For Melissa Norrbom, doctoral student of educational leadership and assistant director of Student Life and Development at CSULB, prioritizing fitness results in improved productivity and success.

“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve seen how much your health affects the other parts of your life—your relationships, your sleep, your academics, your work,” she said. “The more I maintain a healthy lifestyle, the more productive I am in school and work. When I’m done working out, my head is cleared and I’m ready to complete my work.”

Melissa joined the SRWC in June 2016 and regularly attends the flow yoga class for its dual benefits of exercising physical strength and body relaxation. She enjoys group fitness classes for the comradery, accountability and excitement they bring to working out.

“There’s so many resources at the SRWC to be engaged with—from yoga, rock climbing and swimming—you can find what you like,” she said. “You need to look forward to it, or else it’ll be a drag. If you’re excited about it, it becomes part of your lifestyle.”

Melissa has also used the Bod Pod, a comprehensive assessment of lean body mass and fat mass numbers. She initially did it a bit under two years ago, and recently checked on her progress two weeks ago.

“Weight is not a good milestone marker since everyone’s body is different, but body composition is important,” she said. “I appreciated that the bod pod gave me ‘suggested calories per day consumption’ and a personal trainer to discuss my goals. I was very pleased to see that I had lost my desired percentage of body fat and gained muscle as well!”

For more information on the bod pod, visit www.asirecreation.org/fitness/exercise-testing.