Health Center offers free assessment to students

While many students are unaware of the IU Health Center’s program, Health Assessment and Consultation offers students a free measurement of their fitness health.\n“It’s a good way to keep you on track, motivated,” said Health Center fitness specialist and senior Abby Blankenberger. Blankenberger, who will be graduating with a bachelor’s in Kinesiology, has been working at the IU Health Center and as a personal trainer at the Student Recreational Sports Center for the past two years.\nBlankenberger said the physical fitness test is important and should be taken once a semester.\nShe said about five or six students a week come in for the test. \n“A lot of people don’t know about it,” said Blankenberger. “We need to have a program for freshman to let students know about the service.”\nThe assessment is more than just a checkup to see whether someone has a clean bill of health; it is a way to determine what can be done to make someone more physically fit.\nIt can sometimes be difficult to measure where you stand health-wise because some weight loss plans go by weight, others by body mass index (BMI) and still others have a formula of their own. Plus, being physically fit helps people sleep better at night and be more focused during the day, said Blankenberger. \nThe Health Center measures the participant on seven points designed to help take the guess work out of determining physical fitness. \nParts of the test include an assessment while riding a stationary bike, a measurement of flexibility and a push-up test.\nMeasuring fitness by whether your skinny jeans fit one day and not the other is not an accurate way, said Blankenberger. BMI determination is not always the way to go, either. \nFor example, some athletes would be judged as obese if they determined their weight by the BMI model because it measures lean weight and fat weight together, said Blankenberger.\nLean weight is muscle, bone, organs and water. Lean weight is better when it is high, but fat weight is better when it is low, said Blankenberger. Athletes have a higher lean weight, so even if they have a low fat weight, the weight of the muscles and water gives a higher BMI. This is why some people gain weight after they have been working out.\nThe service gives two ways to measure physical fitness: BMI, which is a determination based on height and weight, and the Jackson-Pollock 7-site Skinfold test, which measures a person’s lean and fat weight.\nJunior Stephanie Forsberg said she has never heard of the program and measures for fitness by going to the doctor every year for a checkup. The doctor will say something if she is getting to an unhealthy weight. \n“You should be comfortable in your own skin,” she said. “I’m not someone who steps on the scale every day.”\nStill, for students who want to know where they stand physically, this test offers a chance to find out.\nThe test takes about 45 minutes and participants are advised to wear tennis shoes and clothes appropriate for a gym. Students must make an appointment with a fitness specialist by calling 855-7338.\nA consultation immediately follows the set of tests. A fitness specialist goes over the data given by a computer and explains what everything means.\nThe Health Center also offers a free consultation with a nutritionist. More information about the program can be found on the Health Center Web site, www.indiana.edu/~health/.