Heart of Stark: Staying active at the Belden Village Mall
In partnership with The Repository, every Monday, Stark Community Foundation highlights positive happenings in our community. Here’s to Good News Mondays !
The Belden Village Mall is making exercise more accessible for our community than ever before by hosting free community workout classes and programs in partnership with the YMCA of Central Stark County .
Each week, instructors from YMCA branches across Stark County lead YOU Time classes in the center court of the mall at no cost to participants. These classes cover a variety of workout activities — including Zumba, yoga, core work, bootcamp, kickboxing, hip hop, line dancing and more. Not only do the classes showcase the YMCA’s talented instructors in front of a previously unreached audience of mall customers, but they also further the organization’s mission of providing ways for people to be active and meeting them where they are in the community.
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“The YMCA is devoted to helping people live happier and healthier lives, and sometimes that doesn’t look like coming to one of our branches to swim or take a group exercise class” YMCA of Central Stark County Marketing and Communications Director Brandon Bussey said. “We are very thankful to the mall for partnering with us to reach a whole new group of people. Helping people find the activity that leads them down a healthier path is so much a part of what the YMCA is about.”
“The local community is the heartbeat of our organizations, and we both have generational touchpoints that tie into our customers’ daily lives,” said Lisa Kreiger, Belden Village Mall marketing and business development director. “Building lasting relationships contributes to a strong and healthy community. This strategic partnership will enhance our guest experience, offer free monthly health and wellness classes and bring us together to expand the offerings we both are traditionally known for.”
Earlier this spring, a new mall walking program called Walk It Out was introduced, complete with mile tracking, milestone incentive rewards and healthy snacks. This program encourages participants to get their steps in by completing nearly a full mile for each lap around the mall. Walkers are welcomed daily at 10:30 a.m., a half-hour before the mall opens, and benefit from the indoor environment, safety of mall security staff, presence of other walkers and shoppers and a level ground that reduces the risk of trips and falls compared to many outdoor paths.
On the first Thursday of each month, this program also includes a guest speaker session where participants are given tips on staying healthy and active. The first session discussed ways participants could get the most out of their experience in the mall walking program, the importance of hydration and stretching, shoes you should wear while exercising, setting goals, using the buddy system and how technology like smart watches can help motivate progression.
“We plan to drill down in these topics while also adding new ones and will bring in various experts in these fields to provide more information,” said Bussey. “In the end, it’s about making this program fun and encouraging people to be active and healthy.”
“Future sessions will focus on not just physical, but mental and emotional health as well,” said Kreiger. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with the YMCA team, and we encourage our shoppers and community to join in the fun, try something new this spring and live a healthy life!”
Visit www.beldenvillagemall.com/events to learn more about upcoming events and collaborative programming.
Stark Community Foundation helps individuals, families, businesses and nonprofits achieve their philanthropic goals through a variety of charitable funds and strategic initiatives. Ranked in the top 10% of community foundations in the country, the foundation and its family of donors have granted $230 million to nonprofits since 1963. Learn more at www.starkcf.org .