The Exercise Science Club held its first event of the year, a lifting competition in the Athletic and Fitness Center (AFC). The competition consisted of men’s and women’s weight classes, competing in a back squat, bench press and deadlift competition.
Jessica Brant ‘24, the club’s president, put the event together and has been planning it since the 2022-2023 school year. Student-athletes from various sports teams participated, and the Head Director of the Exercise Science Club Dr. Jason Edsall judged participants on their form and setup.
“I really respect [Dr. Edsall’s] personality because he is not afraid to tell people ‘no,’ so it was very important to have him at the competition,” Brant said. “He’s very thorough and knowledgeable so I like learning from him.”
“I really enjoyed being able to compete,” Syba Ismail ‘25 said. “Everyone was really supportive, and it was just a great environment for a competition.”
Brant worked hard with students, staff and coaches to organize the first event of the year for the club.
“Just the sense of community that you have … doing sports … I feel like it is so important,” Brant said. “Especially with [the COVID–19 pandemic] we have kind of lost our sense of community so it was super cool to have everyone be there and cheer after everyone finished. Everyone was so supportive.”
Another goal for the event was to raise money for ice baths for student-athletes so a $5 entry fee was suggested but not enforced. Encouraging students to register for the event became an issue, and in the end, she was pleased with the overall turnout.
“We actually had more girls register than guys for the most part,” Brant said. “That’s the part I was super pumped about.”
Overcoming numerous obstacles up until the date of the competition, Brant was proud of the work she put into this event and is excited to continue the annual event for years to come.
“I’ve been weightlifting since I was 12 so it was really cool to have my first competition be one that I ran,” Brant said. “My mission is to create that sense of community but also have a better environment for education.”
Brant hopes to rework and redesign the Exercise Science Club by incorporating an academic element into its activities. Taking advantage of its recent influx of student awareness, the club will be hosting seminars, symposiums and lectures starting in November.
The Pie the Professor in the Face event will be taking place in November, as well as the Mid Atlantic Chapter Annual American College of Sports Medicine Meeting, which happened earlier in the month. Personal Trainer at Union Fitness, Charles Jasper [CJ] is involved in the Exercise Science Club and expects to hold a monthly lecture in the Principles of Strength and Conditioning class at Chatham. Looking ahead into spring, the club organizes a Socks for Tots wiffle ball game and the World Down Syndrome Day fashion show.
“After seeing the lifting competition, we know that students need help with their form, so we’re planning on having these lifting seminars,” Brant said. “We definitely are trying to spread awareness, knowledge and education to the school about weightlifting and CJ’s going to be a big part of that.”
To learn more, follow the Exercise Science Club on Instagram at @cuexsciclub.
