Yours Truly Visits the IM Building

The IM Building is a gift from above. Out of a crippling fear of the freshman 15 and a desire to not be wasting the money I spent on a gym membership, I paid this beautiful building a lengthy visit this week.

For those of you who have not been, for the most part it has a sleek and aesthetically pleasing interior, but my favorite part is that there is a huge inexplicable fan parked in the ceiling, gently circulating above the ellipticals and free weights.

What is your purpose, Big Fan?

If you're someone like me who is moderately athletic, but is not a gym rat, it's a little intimidating at first. Some pro tips: don't forget to bring your PSU ID with you because that is how you swipe in and gain entrance to the gym. Also, if you don't know where the locker rooms are or how to use a certain equipment, just wait, watch somebody, and then act like you know what you're doing. But anyway, the facility is very well maintained and all the gym-goers I saw were as friendly as you'd expect a sweaty person lifting double their body weight on a leg press to be.

I myself have never really been fond of lifting weights, although I would like to take a second to appreciate all the options the building provides for those that do. They have a nice set up so if you're ever in the mood to pump some iron, the IM building's got your back.

Stacks on stacks on stacks... of weights

It also has a sweet running track that is elevated and circles around the various parts of the gym. In my time there running (okay let's be real, lightly jogging) around the track, I watched bits of a basketball game, a guy walking around the track on his hands, a swing dancing class, some old dudes playing racquetball (which I totally want to play next time, continually whipping a ball against the wall seems like it would do wonders for stress management), and a dedicated girl who was still practicing volleyball by herself when I left.

Even though I've never been a person who habitually goes to the gym, something about the atmosphere of the building was motivating. I found myself just walking laps around the track trying to justify staying instead of going home and doing the homework I knew I was avoiding. I guess what I'm trying to say is even if you are someone who hates gyms and gym culture, give it a shot. It has an inclusive energy and there's really nothing to lose in just visiting to see it for yourself.

Something else that I thought was cute was the name of the building itself. The IM Building. I know it stands for Intramural Building, but bear with me here for this bad pun:

IM Building... I AM Building

It's endearing to think that the building is calling itself a building, but it also reminds me of the Penn State motto: WE ARE. Get it? WE ARE... IM... I AM. Get it??? There's something there, I'm not even completely sure where I'm going with it, but it's there.

Anyway, the IM Building was a very positive experience for me. I would totally recommend giving it a visit and seeing for yourself if you have the time.

If I had to rate this wonderful building (and you know I will), I would give it 9 handstanding musclemen out of 10

Pictures courtesy of Penn State