If you’ve kept up with campus gossip recently, you probably know that the Mezz is being converted to a new workout facility. With these renovation plans in order, I can’t help but think about other additions to campus that would benefit everyone. While I personally think that having more than one place to workout is in fact a great idea, I think that there is something that would be even more useful than a few extra ellipticals: a swimming pool.
I’ll preface this by saying that I don’t like to swim, so I’m not technically biased. The thought of having my head immersed in water for any amount of time longer than what would be necessary to rinse shampoo out of my hair really freaks me out. Swimming pools, however, offer so many options in the interest of keeping our bodies healthy that even someone as claustrophobic as myself can get on board.
Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely cons to this idea. One would be that the odds of Bexley families having access to our pool would be very high. There is potential for strange children to be continuously coming in and out of the water, contaminating it with whatever hand-foot-flu-pink-eye that’s going around at the time.
While this wouldn’t be ideal, there are ways to prevent the spreading of things like this. Families could be required to submit their child’s vaccination records to the university in advance, or there could be only one day a week that would open the pool up for public use.
Another con is that Capital is a relatively small campus, and the odds of being able to find enough space to sustain a swimming pool is unlikely. If there wasn’t room for an Einstein Bagels, how on earth could there be room for a pool?
Even considering the unlikelihood of this plan, it’s still not necessarily a bad one. Here’s why.
Swimming pools can be used to help soothe symptoms of many bone and joint diseases. As someone who suffers from fibromyalgia, I can say from personal experience that moving around in the water has definitely been helpful in the past. I’m sure I’m not the only person with musculoskeletal pain on campus, so having a pool that would be accessible to all students could help them feel better, which in turn could increase attendance.
Another pro is that having a swimming pool would allow for the possibility of a swim team.
I don’t know about you, but a lot of television shows I watched as a young teen that took place in high schools or colleges normally included one of the main characters being on the school’s swim team. These characters were always very fit and healthy-looking. The reason for that is because swimming is an excellent full-body workout. It keeps your heart rate up, but also takes some of the impact stress off of your body. It builds endurance, tones and strengthens the body, and allows individuals to maintain a healthy heart, weight, and healthy lungs.
My last argument in favor of a swimming pool is that swimming helps to alleviate stress. Unless being done competitively, swimming is a low-impact activity. For college students, anything low-impact can be looked at as a positive thing. Having somewhere to go in order to relax while also getting a nice workout is an option that people shouldn’t have to go without.
Plus, if Kendrick Lamar wrote a song about it (search “Swimming Pools (Drank)” on iTunes) then it must be important, right?
