Not everyone is an elite athlete, but anyone can be a champion. Liberty University recognizes the important role that wellness, including physical health, plays in a person’s life. By investing in facilities and programs that encourage activity and proper nutrition, the university is demonstrating its commitment to creating a health-conscious culture for students, faculty, and staff, as well as guests from the surrounding community.A new campus-wide wellness initiative, Live Healthy Liberty, was launched this semester. Spearheaded by Liberty’s Campus Recreation and Human Resources departments, the initiative brings together multiple entities with the single goal of improving the health of Liberty students, faculty, and staff. The initiative was celebrated during the annual health fair at the LaHaye Student Union on Aug. 20, and grants students, faculty, and staff access to a myriad of resources such as personal training, Wellness Series events, specialty exercise workshops, cooking classes and demonstrations by the campus dietitian, and group exercise classes (including ones exclusively for faculty and staff). Diverse fitness challenges — including bouldering competitions, weightlifting contests, triathlons, and trail races — are put on by Live Healthy Liberty throughout the year.
Exercise is essential to a healthy lifestyle, and Liberty’s campus offers an array of opportunities for people to engage in activities they enjoy. The newly renovated LaHaye Recreation and Fitness Center houses more than $1 million in new cardio and strength equipment and features a panoramic view of Liberty Mountain. Guests can utilize specialized training areas or test their limits on a 40-foot rock wall and bouldering space for multiple ability levels. Final touches will be completed this semester, adding several multipurpose rooms, two racquetball courts, and an indoor track. Extended hours for faculty and staff, which now include weekends, allow even more opportunities to work out.
From the fitness center, guests can also access an indoor pool, basketball and volleyball courts, and the Thomas Indoor Soccer Center, but recreational opportunities can be found throughout campus. Tennis courts, an indoor skate park, sand volleyball courts, and Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre — a year-round outdoor snowless skiing, tubing, and snowboarding facility — are among the many athletic amenities at Liberty. The university sits on more than 7,000 acres of beautiful mountain property, and hiking and biking trails allow anyone, including guests from the community, to stretch their legs and explore nature.
Proper nutrition is also an important part of living a healthy lifestyle. All across campus, Liberty strives to make eating right an easy choice. Many dining locations display nutritional information as well as “dietitian picks” for healthy meals.
The recent remodel of the Reber-Thomas Dining Hall has doubled the size of the allergen-free Simple Servings station, keeping up with students’ requests for healthier food options. Meals are prepared in a special area of the kitchen and are made without the eight most common food allergens (dairy, egg, gluten, peanuts, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat). Sodexo, Liberty’s dining services provider, was recently ranked No. 7 on the 2014 listing of the Top 10 Gluten Free Accommodating Colleges by BoulderBrands.com.
Dining locations across campus — such as David’s Place, Doc’s, the first floor of DeMoss Hall, and the Tilley Student Center — offer prepackaged “to go” meals (some of which are gluten-free) stamped with the Live Healthy Liberty logo.
Liberty has also recently launched the nation’s first Digital Wellness Center, led by Dr. Sylvia Hart Frejd. The center educates people on the healthy use of technology, promoting face-to-face social interaction, and exploring how technology shapes our relationships with God and with others. Frejd speaks to various classes at Liberty, writes a Digital Wellness blog, teaches a Digital Wellness course, and offers workshops for students, faculty, staff, and parents.
The university encourages its faculty and staff to take part in local fitness competitions, such as the Strive for Five and 100 Mile challenges sponsored by Live Healthy Lynchburg (the inspiration for Liberty’s initiative). Liberty consistently leads other local businesses in the number of employees who participate in these events.
The university encourages its faculty and staff to take part in local fitness competitions, such as the Strive for Five and 100 Mile challenges sponsored by Live Healthy Lynchburg (the inspiration for Liberty’s initiative). Liberty consistently leads other local businesses in the number of employees who participate in these events.
Year after year, the university also dominates the corporate challenge for The Virginia 10 Miler, which attracts more than 4,000 runners to downtown Lynchburg each year. Liberty offers free registration and a T-shirt for faculty and staff who sign up to participate in one of the events: a 10- or 4- mile run and a 4-mile walk.
Staff members are also encouraged to take part in the Commonwealth Games of Virginia, which run from July through November and give male and female participants of all ages and skill levels an opportunity to compete in a variety of sports. This year, Senior Vice President for Auxiliary Services Lee Beaumont has led by example by winning 13 medals — including eight gold — in various running, swimming, and field events.
The real prize, however, is the lives that are transformed — both those taking the first step toward a healthier lifestyle and those who are leading others to a more fulfilling, God-honoring life.
