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Outdoor fitness court at Rotary Park in La Salle to expand exercise opportunities

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1 year ago

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Outdoor fitness court at Rotary Park in La Salle to expand exercise opportunities

A full-body workout now is possible at Rotary Park in La Salle.

The city celebrated the grand opening Wednesday of the outdoor fitness court at Rotary Park, which was made possible through a $50,000 grant from the National Fitness Campaign and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

About 15 people were in attendance, including community leaders, public officials and the Illinois Valley Community College soccer team.

The event began with Economic Development Director Curt Bedei welcoming everyone to the fitness court and thanking Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois for its support in bringing the program to the community and recognizing the need to support healthy lifestyles for all Illinoisans.

“We are proud to be one of the leaders in the growing network of healthy communities in Illinois, selected by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois and the national fitness campaign to join this important initiative,” Bedei said.

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The outdoor fitness court is similar to the one installed at Kiwanis Park in Ottawa.

The court is designed on a 38-foot-by-38-foot pad with seven stations designed to maximize a full-body workout in seven minutes: core, squat, push, lunge, pull, agility and bend, according to the NFC website. Each station is equipped with a QR code that can provide the user with a personal trainer on the free NFC app, which explains how to complete or adapt each exercise.

Bedei said the court is an example of partnership across the public and private sectors to help break down barriers to accessible community programming, living a healthy lifestyle and taking preventive measures that can help reduce the risk of chronic yet preventable diseases.

The fitness court was developed by BCBSIL, the city of La Salle and National Fitness Campaign to expand free access to high-quality workouts and create equitable access to exercise for communities around the state, according to a joint news release.

“Created with people aged 14 and over and with all abilities in mind, the workouts are adaptable for all fitness levels, allowing participants to move at their own pace,” according to the release.

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Katie Cangemi, a senior program officer of community investment at BCBSIL, said in a news release that regular exercise is essential to maintaining personal health and reducing health care costs.

“Blue Cross is committed to promoting better health in our communities,” she said. “And this fitness court makes it easy for anyone at any fitness level to get a good outdoor workout, connect with neighbors and stay healthy.”

La Salle Mayor Jeff Grove said the fitness center is a wonderful addition to the park, as it is one more attraction to bring people out.

“This is another step in the process of growing Rotary Park,” he said. “We are excited. We will have six pickleball courts, hopefully, next spring.”

The event ended with the IVCC soccer players demonstrating how to use the equipment.

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La Salle Mayor Jeff Grove (third from right) cuts a ribbon during a grand opening of a new outdoor fitness court Wednesday, Sept, 18, 2024, at Rotary Park in La Salle. This Fitness Court was developed by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, City of La Salle and National Fitness Campaign to expand free access to workouts and create equitable access to exercise for communities around the state. (Scott Anderson)

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December 11, 2025

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Skip the 10,000 Steps: The One Exercise That Matches a Full Day of Walking, according to a Fitness Coach

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19 hours ago

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December 11, 2025

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Skip the 10,000 Steps: The One Exercise That Matches a Full Day of Walking, according to a Fitness Coach

On Instagram, Zarina Manaenkova advised taking short intervals of squats could deliver the same impact as a full day of walking. “Ten squats instead of 10 thousand steps,” Zarina’s post read, referencing a study that equated ten squats every 45 minutes with 10,000 steps. Manaenkova explained the science behind her claim, stating, “When your muscles actively contract, they produce very important compounds that influence your brain, metabolism, and even your fat-burning processes. Meanwhile, a simple walk does not have this effect. So, if you want to stay young, squat.”

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A deload week over Christmas will help you hit your goals, experts say – here’s how

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December 10, 2025

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A deload week over Christmas will help you hit your goals, experts say – here’s how

Has the idea of taking a break from your fitness routine this Christmas left you with more fear than cheer? Good news. Rest days are a legitimate cornerstone of muscle recovery – a hard-earned chance to kick back and allow the past week’s gains to catch up with you, and never has there been more reason to do so than now, when Christmas is here, and, TBH, we deserve a bloomin’ break.

Besides letting up on any mental stress you may have amassed over the year, extended breaks from training help keep you motivated and, plot twist, there are also physical benefits that come from switching the squat rack for the sofa. They trigger powerful physical and biochemical changes that help increase your muscle mass over time.

Your body needs regular breaks to adapt to sustained training. It’s not the work itself that brings your goals into fruition – like enhanced muscle mass and a deadlift PB – but the time you spend recovering. The training is just the stimulus; during rest periods you experience a cascade of biochemical, neural and hormonal changes that cement those changes in your body as it’s the time for your muscles to repair and grow back stronger.

If you don’t regularly take time to recharge and regenerate, you simply won’t cash in on the results you’ve already paid for. Play the hero long enough and you could even suffer overtraining syndrome (OTS), the result of excessive muscular, skeletal and joint trauma.

This could cause a rise in circulating monocytes – a type of white blood cell linked to immune function – which leads to:

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  • Low energy;
  • Reduced protein synthesis;
  • Poor sleep;
  • Reduced performance;
  • A drop in hormone production

Pretty much everything you need to ensure muscle growth and energy production get shut down.

You keep training because you want to achieve your goals. But by overtraining you force your body into survival and protection mode instead. To some, a week away from the gym might seem counterintuitive. Two weeks might seem like heresy. However, in reality, it could be your key to success. When you take a week or two off from the gym every 12 weeks or so, your muscles, tendons and ligaments repair themselves, and the glycogen energy stores in your muscles and liver are replenished.

Best of all, you won’t lose any of your hard-won gains: studies show it takes four to six weeks of pure inactivity – we’re talking proper bed/boxset rest here – to see severe catabolic breakdown. After one or two weeks off, you won’t suffer a significant drop in strength, power, body mass or size – or witness a noticeable gain in body fat.

And it takes even longer to see any decline in aerobic capacity, stamina or VO2 max (the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during exercise, according to BUPA). A week without loud, crowded gyms and rushing to get to spin class will also do wonders for your mental freshness.

You’ll feel sharper, your enthusiasm to return to your workouts come January will surge, and you will have neutralised all the tiredness and irritability associated with overdoing it. So cut yourself some slack and plan in a week of (COVID-friendly) festive fun. Truth be told, you’ll do a lot worse by overtraining than you ever could by taking time off.

Expert source: Ian Aylward, lead strength and conditioning coach at Perform St George’s Park

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 As Women’s Health UK’s fitness director and a qualified Pilates and yoga instructor, Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism. She secured her first role at Look Magazine, where her obsession with fitness began and she launched the magazine’s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!. Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner’s World and Red.Now, she oversees all fitness content across womenshealthmag.com.uk and the print magazine, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as ‘Fit At Any Age’, where we showcase the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise. She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks – all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how.Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram.  

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