First year can be very confusing as you have information being thrown at you from all directions. One place that I found to be especially hard to find information about is the amenities that come with being a student at Mount Allison regarding health and wellness. Health and wellness can take many forms such as physical fitness, eating right, mental health support, and many other things. This may not be a top priority for some when starting out your studies, but simply knowing your options is important when you are in a new place.  

The first thing that is good to know about is the Fitness Center that is located on the ground floor of the Wallace McCain Student Centre. Personally, I found it helpful to follow certain personal trainers on Instagram as they post their workouts with videos of how to do the exercise. My favourites include Jordyn Trenholm (@jordynt_fit) and Sam Taylor (@samtaylor_fitness). Another direction you could go is to book an appointment with Mount Allison’s own personal trainer Karen Arsenault (kearsenault@mta.ca); these sessions do cost money. Session information can be found here.  

Something that I did not know in my first year is that Mount Allison also offers both group yoga and group fitness training classes in the dance studio that is in the FC (fitness center) which are free for students. This is something I suggest looking into; the schedule for these classes can be found here.  

Another way that you can focus on your health and wellness at Mount Allison is to pay attention to the food you are eating. Jennings dining hall has accommodations I was not aware of when I was eating at Jennings in my first year. They have a salad bar that works as a fruit bar on Fridays, and they serve smoothies by the water/coffee stations every morning with varying flavours which can work as a quick easy breakfast. If you are someone who has a food intolerance or has special diet requirements, there is an accommodation station where they make sure that they make you special dinners that follow those restrictions. There is a takeout option for people who may have classes throughout their lunch period and cannot find the time to sit down for a meal. Jennings also has a twitter account where they post daily about what is being served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (@MTADining). Lastly, you have the option of booking a free consultation with a registered dietitian who works through the university. More information about these amenities can be found here.

Another important accommodation that the university has available for students is the Meighen Centre. This is where students with documented disabilities can receive accommodations and services, such as peer tutoring and extra time writing examinations. There is also employment availability by note taking for a course or being a peer tutor.  

Lastly, I wanted to quickly mention some other things that Mount Allison has available. These include urgent assistance and crisis support, medical and health services, mental health and wellness services, accessibility services, sexual violence referral and reporting, appointments through the health and wellness centre found in the Wallace McCain student centre, and health insurance coverage. Information about all of these services can be accessed through this link.

Written by Sam Croft, a fourth-year student on the Health & Wellness committee of Orientation.