There’s never been a better time than now to get fit and stay fit at Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge.

Consider:

• In-person fitness classes are back! There are plenty of slots open in multiple types of classes: aerobics, yoga, functional moves, strength-building and Tabata – which is a higher-intensity interval training class.
• The pool is back open! You might remember that it closed down for construction work in January 2020, just before the pandemic arrived, and could not reopen until it had left. Actually, we should say, “pools,” since there’s both the main activity pool and the lap pool. So far, it’s all about individual activities, such as swimming laps, but activities such as water aerobics classes aren’t far off. Also, the hot tub is now open as well.
• The individual exercise equipment – treadmills, ellipticals, weights and such – is available as well.
• The virtual fitness classes that were beamed into your living rooms during the quarantine times are still available as well, and a lot of folks have discovered they like the convenience of working out that way.
• The loop challenge – walking 400 times around WCBR’s .75-mile “loop” – became popular during COVID, and we’ve kept it going.

The WCBR Fitness and Wellness Team is eager to see everybody get out and take advantage of it all.

Brittany Wisinski, group exercise coordinator, says there was a bit of a rush of participants right after the doors reopened, but the flow has slowed down now, and there are plenty of times open for the group classes, pool and exercise equipment. As much as anything, the slowdown was because other things became available – such as finally getting to travel and see grandchildren.

Still, once people’s routines get back to normal, “We really encourage individuals to come back to us,” Brittany said.

Some don’t have to be encouraged, such as resident Nancy Erwin. “She’s amazing,” says Brittany. “She jumped on the classes as soon as she could. She’s incredibly active. She has the most perfect energy. She puts us all to shame.”

Nancy’s reaction to that: “She probably just says that relative to my age.” That’s because Nancy is 93 years old, and she keeps going like someone a fourth her age.

“I love the classes,” she says. “I do.”

One day this week, she was the only one participating in one class. “It’s bewildered me that everyone wouldn’t want to do them there.”

She understands folks liking to participate from their living rooms, but that’s not her way. “It’s very convenient, but it’s not as much fun.” Which kind of class does she like best? “I like all of them.”

That’s not all she does. She also walks 45 minutes a day, “as briskly as I can.”

She doesn’t want you to think she doesn’t do anything but exercise, though. She balances it with relaxation at home, where you can often find her reading and working puzzles. But when she’s active, she’s active. For instance, “I only take the elevator when I’m carrying something.”

Nancy is one of our longest-term residents at WCBR. She and her husband moved here from Connecticut 26 years ago. They chose WCBR because of their six children, one lived in Charlottesville. It was perfect for them.

She hopes to see more folks coming out for the in-person classes, because they’re more fun that way. Brittany agrees: “We would ALWAYS like to see more people.”