Most of the winter sessions begin their sign-up soon and Sandy Bromley, who is the Aquatic and Fitness Coordinator, said that it’s important to set small goals for yourself so that you can realistically reach them and keep setting new ones.

“I would say setting goals is the first place to start,” Bromley said. “When we do fitness training and personal training, we talk about S.M.A.R.T. (specific, manageable, attainable, realistic, timely) goals. What that means is setting a goal that has a specific accomplishment that you hope to get at the end, a timeline that you hope to achieve, and then short-term and long-term in the middle of what you’re looking to do.”

Bromley said that the goals don’t even have to be very specific.

“Some people set goals such as wanting to get to the Rec Center two times a week,” she said. “And then that can get to how they can get five or six workouts a week in and how they can break them down into things that will keep them going.”

Submitted photo The New Ulm Park and Recreation department will offer a the Fit Fusion class once again this winter.

She said that there’s a large selection of classes offered for those at all levels of activity.

“We offer over 30 fitness classes a week that are appealing to all age groups,” she said. “From young moms up to the active aging population. More specifically, we’ve added kickboxing and in our group fitness classes we have step classes some modified spin classes and all the way to silver sneakers classes and chair yoga, those types of programs.”

For those specifically looking to shed pounds this winter, there are some fitness options there, too. This year there will be a weight loss challenge and it’s the fourth year of the program.

She also said that the program is open for anyone. Registration for the weight loss challenge begins December 1 and the start of the challenge is January 13 where you initially weigh in and it ends March 16 when you weight out of the challenge.

“It’s a program that starts in early January and runs for 60 days and it encourages people who are non-members of our facilities to come in and try out our facility for 60 days,” Bromley said. “Then they get weekly emails offering stress management, diet and nutrition information, motivation for exercise and then specialty fitness programs.”

Submitted photo The New Ulm Park and Recreation department has swimming options this winter for those who want a different type of workout.

Bromley said the purpose of these classes is to gain new members and also to inspire those who are members but may take a break after starting the new year with fitness goals in mind but then burn out a couple of months later.

“We also offer a weekly class schedule where you get bonus points for coming to specific classes,” Bromley said. “It kind of drives some of our current members who don’t attend those fitness classes and people who aren’t familiar with our facility to come in and utilize our facility so that they’ll come in and sign for a membership. Usually you hit that late February or early March time where you decide it’s not important to be healthy anymore. The weight loss program carries you through to that point, but then we hope that it encourages you to at least sign up to get a punch card to continue coming to the facility or even sign up for a 60-day membership. The more you make it a routine during those 60 days, the more likely you are to keep it beyond that weight loss challenge.”

Bromley said that Silver Sneakers is also a popular program for all members of the Park and Recreation facility. Bromley said that the Silver Sneakers program is popular for those age 65 and up because people that age qualify for the Medicare supplements and Silver Sneakers is directed toward them.

Bromley also said that they’ve added a couple of weight lifting classes for this winter. They include weight lifting for seniors and weight lifting for women, which is basically small group training that helps to inform those about all of the equipment in the weight room.

“We teach you how to use the equipment, how to set up the equipment, as well as how to cool down and warm up for a workout,” Bromley said.

Bromley said that the weight lifting sessions last six weeks and they run year around, including a few sessions in the winter so people can get the year off to a good start.

For those who may be intimidated to try out a new program because they don’t feel they’ll be as fit or experienced as others, Bromley said not to worry.

“My advice would be to compare yourself to only yourself, to take a record from where you started,” Bromley said. “Take a look at where you are weeks from that point, months from that point. Set a time period with smart goals with just comparing you to yourself, because everybody is different and everyone’s understanding and knowledge of the weight room is different. You may go to the weight room with people who have completely different goals than you do, so it’s unrealistic for you to compare yourself to the other people that are working out in there.”