Focus has turned to everyday Fitness Center users, so Aquatics and Fitness Advisory Committee members agree it’s time for a name change

By Mike Wood

Staff writer

Friday, March 28 (8:00 a.m.): A rebranding of the longstanding Fitness Center Wall of Fame is underway, which the Aquatics and Fitness Advisory Committee discussed at its March 14 meeting.

Efforts have begun to rename the periodic honor in which a user of the Fitness Center is profiled in the Rossmoor News and has their photo displayed in the Fitness Center.

This began with a discussion between Ann Peterson, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Ann Mottola, GRF’s community services director, and advisory committee member Mary Lou Thompson, who oversees the Wall of Fame program.

In past years, emphasis was on selecting the top athletes and Fitness Center users. Under Thompson’s guidance, the program has evolved into a focus on “everyday users who have really found a way to maximize what the Fitness Center programs have to offer,” Peterson said. While the change of emphasis has been a brilliant idea, Peterson said, the moniker has confused some residents who might wonder why someone is in the Wall of Fame, which has a display in a corner of the center’s main exercise floor.

The rebranding would make it more reflective of the individuals selected and their stories, Peterson said. Recently, profiles have been moved from the paper’s sports pages to the health and fitness pages, where they really belong, Peterson said, adding, “I love the direction of these articles. I think they’re fabulous.”

Peterson recently polled newspaper staff members, who came up with name suggestions like Finding Fitness, Fit for Life, Fitness for Everyone, among others. The committee will brainstorm and could incorporate other name ideas, Committee chair Barry Devine said. The committee’s next meeting is Thursday, May 8.

Members also liked a suggestion by Mottola for a very basic nomination form to keep at the Fitness Center front desk for residents to suggest a selection for the honor after its’ new name is determined.

Other topics at the meeting included:

• Usage by clubs of Fitness Center’s rooms – dance studio, gymnasium, aerobic studio and serenity studio, was broken down in a report presented by Jackie Carlisle, Fitness and Aquatics manager. There are 15 clubs whose emphasis is on exercise and movement that use those rooms.

The gym sees the most total usage, at 84.5 hours a week. The large Pickleball Club has the most weekly room usage at 68 hours, all in the gym. The Chinese American Association of Rossmoor, another sizable club, logs 21.75 room hours a week, in either the gym, dance studio or aerobics studio.

This data is a component of increased discussion with the clubs who use the Fitness Center, which helps GRF better understand its use, Mottola said.

That greater understanding helps with scheduling. For instance, moving trainer Bob Huff’s Mat Pilates class to the gym has increased class capacity from 30 to 45 residents, Carlisle said. Also, Adam Cleary and Ash Harrison of the Fitness Center have teamed for 20-minute drop-in, pop-up classes in the gym.

• Data from January and February showed 488 new visitors to the center, thanks in part to New Year’s resolutions. The 9 a.m. hour remains the busiest time of day, Carlisle said. The busiest day of both months came on Monday, Feb. 3, when 966 people came to the Fitness Center.
• Safety issues with a small number of residents running around the pool area were discussed at length. While lifeguards do remind people to be careful, they are only allowed to go so far. “We remind people of the rules, but we don’t have enforcement authority,” Mottola said. She added that the Policy Committee is discussing rules enforcement in general right now, so this might eventually change.

Communications should focus on safety, Devine said. “It should be ‘For your safety, no running.’ Not because it’s a rule. It’s for your safety.”

Committee member Brian Stack, a longtime lifeguard and coach, said that there’s a responsibility for others’ safety that comes into play.

“When people are putting other people at risk, that’s a real problem, Stack said. “With somebody like an old person falling on a pool deck, that isn’t just going to be a scrape.”

• Resurfacing Tice Pool, which would require a temporary closure, remains planned for this year, aimed for as late in 2025 as possible, so that outdoor Hillside and Dollar pools could be used before they both close for next winter, Mottola said. “We want it as late in our season as possible.”