FAQ
Question: Has the Fitness Center considered extending operating hours for either individual work outs or unit PT?
Answer: The Fitness Center executes a full review of operating hours, programs and policies several times each year to determine the best way to meet the widest possible patron needs balanced against available resources. Currently, the Main Fitness Center is open 16 hours per day, including Saturday and Sunday. During Federal holidays, the Main Fitness Center trims operating hours to 8 hours based on lower customer participation rates. The Fitness Annex is also open 16 hours per day, Monday through Friday and is operated above the unit's authorized manning strength, meaning Services earns no additional manpower for operating the Annex, but chooses to do so in an effort to meet patron needs. Each day 1,200 to 1,500 personnel exercise in the Main Fitness Center and Fitness Annex facilities.
We studied different shifts to determine what, if any, personnel might be affected by being closed between 2100 and 0500. We determined swing shift personnel would be unable to use the Fitness Center at the end of their shift; night shift personnel would be unable to use the Fitness Center during their mid-shift meal / break. However, both swing and night shift personnel would be able to use the Fitness Center at other times during the 'duty day'. Based on studying usage times, patron feedback, and available resources, current operating hours afford the largest population groups daily access to Fitness Center programs and equipment.
By definition and practice, unit PT involves group exercises such as stretching, calisthenics, isometric strength training, and floor aerobics; therefore need for cardio training equipment (treadmills, cross trainers) and cabled or free weight strength training equipment is unnecessary. Unit PT is meant to both incent better individual fitness through partnering and mutual encouragement, and serve as a unifying activity for organizations. We launched an initiative in spring 2006 to meet 'after-hour' unit PT needs. To date, not one unit has utilized that program.
Question: Why isn’t there Active Duty only hours at the Fitness Center or Annex for unit PT?
Answer: The Fitness Center serves, on average, more than 1,000 Active Duty, Reserve, Guard, family and retired personnel daily. The facilities are 40 percent undersized relative to supporting such a large and active patron base. Balancing the enormous volume of fitness-minded personnel necessitates affording unrestricted access during all operating hours. We periodically study patron use times and habits to determine when utilization rates are at their highest, and also the population mix during those times. Following such a review, we created a new programs to help meet our primary mission…keeping our Airmen “Fit to Fight”. The program allows military units first opportunity to reserve the Main Fitness Center gymnasium and Fitness Annex aerobic floor for unit PT.
T h i s program affords , on a first come, first served bases, the ability to have dedicated time to participate in approved unit PT exercises. Unit PT, by definition, are group exercises such as group runs, stretching, aerobic floor work, isometric strength training, calisthenics, pushups and sit-ups. Use of cardiovascular equipment and free weight or cabled strength training equipment have not been approved for unit PT because they do not afford an opportunity for unit members to exercise, as a group, in close proximity to one another; encouraging one another, and building espirit de corps. Unit PT’s primary focus is on blending team building with the healthful benefits of exercise. Our primary goal is to afford access to the broadest customer base, for the most hours possible each day.
Question: Why doesn't the base Fitness Center provide towels?
Answer: There are three reasons why the Fitness Center doesn't provide towel service:
1) Fiscal stewardship requires reviewing program necessities andthose things that enhance programs. While towel services would be a nice enhancement, the cost to provide the service would exceed $180K annually. Present budgetary constraints cannot support this type of program. Our scarce budgetary dollars are applied to programs directed at maintaining the overall health and fitness of Team McChord members. We target maintaining and recapitalizing state-of-the-art fitness equipment, providing free aerobics courses, certifying our staff as personal fitness specialists/trainers, and supporting the Air Force "Fit to Fight" program initiative.
2) Fitness staffing levels are determined based on required program elements. Towel programs do not earn additional manpower support, as such, inclusion of the program would be at the expense of other primary responsibilities. McChord's fitness program is comprised of two independent centers and several outdoor ball fields requiring intensive preventative maintenance, program oversight, planning, and execution. For example, McChord's Fitness Annex/HAWC receives no additional manning to maintain it's 80 operating hours per week. Our focus on meeting Team McChord's fitness levels is critical, therefore, despite earning no manpower to operate the Annex, we developed a workable staffing solution to fully operate that facility during the standard work week.
3) Our staff is professionally certified to provide one-on-one fitness instruction. Whether a patron simply needs to know how to operate a particular piece of cardiovascular or strength training equipment, or seeks individualized fitness "prescriptions" to meet fitness goals, the professional fitness center staff is available to help. It is more prudent to have staff members available to serve patrons over focusing their attention on an enhancement program with no direct benefit to the overall fitness and health of Team McChord. Experience demonstrates that provision of towel services have a detrimental effect on fitness staff morale and effectiveness, because they are unable to apply the skills with which they are equipped in supporting, developing, monitoring, and maintaining fitness program and goals for patrons.
Question: Why is the Men's sauna in the Main Fitness Center closed?
Answer: Following the sauna fire in the ladies locker room this past fall, we had the men's sauna inspected. The sauna requires some minor repairs to be fully and safely operable. While scoping the project to rebuild/restore the ladies locker room, we executed a similar design for the men's locker room. The renovation to the ladies locker room included purchase and installation of new lockers, flooring, tile work; removal of the sauna and addition of shower stalls to that area, and upgraded bathroom stalls, sinks, flooring, and wall tiles. The planned men's locker room renovation would be similarly executed, and would seek to convert the open shower bay(s) into single user stalls for privacy. We polled fitness patrons throughout the fall and found that the majority preferred the locker room upgrade to the sauna. The men's locker room project is ready to execute this Fiscal Year, and once funding becomes available, that work will commence.
We do have a sauna, steam bath, and whirlpool available to all patrons in the Fitness Annex. Those facilities will remain available over the short and long term. We have no plans to close or remove those at this time. We understand it was a great convenience to have a male only sauna in the locker room, however, in an effort to also be fair to our female patrons, more of whom use the sauna than their male counterparts, we focus on keeping the Annex sauna available to all.