The weight room isn’t just a place to workout in, it’s a friendly environment for GHS. The weight room impacts Grandville High School students drastically. The weight room is a place for all students to go and work out. The weight room offers students a chance to get stronger and faster which benefits students in their sports. The weight room was awarded for American School and University 2018 Outstanding Design. “The one thing that stands out as a whole is the motivation from everybody. I feel like everybody in the weight room doesn’t judge you and is super supportive and has a good attitude,” explains Elaina Organek.

The weight room at GHS went through a major update in 2015. The new construction increased to a size of 28,135 sq. ft., which increased to over 6,000 ft and now has 20 weight training racks. The primary goal of the weight room was to establish more immediate access to district athletic facilities and make it visible and accessible for students. The purpose of the weight room is to provide a space for students to workout in and have coaches provide them with a workout. It fulfills the need of students who don’t want to pay for a gym membership. “We got about 900 students registered on team builder and about a quarter of them are people who don’t play sports anymore,” says Tully Champion.

The improvement of the weight room has had a major impact on GHS. With the expansion of the space, there is now more space for new equipment and more students. With more space, students are now able to warm up in their own space and students are able to lift quicker and not have to wait for racks to open up. Along with the upstairs, with more treadmills and bikes added, it allows more students to run upstairs and still be spaced out. I’ve had a lot of experiences in the weight room. “One thing I like about the coaches is they have a consistent rotation of coaches and there’s new people every semester and I think it’s nice to learn from college aged kids,” says Junior Lexi Wickstrom.

“Lifting has impacted me by making me realize what types of physical sports I can do and how far I can go in either running or lifting weights and pushing my body to the max. It’s also a great way to relieve stress and meet new people,” clarifies Paige Miller. Overall, the students at GHS love the weight room. They are all determined to become the best athletes and people possible and the weight room gets great use. Everyone was very excited and proud of the new and improved changes the weight room went through and that makes everyone even more motivated to know that the students at GHS are very fortunate to have an amazing weight room. 

If students want to get fit, stronger or just more active, the weight room is a perfect fit. If students are not in a school sport right now and want to lift, just look for an email from Tully and sign up for a time slot! Students can workout in the weight room in the mornings before school, during a class, after school, or with a designated sports team. “I see all the athletes using the weight room for their sports and during lifting classes, and overall people who want to get stronger and go have a good time,” describes Drew Harrington.