Forego weight-lifting; volunteer
The Traveler Editorial Board
Issue date: 1/23/09 Section: Opinion
If most UA students failed to make - or keep - the common New Year's resolution to exercise more frequently, it's probably safe to say many of them will soon renew their commitment to healthy eating and regular exercise - and this time, with a strong motivation. Spring Break is less than two months away, and at least a few of those students who are planning trips to sunny destinations like Panama City or Cancun anticipate spending their every spare minute in a swimsuit - and, of course, will want to look fit when they do.
Maybe it's too soon to begin heralding Spring Break as a rejuvenating oasis in the middle of the winter grind - but it's certainly not too soon to begin planning for it. Recognizing that some students might have already begun to book flights and schedule surfing lessons, we offer our Spring Break recommendation now: students should consider joining those of their peers who will use their Spring Breaks to travel to needy areas in the region through Alternative Spring Break.
Organized through the Volunteer Action Center of the Center for Leadership and Community Engagement, Alternative Spring Break is a service-learning experience that "allows participants to learn from the people and organizations they encounter, gain a better understanding of the world and become responsible citizens," according to the CLCE Web site.
Research confirms the benefits of volunteerism. According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, volunteering leads to greater life satisfaction and lower rates of depression. Volunteering also offers professional benefits. As of 2005, among 200 leading businesses in the U.K., 73 percent of employers would recruit a candidate with volunteering experience over one without, and 94 percent of employees who volunteered to learn new skills benefited either by earning their first job, improving their salary or being promoted, according to the Web site of the World Volunteer Web, a part of United Nations Volunteers program.
To be fair, not all study of volunteerism reports positive findings. A group of Australian researchers found the broader the variety of groups someone was involved in, the worse their physical health. In other words, volunteering can be a source of stress like anything else.
But that is actually just one more reason Alternative Spring Break is such a positive idea; it offers all the benefits of volunteering without the stress of adding volunteer efforts to an already overstuffed schedule.
You might not come back tan, but then again, you won't have to fret about how you'll look in your swimsuit.
Maybe it's too soon to begin heralding Spring Break as a rejuvenating oasis in the middle of the winter grind - but it's certainly not too soon to begin planning for it. Recognizing that some students might have already begun to book flights and schedule surfing lessons, we offer our Spring Break recommendation now: students should consider joining those of their peers who will use their Spring Breaks to travel to needy areas in the region through Alternative Spring Break.
Organized through the Volunteer Action Center of the Center for Leadership and Community Engagement, Alternative Spring Break is a service-learning experience that "allows participants to learn from the people and organizations they encounter, gain a better understanding of the world and become responsible citizens," according to the CLCE Web site.
Research confirms the benefits of volunteerism. According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, volunteering leads to greater life satisfaction and lower rates of depression. Volunteering also offers professional benefits. As of 2005, among 200 leading businesses in the U.K., 73 percent of employers would recruit a candidate with volunteering experience over one without, and 94 percent of employees who volunteered to learn new skills benefited either by earning their first job, improving their salary or being promoted, according to the Web site of the World Volunteer Web, a part of United Nations Volunteers program.
To be fair, not all study of volunteerism reports positive findings. A group of Australian researchers found the broader the variety of groups someone was involved in, the worse their physical health. In other words, volunteering can be a source of stress like anything else.
But that is actually just one more reason Alternative Spring Break is such a positive idea; it offers all the benefits of volunteering without the stress of adding volunteer efforts to an already overstuffed schedule.
You might not come back tan, but then again, you won't have to fret about how you'll look in your swimsuit.
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