An Investment in Exercise

On April 20, the Undergraduate Council voted on a bill that provides for $13,000 in improvements to House gyms. Their investment in exercise space for students is a positive development for the College, and House Committees should take advantage of the council funding available to them—a matching grant for as much as $1,000 per house. With extensive crowding in the antiquated Malkin Athletic Center (MAC), alternative exercise options are in high demand, and renovated House gyms can reduce the strain on the MAC until its renovation.

With up to 12 gyms looking to buy exercise equipment, the council and the Houses should pool their resources to buy new machines in bulk and take advantage of manufacturers’ discounts. Some houses have initiated this process—using the MAC’s buying power to coordinate their purchasing and help stretch their limited funding.

Yet while the Houses are coordinating their purchases, it is clear that some House gyms need more of an investment than others. Ill-equipped Houses will benefit the most under this plan. Ideally, the council funding will grant each on-campus upperclass resident—regardless of affiliation—the viable option of in-House exercise.

But while substantial renovations of House gyms are necessary, they are no replacement for a long-overdue overhaul of the MAC. The health benefits of exercise are manifold and well-known, and the weather in Cambridge can be harsh and unpredictable. Indoor exercise is key to staying fit through those long, slushy winter months. That the University has not provided institutional support for basic improvements to House gyms, and the MAC is beyond unfortunate. And while a full renovation of the MAC will take time, interim measures of providing more exercise machines in under-used campus spaces—both in Houses and the empty floors of the MAC—should have been adopted by the administration long ago, not belatedly by the council. That a truck delivered exercise machines to the MAC on Monday is a sign of improvement—too bad it came just as the weather warmed up.