Sports

If anyone is curious about study space on campus, check out my post from December 7th (during the peak of finals last semester). Some other key places to study are the Marvin Center, Duques Hall, and Academic Center. For off campus ideas, I like the other Starbucks locations around Foggy Bottom and beyond. There's also a good place called Burbon Coffee on L Street that is really good--two of my good friends rave about their coffee and they have free wireless internet! I'm sure some other bloggers have some great ideas about great places to study on and off campus.

And now to the subject of my post today: sports.

GW may not have a football team, but we are definitely an active student body. Our Division 1 sports, from squash to basketball, attract fans and bring school spirit to campus. The home basketball games are so much fun to go to, and as a member of the Colonial Army--GW's student fan group--you get to sit in the special student section, as well as some added perks like a t-shirt and backpack. You can't get a bigger sense of GW pride than standing in a sea of buff and blue cheering the basketball team to victory.

Beyond our D1 sports, we offer a variety of club sports, ranging from lacrosse to basketball to ice hockey. I play on the women's club soccer team and some of my best friends are the girls on the team. Not only is it a great way to make friends, but it's also a great way to make lasting connections. The captain of the team my freshman year got a job after graduation at a DC think-tank where I later interned, thanks to staying in touch with her. We also get to travel a fair amount during our fall and spring seasons, so it's a great way to visit other college campuses. We've gone as far as Richmond and are possibly visiting Boston later this spring. We usually play area teams like Georgetown, University of Maryland, and American University, but we've also played Navy, Yale, and Penn State. While our team is competitive and we have tryouts, the commitment is not too rigorous that it takes over all your time. We usually have 1 to 2 practices a week and games one day on the weekend in the fall, and less frequently in the spring. Some club teams are more competitive, like crew, and some are less so. For more information about club sports, check out this link: http://gwired.gwu.edu/gwellness/clubsports/availableclubsportscopy/.

Intramural sports are also very popular at GW. We have basketball, soccer, arena football, volleyball, flag football, dodgeball, and even floor hockey. If you would like to see a full list, you can visit the Lerner Health and Wellness Center website at http://gwired.gwu.edu/gwellness/intramuralsports. You can play co-rec, which are co-ed teams, or in the women's or men's leagues. This spring GW is having its own World Cup where teams represent countries and get t-shirts.

Most of these sports are played at Lerner Health and Wellness (the gym on Foggy Bottom), but if you aren't interested in competitive sports, you can work out at "HelWel" as we call the gym for short. The gym, which has no membership fee for students, has a floor of cardio, with tons of tredmills, elliptical machines, and bikes. There is also a free weight room, as well as weight machines on the first floor. We have nice locker rooms, and you can rent a lock or any other equipment you need downstairs. We also have racquetball courts, squash courts, and two floors of basketball courts. There is walking track, as well as additional cardio machines on the upper floors.  When you're done with your workout, you can head to Campus Fresh to pick up some healthy eats. Smoothies, wraps, burritos, and frozen yogurt make up the menu and you can use your GWorld card, of course.

There is also a multipurpose room where students can take aerobics classes, like zumba, hot cardio dance, or yoga. These classes are free at the beginning of the semesters and then you can buy a semester long pass or pay per class to continue taking them. If you are looking for a more intense work out, you can go to extreme training classes for free that are offered three times a week. If you want to work out one on one, you can pay to have a personal trainer. You can also even take exercise activity classes for credit. These one credit courses range from Japanese sword fighting to racquetball to pilates. You get a grade for these classes that counts towards your GPA but the grade does not count towards your credit requirements for graduation. I'm taking squash and weight training this semester and loving it.

Whatever your preference, you can find a way to work out, stay fit, and have fun with sports at GW!

--Abby