few boats in its wake. Dragon Behind intimidated its competition, but it was no match for the Floater that sped down the lane and ended winning the first race in a mere 52 seconds!
The second race held some heavy competition. The boats competing included: the S.S. Holidae, the Pirate Ship, the Party Boat, and the S.S. Clay. The S.S. Holidae crewed by the lifeguards, needed saving right away as it toppled over and filled with water. The S.S. Clay took off down the lane (unfortunately because it was manned by one of the lifeguards, it was not able to be a winner.) The Party Boat made an impressive start before tipping over and throwing its crew of ladies into the pool. In fact, the Part Boat ladies tried several times to climb aboard their ship, but each time were thwarted by the rough waves! The Pirate Ship made the best showing in the second race and made it all the way to the end before tossing its crew of pirates into Davy Jones’ Locker!
After all of the laughing, splashing, and soaking wet cardboard, we finally had our winners. The Floater won fastest boat, Dragon Behind won Best Looking, and the Party Boat won the Titanic Award for Most Spectacular Sinking! All in all it was a fantastic day thanks to the crews of all the amazing boats. We can’t wait to do it again!
Aqua Zumba Your Way To Fitness!
Sounds from the islands will drift from the speakers at Springdale pool on Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings this summer!
AQUA ZUMBA IS COMING TO SPRINGDALE……………
This NEW class ,Watercize w/Aqua Zumba, is a combination of Latin, International, and upbeat aerobic music, using Latin dance moves with a variety of water fitness routines. It is a fun, safe, and effective workout for all ages and fitness levels. Let your body move through the water while shedding pounds and inches, as well as developing muscle tone and flexibility.
You don’t need to be a dancer for this class, the dance steps are easy to follow!
Come out and move your body to the rhythms in the refreshing water while having fun and enjoying the festive music from the islands.
Aqua Zumba is new to Springdale, but promises to be a fun fitness experience.
SEE YOU AT THE POOL JUNE 9 - JULY 10
Patricia A Cox, AFAA & Zumba certified instructor
Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
Written by Anna Breidenbach
Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
I like to think that Dr. Seuss may be referring to traveling with the Springdale Parks & Recreation department with his popular poem!
Although the weather outside is a little frightful, it is a great time to be thinking about “the places you’ll go!”. At our 2010 Travel Preview you will learn about all the fantastic trips lined up for this year. There will be one day trips (Belterra, Columbus Ballet to name a couple), and overnight trips (Amish country, Michigan, and western Pennsylvania to tempt you).
The various trips will be provided by AAA Provident Travel, Joy Tour & Travel, and the Springdale Senior Citizens club. These groups will have representatives at our Friday, January 15th Preview that will present the trips and can answer your questions. This is always a fun day for our members and their guests. You can feel the excitement of faraway places and the camaraderie of friends traveling together. I encourage everyone to attend. Please call the front desk- 346-3910- if you plan to attend.
And of course, to finish with Dr. Seuss:
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!
The Happiest Place in Springdale
By Christy Runge
Where is the Happiest Place in Springdale? I’ll give you a few hints. There are puzzles, crafts and trucks. Want to build something? There’s a workbench complete with tools. Rather cook than construct? We have a kitchen stocked with food! Figured it out yet? Oh, come on, it’s Kids Corner, the ‘Happiest Place’ in town!
While you’re sweating it out in the Fitness Center, surfing the net in the Computer Lab or watching a basketball game in the gym, we have an experienced staff to keep your children entertained. It’s not unusual to see me, Agnes or Myra playing while “on the job”. That’s what we do, we interact with the kids a lot. We play on the mats and crawl through tunnels. Oh, wait a minute, let me rephrase that, the kids crawl through the tunnels, yeah that’s better! We read and put puzzles together. Sometimes we encourage independent play with Lego’s, coloring books and games. But, whatever we do it’s FUN!
Kids Corner is filled with everything your child needs for a FUNTASTIC time. We even have a child size bathroom with changing station, so we’re ready for anything!
Next time you want to take some time for yourself, drop your kids off at Kids Corner and see why it’s the ‘Happiest Place’ in Springdale!
Take me to my Funtastic Coupon & More Information!
Welcome to Our Kitchen!
by Anna Breidenbach
Fall is in the air and everyone is dressed in their team colors (any other fellow Hawkeyes out there?)- that can only mean one thing… Tailgate! No, don’t fight the crowds down at Paul Brown- it’s the perfect time to hold a pigskin party in your own house! What’s that?- you don’t have any ideas on what to make- no problem! Our popular What’s Cookin’? class is back and full of ideas. With a menu of homemade pretzels, hoagies, salad (yes, we threw in something green) and dessert. Everything is covered! And best of all- it is healthy, easy and inexpensive!
Are you still a little hesitant to try a cooking class? Jay and I both know our way around a kitchen and have a lot of fun teaching the classes. We try out new products, wrangle over the recipes, and fist fights are quite common…well, that is just in our practice sessions. Jay does everything by the book, while I cook off-the-cuff- pretty entertaining combination and the result is some really good food. Plus you will learn about my love of infomercials (shamWOW anyone?) and Jay’s crush on Martha Stewart. So throw some measuring cups to the wind and give us a try! Sign-ups are going on now- stop by the front desk or call 346-3910.
Do you have some late-season tomatoes and not quite sure what to do with them? Try my favorite fresh salsa recipe:
Salsa Fresca
Ingredients:
2 medium size ripe tomatoes
¼ medium size onion
4 sprigs cilantro
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp garlic salt
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 jalapeno (1/3 for mild, 2/3 for medium, all for hot and spicy)
Chop tomatoes, onion, cilantro and garlic, place in a bowl. Add chopped jalapeno if desired. Sprinkle garlic salt and lemon juice. Toss and serve with tortilla chips. Store in refrigerator in airtight container.
Say “Goodbye” to Summer
It’s always sad to see the pool close at the end of summer. The old swimming hole, now empty, looks desolate; chairs and diving boards are put away, the lifeguard office is empty and the familiar sound of kids having fun can only be faintly heard coming from a distant soccer field.
On the other hand, there is a sense of relief that accompanies the sad feeling. Relief knowing, no one was seriously hurt, no outbreaks of cryptosporidium, or near drownings. This doesn’t happen by chance, it takes a “swim team” to keep the Community Center pool a safe place to swim. The “team” includes a well-managed and trained aquatic staff, parents that watch their children, and kids that know and follow the pool rules. More than 6,000 people visited the pool this year and lifeguards alone cannot solely be responsible for the well-being of that many people. Fortunately, most pool-goers respect and listen to the lifeguards. The aquatic staff also taught over 300 adults and children how to swim. Not only is the ability to swim a lifelong skill but it can literally save you or your child’s life.
All of these things help us keep everyone safe while visiting the Community Center pool and for this, the entire aquatic staff says thank you for a great summer and being a part of our winning “team”!
See you next summer!
Amy, OJ, Zach, Shannon, Greg, Kelsey, Michelle, Jo, Amanda, Lindsey, Bailey, Marcus, Clay, Kaitlin, Sonny, Alyssa, Megan, Kelly, Melody, Nick, Abby, Andrea and Zippy too!
Step Up Your Game!
By Jay M. Dennis
Walking is one of the easiest and best exercises there is to reduce your risk of disease, help you lose weight and live longer. You can walk all year and anywhere - your neighborhood, the mall, local parks, on a tight rope (although the tight rope method may not be best for everyone ) . A great way to keep track of your walking is with a pedometer - it helps keep track of how many steps you take per day.
But how many steps per day should you walk? 4,000? 6,000? 10,000? Where does this number come from? More importantly, can I really walk that much in one day? Does it really correlate to better health or weight loss? Is this another fitness myth or is there really any research that shows it works? Why am I asking all these questions when I should be giving the answers? Well, keep reading.
The long standing guideline has been 10,000 (*magic number alert*) steps per day. But there was no scientific data to back this up. Luckily, new research has shed some light on this.
Trying to maintain your health?
The CDC recommends 150 minutes of moderate activity per week. This can be broken down to five 30 minute exercise sessions. Research has shown that 100 steps per minute (a brisk walk) is considered moderate exercise. So by walking 3,000 steps in 30 minutes, you have just exercised moderately for one session this week. Add four more and you are good to go. See how easy that was? Just aim for five exercise sessions of 3,000 steps in 30 minutes every week. This could easily be accomplished in one of the many exercise classes we offer at the Community Center.
Trying to lose weight?
Think about this: 2,000 steps is roughly one mile. One mile burns roughly 100 calories. If you want to lose one pound per week, you need to burn 3,500 calories per week. Or walk 35 miles. Or five miles per day. Which is 10,000 steps.
Stop by the Fitness Center to see how you can get a FREE pedometer. And be sure to pick up a Walking Packet to learn a realistic way to build up to 10,000 steps a day.
Oh Crap!
Written by Sharon Casselman
I must admit I was a pool rat. Growing up I spent every day at the pool, rain or shine it didn’t matter. After a full day of swimming, my mom would say, “well you sure don’t need a bath tonight!” Many years later, I hate to say it but mom was mistaken, and I lived to tell about it!
It’s a delicate topic, and nobody wants to talk about it, but it happens. Your child may have been the one who just couldn’t make it to the bathroom in time, worse yet, some of you may have seen it but didn’t say anything. It’s one of the not-so-glamorous things the aquatic staff has to deal with. The only thing the staff cares about is if it’s solid! Because, if it’s not, the pool is required to close for at least thirteen hours! More on that later….
So what do we do when it happens? The pool is cleared immediately, and it is removed and disposed of in a sanitary manner. The chorine should be raise to 2 parts per million (ppm), we generally keep our chlorine at 2 ppm, so, as an added precaution, we raise the chlorine to 3 ppm and “spot” treat the area with granular chlorine. Ph must be maintained at 7.5 or less, and the temperature at 77 degrees or higher. Our Ph is regularly maintained at 7.2-7.4 and the temperature at 78 degrees or warmer. We maintain these levels for at least 60 minutes before reopening the pool. These procedures exceed those required by Health Department and The Center for Disease Control.
So what about diarrhea? We pray it doesn’t happen but unfortunately it could. In a nutshell, we would clear the pool immediately and remove as much of it as possible. The chlorine must be raised to 20 ppm, the Ph must be maintained at Ph of 7.5 or less and a temperature of 77 degrees or higher for at least 13 hours. Next is a thorough backwash (cleaning of the filters). When the chemical ranges are back to normal, then, and only then, could we re-open.
This might be a little more information than you wanted, but now you can rest assured we do everything in our power to keep you safe while swimming in our pool.
Heaven knows the summer is filled with all kinds of potential dangers, exploding firecrackers, poison ivy, and sunburns. We do not need to dodge doo-doo in the pool!
From one pool rat to another, here’s wishing the rest of your summer is fun, chlorine-filled, and doo-doo free!
Change Your Spare Tire
Written By Phyllis Calhoun, MS, M.Ed.
Does it look like you’re trying to smuggle a life ring under your shirt? Are you still blaming your stomach on your kids… and they’re teenagers? Then let’s talk about probably the number one question we in the fitness industry get, “How do I get rid of my stomach?”
First, a brief anatomy lesson on abdominal muscles. Your abdominal muscles are located on the front and sides of the lower part of your torso. They begin along the rib cage and attach along the pelvis area. They consist of the Rectus Abdominus, known as the “6-pack,” the Transverse Abdominus, which lies underneath the other muscles and wraps around the stomach area and the External and Internal Obliques, which run diagonally on the sides of the body.
Most important are the functions and purpose of those muscles:
Transverse Abdominus - Flexes the spine, brings the pelvis closer to the rib cage.
Rectus Abdominus - “Keeps Your Insides In.” Essential for a stable core and firm waist. External and Internal Obliques - Rotates the torso and stabilizes the core.
Are you doing crunches hoping for a flatter stomach? Well keep doing them! Now add two new ingredients: proper nutrition and cardio workouts. Keep in mind that extra stomach fat can be attributed to genetics, lack of exercise and poor diet. Crunches will eventually strengthen your abs but will not affect the layer of fat covering them. You need to boost your metabolism to lose overall body fat, which may then highlight all of your hard work in your abdominal area. You may not get a 6-pack but you will be stronger and more fit.
KICK START YOUR ABS:
1. Try to get in 30 minutes of cardio every day of the week. The most important ab machine might be the treadmill. Work in your Target Heart Rate Zone to get the greatest benefit.
2. Do exercises targeting the Rectus Abdominus, Transverse Abdominus and Obliques, in this order, 2-3 times a week, on alternating days.
3. Make healthier choices when eating and use portion control. Aim to get your weight within your healthy Body Fat %.
4. Drink plenty of water.
5. Educate yourself. Pick up an abs packet in the Fitness Center.
Need help with any of these? Just ask a Fitness Center Team Member!
We’ll help you Stay Focused and Consistent! Attend the FREE Strictly Abs Class at the Community Center during the month of August. Classes are M,W,F 6:15-7:00 a.m. That would be a great way to get started!
Run it Like It’s Hot!
Written by Jay M. Dennis, Fitness Center Manager
Even if July turns out to be the coolest July in history, we all know the dog days of summer are approaching. That doesn’t mean your outdoor running has to take a hit, so if you’re starting or just want to keep running outside, listen up.
The first part of running in the summer is preparation. Wear loose fitting, light colored clothing, and preferably a material that wicks away moisture. Or carry a squeegee while you run and do it yourself. Sunglasses are must, but make sure they block the UVA and UVB rays. A hat is good, but you lose a lot of heat through your head so don’t wear a real heavy or tight fitting hat. And always put on sunscreen. SPF 30 should be fine for most people and an ounce should cover your body. Go with waterproof sunscreen and don’t get it in your eyes! Sorry. I was channeling my grandma there.
Ok, now you are dressed and ready to go. Now what? Try and run in the coolest parts of the day - the morning or late evening. Avoid 12-3pm as this is the hottest part of the day and ozone levels are at their peak. It takes your body about two weeks to get used to the heat. So take it easy during that time. Don’t push yourself and go for a personal record - just get your time in. Even after a couple of weeks, you’ll still want to run at a comfortable pace, which may not be what you have run in the past. Remember, it’s all about controlling your temperature. Like a car, if you get too hot, you’ll start spewing coolant all over the place. Ok, maybe not exactly like a car, but it can still be bad.
And finally, don’t forget to get plenty to drink. Start drinking a couple of hours before you run. And we’re talking about water here, ok? Then about 15 minutes before you run, drink some more. For runs over 45 minutes, use a sports drink. Less than that - stick with water.
Finally, a few warnings: If there’s a heat advisory or smog alert, head indoors. Nobody thinks you’re impressive for running in 95 degree heat with 90% humidity. Or if you start to experience heat illness, stop running, find some shade and drink some water. Heat Illness symptoms include headache, confusion (more so than usual), loss of muscular control, hot and cold flashes, upset stomach and oversweating followed by clamminess and no sweating.
If you have any questions, let me know. I’ll be in the fitness center - in the air conditioning.