Recreation Centers offer savvy gym membership deals

For a fraction of the cost of commercial gyms, the FIU community can work out at spectacular facilities at University Park and Biscayne Bay Campus.

By Grant Smith

The FIU Recreation Center at University Park boasts a fully loaded gym, locker room with laundry service, café and a variety of work-out classes scheduled throughout the week. The BBC campus also provides a recreation center and a newly renovated Olympic-sized pool. Students can use the facilities at no additional cost because their membership fees are included in their tuition, and great deals exist for FIU employees and alumni.

University Park

Full-Time Employees:

• – Gold Service membership costs $300 per year ($12.50 per payroll deduction) and includes locker rental, laundry access and unlimited access to group fitness classes. For a cost of $240 annually ($10 per payroll deduction) for the Blue Service membership, employees can use the exercise equipment.

Part-Time Employees:

• – An annual Gold Service membership costs $340 per year while a Blue Service membership costs $275 annually.

Alumni:

• – A year-long Gold Service membership goes for $365 per year to alumni who are not members of the Alumni Association and $350 for Alumni Association members. The Blue Service membership costs $300 for non-members of the Alumni Association and $285 for members.

UP upcoming events:

Hour-long belly-dancing classes are being brought back to the Recreation Center and will be held Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at noon. For a schedule of all the group fitness classes being offered, go to: http://www.fiu.edu/~camprec/ClassSched.htm.

Friday, Jan. 16, is Student Appreciation Day and all students receive free PantherFIT classes all day.

UP Recreation Center Spring Semester hours:

Monday-Thursday 6 a.m.- midnight

Friday 6 a.m.- 9 p.m.

Saturday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m

Sunday 10 a.m.- 8 p.m.

Biscayne Bay Campus Recreation Center

Platinum membership always comes with a full locker and towel service while Gold membership just comes with a full locker. A Silver membership includes a small locker with towel service and a Bronze membership is only the small locker. All basic memberships allow patrons to enter and use equipment.

Annual Membership Plans (friends of FIU):

• – $340 Platinum
• – $300 Gold
• – $290 Silver
• – $250 Bronze
• – $200 Basic

Annual Alumni and Family Membership Plans:

• – $310 Platinum
• – $270 Gold
• – $260 Silver
• – $220 Bronze
• – $170 Basic

Annual Faculty/Staff Membership Plans:

• – $290 Platinum
• – $250 Gold
• – $240 Silver
• – $200 Bronze
• – $150 Basic

BBC upcoming events:

The Recreation Center at BBC will be hosting a large variety of extracurricular activities this semester. Beginning Friday, Jan. 16, there will be paintball games on the soccer field starting at 1 p.m. On January 22, the much-anticipated reopening of the pool, which has been expanded and improved greatly, will take place. Furthermore, on the last Saturday of every month, the Recreation Center hosts Kayaking on the Bay. This month’s Kayaking on the Bay will be Sat., Jan. 31. For more information call the Recreation Center at 305-919-5678.

BBC Recreation Center Spring Semester hours:

Monday – Thursday 10 a.m.-8 p.m.

Friday 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

Saturday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Sunday Closed