Finals

Finals week is upon us. The stress on campus is actually palpable. I need to keep reminding myself to breathe and take little breaks from studying. But it’s going to be ok. I’m not sure if it’s new for Saint Leo, but the fitness center has been offering Yoga classes a few times a week and my friend Daniel and I have been going religiously this semester. The best part is that it’s totally free! I took yoga classes off campus when I was a sophomore, but it was getting really expensive to go to a studio. They were running about $15 per class, but I absolutely loved it.

I’m not sure exactly what it is but after an hour of yoga, all of my stress just melts completely away and I feel as though I’ve just woken up from the best, most restorative nap ever. We joke that it’s “addictive” and are always talking about when we’re going to get our next “yoga fix.” I suppose if you’re going to be “addicted” to something, yoga is really a good choice. There’s also a common misconception that yoga is easy, or wimpy. But let me tell you, Fridays we have an advanced class that completely kicks my butt, and I think I’m in pretty good shape. We concentrate on all of the little support muscles that a lot of other fitness activities generally neglect.

So this week, between studying for finals and working, and actually taking the exams I’m making a conscious effort to throw in a little yoga on my own. I think that a combination of that, sleeping well, and eating well will definitely help me perform my best. One of my favorite things about Saint Leo is that there are so many activities sponsored by the fitness center, and student involvement that are so much fun and beneficial, and generally free or next to free. I never found anything like that at USF, even though their student activities budget seemed limitless.