BOGA workouts take place at the Aebersold Student Recreation Center (ARC) pool every Tuesday from 4-5 p.m. Mary Zipfel, health and physical education major, and Sammy Dudley, parks and recreation management major tag-team the lessons. Both students are sophomores and have minors in aquatics.
BOGA is one the many fitness classes offered at the ARC, along with Yoga, RockSpin, Pilates and many more options for students, as well as members of the ARC.
The exercise is referred to as “BOGA” because of the inflated mat that floats in the water while exercising. There are different types of workouts done on these mats, primarily yoga and High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts. Currently, Zipfel and Dudley are only offering HIIT BOGA classes.
Many people are intimidated by HIIT workouts, especially in the water, but Zipfel and Dudley have put a large emphasis on the class being for everyone, no matter skill level.
“It’s always really fun . . . everyone’s falling off, everyone’s having a good time,” Dudley said. “Everyone’s laughing, music’s going. It’s nice to be able to say that it’s a safe environment.”
They previously had jobs as lifeguards at the ARC and were given the opportunity to teach a class, and they chose BOGA. The choice lined up with their interests and wanting to get more experience for their minor in aquatics.
Zipfel, who is going into a health and physical education career, was looking forward to having the opportunity to teach. The whole experience has been new, and, with her being a former competitive swimmer, recreational swimming and workouts that aren’t endurance training have led her into a whole new atmosphere.
With her previous experience, she wasn’t sure where to even begin. To amend that, during their time as lifeguards at the ARC, they were able to take advice from regular swimmers they interacted with.
“We took some advice from the elderly that swim at the ARC,” Zipfel said. “We were like, how does this even work? And they were like ‘You guys put it in and then you teach.'”
The advice has paid off, as the classes sell out within minutes every Tuesday. Participants often line up for tickets an hour before the class starts to ensure they get a spot. Zipfel mentions that they have regular participants that keep coming back every week.
Dudley would like to implement BOGA Yoga in the future. They both encourage students to give their BOGA classes a try, it may become something you keep coming back for!
