YMCA of Frederick County

Exercise Helps the Survival Rate of Cancer Patients

admin — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:29:20 +0000

According to a recent article written by by Drs. Kay Judge and Maxine Barish-Wreden, staying fit can not only reduce your risk of cancer, but if you are a cancer survivor, exercise can increase your likelihood of surviving. In a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, researchers looked at the impact of physical activity on survival in a group of over 2,000 adults who had been diagnosed with invasive but non-metastatic colon cancer. Patients completed questionnaires to assess lifestyle information at baseline, and then they were followed for up to 16 years.

Compared to the couch potatoes, patients who engaged in at least 150 minutes or more of brisk walking each week, reduced their mortality by a whopping 42 percent. And as expected, sitting was found to be deadly – people who sat more than six hours per day compared with those who sat for fewer than three hours per day had an almost 30 percent increase in mortality. The benefits of exercise also apply to breast cancer. In a 2008 study, researchers found that women who increased their physical activity reduced their risk of death by 45 percent. Additional studies show reduced mortality rate for prostate and other cancers as well.

Why does exercise improve survival from cancer? One theory is that it reduces stress and inflammation, both of which are known to drive cancer cell growth. But many doctors, including oncologists, don’t talk to their patients about exercise. This is unfortunate, because along with increasing your chances of survival, exercise helps reduce the side effects from the cancer itself, as well as side effects from cancer treatment.

The best thing you can do for your health is to get moving. Marsha Remsburg, personal training and group exercise leader for the Y, is also a certified Cancer Exercise Specialist. Marsha offers one-on-one training to help cancer patients regain their strength, endurance and flexibility. For more information, please contact Marsha Remsburg at 301-663-5131 ext. 1266 or e-mail mremsburg@frederickymca.org.

Original article written by Drs. Kay Judge and Maxine Barish-Wreden, medical directors of Sutter Downtown Integrative Medicine program
Source: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/05/02/5386858/integrative-medicine-exercise.html

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Summer Memberships on Sale Now

admin — Thu, 02 May 2013 18:00:39 +0000

It’s that time of year and we are excited to announce that summer memberships are back! Start your journey to a healthier you with our 3-month summer membership special. Joining is easy and for a limited time, there are NO initiation fees to pay or contracts to sign. Work out the same day you join – it’s that simple. Each membership will include a FREE GIFT so sign up today!*

Download the flyers for more information on our summer memberships including types of memberships and prices.

Main Y Summer Membership flyer
Green Valley Summer Membership Flyer

*No initiation fee applies to summer memberships only. Free gift while supplies last.

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Summer Aquatics Program in Middletown

admin — Wed, 01 May 2013 20:48:14 +0000

The Y is pleased to announce that we will be returning to Middletown High School for the summer. We will be offering adult lap, adult water exercise classes and youth swim classes. For more information on our summer aquatics program in Middletown, please contact Gail Lewis at 301-663-5131, ext. 1273 or email glewis@frederickymca.org. You can also download the Middletown summer aquatics program flyer here.

Adult Lap Swim

Adult lap lanes will be available for those ages 16 years and older. Registration not required. Drop-in fee will be collected on site. Lanes open Monday – Thursday from 8:00 – 11:00 am. (Please note that the pool will be closed on Thursday, July 4th but will open on Friday, July 5th for that week only.)
Member Rate: $3
Non-Member Rate: $5

Water Exercise

Registration not required. Drop-in fee will be collected on site. All fitness levels welcome, but you must be comfortable in deep water. Meets Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:00 – 9:00 am.
Member Rate: $6
Non-Member Rate: $8

Youth Swim Lessons

Swim lessons are being offered to children ages 3-12. Swim evaluation for those beyond the beginner level will be held at Middletown High School on May 15th from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. Evaluations may also be arranged at the Main Y by calling Gail Lewis at 301-663-5131, ext. 1273.

Classes are offered in sessions of two consecutive weeks. Each class is 30 minutes in length and will meet daily Monday – Thursday. All classes (Pike, Eel, Polliwog and Guppy) will run simultaneously in different areas of the pool but will meet at the same time daily. Class times are Monday 9:00 am, Tuesday 9:30 am, Wednesday 10:00 am and Thursday 10:30 am.

Session 1: June 24 – July 5
Session 2: July 8 – July 18
Session 3: July 22 – August 1

Classes Offered:
Pike Ages 3-5 Beginner
Eel Ages 3-5 Advanced Beginner
Polliwog Ages 6-12 Beginner
Guppy Ages 6-12 Advanced Beginner

Member Rate: $48
G.V. Branch Rate : $71
Non-Member Rate: $103

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Keeping Kids’ Minds and Bodies Active

admin — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:41:12 +0000

Busy schedules and life’s daily demands can make it difficult for parents to ensure that their children are practicing healthy habits on a regular basis. According to the YMCA’s Family Health Snapshot – a survey of parents that gauges their children’s activity levels during the school year – less than 20 percent of the nation’s children get 60 minutes of physical activity, read books for fun, and eat at least eight fruits and vegetables every day.

On Saturday, May 18, the YMCA of Frederick County is celebrating YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day® with a free community event to get more families moving, learning and living healthier. Healthy Kids Day, a national initiative of the Y, takes place at 1,900 Ys and features fun, educational activities such as arts & crafts, games for children of all ages, entertainment, YMCA program demonstrations, door prizes, and more. This year, Healthy Kids Day will once again feature live entertainment by Slim Harrison and his “Sunnyland Band”. For over 25 years, Slim Harrison has entertained audiences around the country and the world by sharing America’s multi-ethnic heritage of traditional folk music, stories, and dances.

At YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day, we are focusing on health and education to ensure fewer children are at an increased risk for childhood obesity and more children succeed in school. But it’s not just a single day of fun, active play and learning – it’s a kick off to helping parents get a jump on creating a healthier summer. During summer, many children lose exposure to out-of-school activities that keep their minds and bodies active, leaving them at risk of falling behind academically and gaining weight twice as fast as they would during the school year. Following are five ideas for activities families can begin doing now and throughout summer to stay healthy.

Begin planning now for summer activities. Check with the Y or the local parks and recreation for opportunities with summer camp, swimming, arts and crafts, or sports.
Start a book series and read together each night as a family. Reading at night keeps the brain buzzing and young minds active!
Drink water. Have fun with flavor, give it some pizzazz with a slice of lemon, lime, orange, or even cucumber.
Take a walking staycation. Map out a new neighborhood or hiking trail in your area and get your family to explore on foot. It’s a great way to make Saturday a healthy, active start to the weekend.
Next time you get “I’m bored!” give your kids a jump rope! It’s an awesome way to have fun and keep moving. They can go solo, or get others in on the fun.
Start a “Words I Want to Know” notebook for the entire family. When there is an unfamiliar word, write it down, look it up, and add it to the family’s vocabulary. You can even keep track of these on the refrigerator.

We’re looking forward to seeing everyone at this year’s Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, May 18th from 10am-2pm. For more information on Healthy Kids Day, visit our events page or download the Healthy Kids Day flyer here.

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Kids Club students record radio ad

admin — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:29:50 +0000

We found a few talented kids in our Kids Club program to lend their voices to this month’s radio campaign. Listen out for them on Key 103 and WFRE and look for the accompanying TV commercial to air on Comcast in early May! Why we love the Y – 60 second radio ad Why we ... Read More »Read More

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Make Family Time a Priority

admin — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 21:11:12 +0000

Families are better together. For many of today’s activity-focused families, it may come as a surprise that spending regular quality time together as a family is one of the best ways to improve your family’s health and well-being. In today’s world, too many families are go, go, go all of the time resulting in too little time spent together. One of the greatest gifts that you can give to your family is the time that you all spend together. Try to find an hour a day when your entire family has an opportunity to connect and share. For some families this might involve some slowing down and perhaps make some difficult choices about what structured activities you might need to reconsider. Try making these habits a part of your family’s approach to healthy living and watch the relationships in your home blossom and grow.

Families come together at the Frederick Y

It’s the place to nurture your own well-being while the kids learn to swim.
It’s the place to relax in the sauna while the kids master gymnastics.
It’s the place to train for a marathon while the kids make new friends.
It’s the place to take a class for yourself while the kids play sports.
It’s the place that supports your goals while the kids thrive and learn new skills.
It’s the place where there’s a little something for everyone and a lot for our community.

Join our family and you could win an iPad Mini!

Spring is officially here and we want to invite you to join the Y family! We’re excited for spring and so we’re offering a FREE gift to all our new members who sign up in April. In addition, everyone who signs up for a membership will be entered into a drawing to win a new iPad Mini! Looking for summer camps for the kids? We’ve got that covered too! Register for camp in April and each child you register will get a FREE camp bag.*

There’s something for everyone in the family at the Frederick Y. Stop in for a tour today.

Want more tips on how to make family time a priority in your home? Download the quick start tip sheet.

*New members only. Free gift and camp bags available while supplies last. Drawing for iPad Mini will be on May 15, 2013. Winner will be notified by phone or email.

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Green Valley Renovations Complete

admin — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 23:17:02 +0000

We are excited to announce that we have finished the Green Valley Branch renovations! For the last few months, we have been busy working on the initial states of moving the Fitness Center portion of our branch to a new double bay within the same store front. It now allows us to have all our bays together and to provide easier access to all of our services that include childcare, fitness center, babysitting and programs. The Fitness center has been redesigned with new flooring, paint, TVs and several pieces of new equipment. The expanded babysitting room will now provide easy access for drop off, so our members can take one of the many new classes we are offering. The improved studio will now allow us to expand with classes such as yoga and pilates.

We are so excited – everything looks great and we can’t wait to show it off! Come by soon, take a tour and check out all the good things that are happening at the Green Valley YMCA. Contact our membership desk at 301-607-6900 for more information.

Want to see more pictures of the newly renovated Green Valley YMCA? Click here to view the album on our facebook page.

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Member Get A Member

admin — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:32:32 +0000

Experiencing the Y with a friend doubles the FUN and motivates you both to achieve a healthier lifestyle. That’s why we’ve started our “Member-Get-A-Member” referral program.

Refer a friend and when they join* the YMCA of Frederick County, you’ll receive 25 Y Bucks! Y Bucks are credits that can be used towards program fees, membership dues or Y merchandise. There’s no limit, so the more friends who join, the more Y Bucks you get – pick up or download a referral form today!

*New member must sign up for a qualifying adult or family membership and not have been a member within the past 30 days.

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Y Celebrates Basketball

admin — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:58:46 +0000

Dribble. Pass. Dunk. Did you know that basketball was invented at the Y? It’s true. In 1891, Dr. James Naismith, a physical education instructor at the YMCA School for Training in Springfield, Massachusetts, was assigned the task of creating an indoor game that a restless group of students could play during the cold winter months. At the time, indoor exercise programs were mostly restricted to the boring routine of drills and calisthenics. Naismith wanted a game that was fun, physically-demanding, emphasized skill over strength, and could be played in a limited space, and so he invented the game we all know today as basketball.

We’re celebrating basketball and March Mayhem this month with lots of fun activities, plus we’re passing our FREE basketballs to new members in the month of March.* Y Members can sign up for our ActivTrax Challenge, which has a fun basketball twist in March — PLUS look for a bracket challenge at the Y March 18-March 20th. Details to follow.

Today, we invite you to the YMCA of Frederick County for a friendly game of basketball. Ask about our noon and evening pick-up games, open gym times, or our year-round basketball leagues for youth. It’s just one more thing for you and your family at the Y!

*New members only. One basketball per household. While supplies last.

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2013 Campaign for Kids Kicks Off

admin — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 15:43:52 +0000

The YMCA of Frederick County is proud to announce that we kicked off our annual community support campaign on Wednesday, February 26th at Pump It Up in Frederick. Y staff, board members and families gathered together to celebrate the beginning of our 2013 Campaign for Kids — our annual fundraising effort to help residents of Frederick County learn, grow and thrive. At the YMCA of Frederick County, one of our most important goals has always been to enrich the lives of kids in our community. We believe that every child deserves a safe place to play, learn, and grow. We started the Campaign for Kids to provide financial assistance to those families who cannot afford our services, because we are committed to making quality programs and facilities available to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay. This year, the YMCA of Frederick County hopes to raise $115,000. Funds raised for Campaign for Kids will support camps, membership, and childcare.

Pictured right is our Green Valley YMCA staff who showed tons of creativity and spirit by wearing green in support of the branch. To see more photos from the kick off party, visit our facebook page here.

Want to learn more about Campaign for Kids? Click here to learn more or contact Kim Hart at 301-663-5131, ext. 1222.

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