On-campus gym not stratified

As a Cal State Long Beach student and a member of Frogs Club One gym, I was totally embarrassed by Molly Stewart’s article, “Stratification in on-campus gym perplexing,” on Nov. 21.

Stewart says Frogs is segregated, but if she would get off the elliptical machine she would see people of all ages working out together.

Let me tell you what I see at Frogs. To my right is an 80-year-old lady who had a stroke that has left her partially paralyzed. Her delightful smile tells you she may not move as fast as she did before her stroke, but she isn’t giving up. To say she is afraid to touch or be near these wonderful older human beings says more about Stewart than them.

To my right is an 18-year-old blonde in workout clothes who has come to Frogs to un-kink her body after spending 10 hours writing a term paper. She works out regularly and it shows.

Behind me is a group of firemen who come to Frogs to keep themselves in top physical shape so they can climb 30 flights of stairs to save someone caught in a high-rise building fire.

Does she think that only people with perfect bodies should work out? Obesity is an epidemic in this county and it’s a killer. Anyone who is overweight and is willing to spend half an hour on a treadmill or elliptical machine should be applauded, not criticized.

The trainers at Frogs are the most dedicated and helpful group of people I have ever run across. Most of us love being part of the Frog’s family and feel our lives have been enriched by exercising with the other members, regardless of their age or sex.

— Nam Thompson, graduate education major

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