What’s New at NU: Group exercise classes are more than just a sweat

Claire Coffey, Assistant Audio Editor

April 8, 2026

The Daily Northwestern · What’s New at NU: Group exercise classes are more than just a sweat

From barbells to Latin Dancing, students, faculty and Evanston residents have found more than a workout through Northwestern Recreation’s group fitness classes.

PAUL TANG: Where are my nerds who love space and aeronautics? You are the spaceship! You are Artemis! Get up!

CLAIRE COFFEY: That was instructor Paul Tang, who teaches BODYPUMP, an energetic, choreographed barbell workout class. It is one of the 15 group exercise classes offered at Henry Crown Sports Pavilion. The classes, free for students and open to community members, are sprinkled throughout every week, each quarter. But what keeps attendees coming back?

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CLAIRE COFFEY: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Claire Coffey. This is What’s New at NU, a podcast about everything from mainstage Northwestern issues and events to those hidden in the nooks and crannies of campus.

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RACHEL STILES: We go a lot.

MAGGIE UMANETZ-LERTPRASOPSAK: We go together every week. We’ve been going since last year.

RACHEL STILES: Yeah, two or three times a week together. We’ve done spin classes. We did kickboxing last year.

CLAIRE COFFEY: Second-year Bienen master’s students Maggie Umanetz-Lertprasopsak and Rachel Stiles said NU’s group exercise classes have been a good way to shake up their studies.

RACHEL STILES: It gets us out of the practice room, out of studying. And it’s really nice, and refreshing and just straight up fun.

MAGGIE UMANETZ-LERTPRASOPSAK: Our degrees force us to focus on where we are lacking and force us to improve them as soon as possible. And so, I think for us, it’s helpful to find spaces where we can just let ourselves be bad and enjoy it.

CLAIRE COFFEY: This week, they experimented with NU’s Latin Dance class, learning salsa, cha-cha-cha and bachata.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: Communication Prof. Vidya Krull is a regular BODYPUMP attendee. Because her office is in the same building, she said it makes “perfect sense” to come downstairs and take advantage of the group exercise classes.

VIDYA KRULL: The fact that it’s rhythmic, it kind of helps me get motivated. I like the fact that you’re doing weight training with it. As I grow older, I feel the need to do sort of weight-bearing exercises. It helps build my muscle tone.

CLAIRE COFFEY: Evanston resident Daniela Nelke uses her NU Recreation membership to swim and attend spin classes at Henry Crown. Working out up to six times a week, she said BODYPUMP classes have become a part of her regular schedule.

DANIELA NELKE: So, I started in September, and I was so sore for the first two to three times I did it, that I thought something is actually really working here. And I’ve built incredible amount of muscles that I didn’t even know I have.

CLAIRE COFFEY: The workouts for each BODYPUMP session are pre-choreographed, Tang said, giving him leeway to tailor his classes to attendees’ needs.

PAUL TANG: I will read the energy of the room and then just kind of formulate a game plan in my head. So if the room is very quiet at first, playing some background music beforehand will kind of help start setting that spark.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: Hatha yoga instructor Katherine Graham designs each yoga session to strengthen a specific part of the body. However, she said her classes also provide attendees with something deeper.

KATHERINE GRAHAM: I’ve really noticed people who come to class, and keep coming, and they build this community with each other, and they are just really respectful and amazing people.

CLAIRE COFFEY: While primarily a runner, Medill first-year Zoilo Perez said he has taken advantage of NU’s yoga and pilates classes. While the diverse range of exercises help him avoid overworking any muscles, Perez said the sessions have also proven to be calming.

ZOILO PEREZ: It’s one of these resources that can help a student from an emotional perspective all the way to a physical perspective. I think this is one of the resources where it can help them think about something else. It can help stay grounded, remain calm and bring some positivity into their life.

And I think that’s what a lot of students and people from the community need, you know, just a bit of a destresser, and yoga is one of the best ways to do it.

KATHERINE GRAHAM: Breathe in for om.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Claire Coffey. Thanks for listening to another episode of What’s New at NU. This episode was reported and produced by Claire Coffey.

The audio editor is Wallis Rogin. The multimedia managing editors are Ruby Dowling, Izzie Jacob and Matt Wasilewski. The editor in chief is Anavi Prakash.

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