Exercise is emphasis of MC community throughout October; kick-off planned Oct. 9

Oct. 3, 2019

Maryville College will kick off Exercise is Medicine ® On Campus (EIM-OC) Awareness Month with a rally on Wed., Oct. 9, 2019 at noon.

Activities at the EIM-OC rally, held in Humphreys Court (courtyard between Fayerweather Hall and Anderson Hall), will include music and lawn games leading up to a presidential proclamation and brief comments by representatives from various MC entities, including exercise science faculty, Mountain Challenge, the MC Student Health Center, and Campus Wellness to promote the benefits of exercise and highlight other upcoming EIM-OC events in October. The event will be the first of four October Yard Games Play Days/Campus Recess opportunities and will conclude with a frozen T-shirt race, line dancing and more lawn games.

“The goal of Exercise is Medicine® on Campus is to make movement a part of the daily campus culture at MC,” explained Dr. Jeremy Steeves, assistant professor of exercise science. “Due to the many known health benefits of regular physical activity, including, but not limited to reduced risk of many chronic diseases, stress reduction, improved academic achievement, increased socialization and improved sleep, we have prioritized providing more opportunities for and discussion about the importance of getting your daily dose of Exercise is Medicine. Because many of the benefits of exercise are amplified when done outdoors, EIM-OC and the Fit. Green. Happy ® initiative try to provide many opportunities to pursue fun and enjoyable activities outside at MC.”

This year marks the third consecutive year the College has emphasized exercise during the month of October as part of the EIM-OC initiative. Backed by the American College of Sports Medicine, the global initiative “encourages faculty, staff and students to work together to improve the health and well-being of the campus community by making movement a part of the daily campus culture, assessing physical activity at every student health visit, providing students with the tools necessary to strengthen healthy physical activity habits that can last a lifetime, and connecting university health care providers with university health fitness specialists to provide a referral system for exercise prescription,” according to the organization’s website.

In 2017, the College celebrated its registration as an EIM-OC school. Within six months, it had earned gold-level status within the program – at the time it was one of only 43 schools worldwide and one of only three schools in Tennessee to do so.

During the month of October, the campus community will be encouraged to participate in the #MCScotsMove campaign on Instagram, the Pumpkin Run 5K Costume Race & Fun Run and weekly Yard Games Play Days/Campus Recess events, in addition to the semester-long opportunities that are offered on campus, such as weekly yoga (Thursdays at 7 a.m.) and line dancing (Tuesdays at 8 p.m.) classes offered in the Alumni Gym. For more information, visit maryvillecollege.edu/mcscotsmove.

Mountain Challenge, the outdoor adventure and team-building corporation operating on the Maryville College campus, is offering fitness opportunities through its weekly on-campus “Camp 4” program (Wednesdays from 3:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. at Crawford House) and weekend off-campus trips to hike, spelunk and rock climb.

For more information about the Exercise is Medicine® on Campus initiative at MC, visit the website.

Pumpkin Run open to the public

Sponsored by Maryville College, EIM-OC at MC and the Fit. Green. Happy. ® initiative, the third annual Pumpkin Run 5K Costume Race & Fun Run through the Maryville College Woods and around campus will be held at 10 a.m., Sat., Oct. 26 and is open to the public.

Runners of all ages and abilities are encouraged to dress up in Halloween-themed gear for this 5K trail race. Children of all ages are welcome, and there will be a stroller-friendly 2-mile course that does not go through the Maryville College Woods for walkers with little ones or anyone who prefers a shorter course option.

The race starts and ends at Crawford House on the Maryville College campus. Check-in begins at 9 a.m., and post-race festivities will include pumpkin painting, water and snacks, music, corn hole and the opportunity to try climbing Mountain Challenge’s Alpine Tower. Prizes will be awarded for best costumes and fastest overall male and female.

Pre-race registration is $25 through Oct. 26, and day-of-race registration will be $25. Registration is $10 for Maryville College students and youth (ages 5-17). Registration includes a T-shirt, water and snacks on site, and the race itself, which will be stopwatch timed. Participants registered by Oct. 12 are guaranteed a T-shirt by race day, and participants who register after Oct. 12 will receive a shirt while supplies last.

Race and registration details are posted online.

Maryville College featured in EIM-OC action guide

Maryville College is featured in the latest version of the Exercise is Medicine® on Campus action guide, which provides information to help colleges and universities that are interested in starting their own EIM-OC program.

Maryville College is among five profiles of colleges and universities who have successfully brought EIM to their own campuses and have earned recognition for their efforts. The profile of Maryville College highlights the College’s efforts to establish EIM as a new and sustainable initiative at MC.

The other colleges profiled in the guide include Chatham University in Pittsburgh, Pa.; Glendale Community College in Tempe, Ariz.; Penn State University in University Park, Pa.; and University of Zaragoza in Zaragoza, Spain.

Maryville College is a nationally-ranked institution of higher learning and one of America’s oldest colleges. For more than 200 years we’ve educated students to be giving citizens and gifted leaders, to study everything, so that they are prepared for anything — to address any problem, engage with any audience and launch successful careers right away. Located in Maryville, Tennessee, between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the city of Knoxville, Maryville College offers nearly 1,200  students from around the world both the beauty of a rural setting and the advantages of an urban center, as well as more than 60 majors, seven pre-professional programs and career preparation from their first day on campus to their last. Today, our 10,000 alumni are living life strong of mind and brave of heart and are prepared, in the words of our Presbyterian founder, to “do good on the largest possible scale.”