UMD Students Encourage Fellow Academics to Get Moving

It is a well-known fact that stress, if left unchecked, can contribute to numerous health problems including fatigue, insomnia, high-blood pressure, heart conditions, obesity and diabetes, to name a few (ref. Mayo Clinic). To that end, Joey Hurm and Tanner Pfendner - both seniors (’18) in the UMD Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChBE) - founded the campus Calisthenics Club.

“Stress is often overwhelming for many of my engineering peers – it’s extremely valuable to take a break and exercise to regain some calm-mindedness,” said Hurm. “Tanner and I want to help, so in addition to founding the Calisthenics Club, we started organizing fitness ‘workshops’ around campus.”

This past Friday afternoon, October 6, the duo led a group of roughly 40 people – including ChBE faculty members Peter Kofinas, Deborah Goldberg, Ganesh Sriram, Amy Karlsson and Aku Asa-Auku) – through an exercise routine on LaPlata Beach near the Eppley Recreation Center.

After a full-body warm-up, participants performed a series of movements – push-ups, lunges, squats, flutter kicks and Russian twists, to name a few – in addition to stretching!

“We had an excellent turnout and I hope everyone appreciated the message concerning the importance of fitness, especially while striving to receive such a demanding degree,” added Hurm. “We’d also like to thank the UMD AIChE chapter, who sponsored the event, for their support!”

The group is planning another event towards the end of October/early November, and everyone is welcome to attend.

For additional information, contact Joey Hurm at jmhurm@umd.edu or visit the Calistehnics Club Facebook page.

Published October 9, 2017