LBCC's Open Weight Room

From down the hall you can hear the crash of the weights, the whir of the machinery and the hum of the treadmills. You enter the room and immediately notice the smell of rubber and the cool air conditioning. The room is filled with all kinds of machinery and metal weights of all shapes and sizes.

Having a solid workout routine is one of the most highly recommended methods to staying in shape and relieving stress. There's nothing quite like sweating your problems away as you exhaust yourself lifting weights, working your core or just doing some cardio.

People of all ages enjoy working out and LBCC students are no exception and thanks to some recent changes in school policy, any and all students can now enjoy the use the school's exercise facility without having to sign up for a class.

Starting last fall LBCC has opened it's weight facilities for use on weekdays from 4 p.m. 5:45 p.m. Students have been asking for an open weight room for a long time and for the first time since the 90's they are free to come and work out on their own accord thanks to the combined effort of the Leadership Council and Athletic Department.

“The students have, for a long time, wanted access to the weight room without a class.” Says Leslie Hammond, Assistant Dean of Student Engagement. “Its promising that the students care about their wellness.”

Opening the weight room for all the school to use was no simple task. Not only did finding qualified staff members become a challenge, but concern about how an open weight room would effect the attendance of the school's weight lifting classes was also a concern.

To fix these problems the faculty turned to the students themselves to help staff the open weight room. Talent grants were offered for qualified students to earn credits by monitoring the weight room for the purpose of safety and assist students who have any questions about activities.

One such student, David Obando, a dual-enrolled OSU student, receives a talent grant for his time as a supervisor for weight room. Obando's Main job is to insure a safe and friendly environment during open weight room hours. Though his primary job is ensuring the safety of the students Obando is more than willing to answer any questions students might have about exercising. With nearly eight years of sports medicine studies and four years coaching athletes, Obando is capable of assisting anyone from regular students to potential OSU athletes.

Overall the open weight room has been a huge success according to Hammond. Student attendance is high and so far there has been no affect on the attendance school's weight lifting classes, both of which were large concerns about the endeavor.

Whether you are training to be a an athlete at a larger college, trying to stay in shape or just need to relieve some stress, all students and staff are welcome to attend.

Upwards of thirty students attend the open weight room daily and so far numbers are only going up according to Hammond. Many students have been asking for morning hours for the weight room as well, but scheduling around classes is an issue. Overall curricular use will take precedence, but with the weight room's current success, expanding the hours seems likely.

For students interested in using the open weight room all you need to do is sign in with your X number and you can start working out. The hours for the open weight room are 4 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. Monday through Friday.

At a Glance

Open weight room
Free for LBCC Students and Staff.
4 p.m. - 5:45 p.m. weekdays
LBCC campus Activities Center, Weight room.
Providing an environment where students can exercise for free.

Additional Information

More information about LBCC
LBCC Albany Campus Map