In an attempt to make fitness more accessible and easier for everyone, Oakland University’s Recreation Center launched a new app for community members. 

“For us, the app is a tool to better connect the students to everything the university recreation and wellbeing (our department) has to offer,” Marie VanBuskirk, Assistant Director of Leadership and Engagement said. “And better connect them to support their health — whether it be physical health, mental health, learning [and/or] professional growth.”

The most useful feature of the app is allowing the community to scan in using the barcode on the app, instead of their student ID or driver’s license. To activate the member ID, all users have to do is log into their net ID. 

The app is also helping the university improve on sustainability, allowing for less physical paperwork to be used. Students have access to a plethora of Rec Center features at their fingertips.

Students can also enable notifications to be more informed on the hours of operations the Rec Center has, and any closures that may arise throughout the year.

Additionally, any parts of the app that are the most useful to the user can be favored for easier access. Virtual or in-person classes can be signed up for on the app, allowing students to skip past the in-person or call ahead sign up process.

Group exercises are expanded on the app as well — giving more information on how each class is held. Whether it be virtual, in-person or a live stream, students will know before signing up for the class.

“It allows us to offer fitness classes, program them in, and offer them virtually,” VanBuskirk said. “So now we offer certain fitness classes exclusively virtually and others in-person, and now we have both options. [We will be] carrying forward because people have different preferences.”

Lockers and memberships are also available to be signed up for through the app. There is a resources button that guides users through mental health resources that can be useful at any point of the year. Another virtual experience is a virtual guided meditation either at 8 a.m. or 12 p.m.

There are also ways to navigate through intramural and club sports. There is contact information for each club, and background information to know before joining. This makes access easier for students, allowing for all the information to gather in one place rather than scattered around many websites through OU.

“We have a lot of leagues and tournaments coming up this semester, a lot of different variety of things for students to do,” Jordan Leslie, Intramural and Club Sports Coordinator said. “All of that can be found on the app. [We] are also doing a new intramural pass.”

The intramural pass is a more individualized way to pay and join all the intramural activities instead of paying for each event. This feature is found in the membership button. The app also provides the clubs with a way to work directly with the rec center to pay dues and link through the portal.

To download the app, visit the app store on your device and look up “OU Rec Well” 

“We’re really excited to have it ready to roll for the fall right now — people are already scanning in with their phones, it seems to be going well,” VanBuskirk said. “Our main goal is to really roll it out, and let students know the benefit of just having everything in a format that’s easy to access right from their phone.”