MCC professor expects students to put ‘the pedal to the metal’ with new stationary bike desks
Manchester Community College’s Health and Exercise Science Program has installed 11 stationary bike-desks in their program classroom to allow students to stay active during classes.
MANCHESTER, NH – Manchester Community College’s Health and Exercise Science Program has installed 11 stationary bike-desks in their program classroom to allow students to stay active during classes.
Health and Exercise Science Program coordinator Kelly St. Cyr stated in a recent interview that she hopes the bike desks improve cognitive function in class and allow students to keep an active lifestyle while sitting in the classroom. In a recent study, “The Effects of Bike Desks in Formal Education Classroom-Based Physical Activity,” scientists in Europe and the United States addressed issues of student inactivity and potential solutions. “All the studies found positive outcomes of bike desks… higher energy expenditures, less relative time in sedentary activities, and higher average heart rate.”
St. Cyr also noticed students having trouble sitting still while paying attention.
“I felt like there was this gap in addressing [these] barriers in the class,” St. Cyr said. Health and Exercise students who completed a survey about the bikes believe they will improve their focus during class lectures and activities. “As a student with ADHD, this would entertain my brain,” one stated. When asked “Will the desks help you focus?” another student answered, “Yes, it will allow me to focus and give me something to do as I can be fidgety.”
St. Cyr applied for the Carl Perkins Grant which covered the cost of the stationary bikes. This grant is a federal program that invests money to improve career and technical education. The bike desks received are the Ampera Office Bike, which retails for $999. They include a wireless charger to charge phones, powered by pedaling. Having the bikes allows the students to opt for a more active chair.
The bikes arrived Thursday, February 20. St. Cyr has expressed interest in publicizing the arrival and use of the bikes in the school. She says that she hopes to use the bike desks and their publicity to “bring some eyes on the college and the fitness program.” In the future, more bikes may be ordered for other programs at the school.
For more information about the bike desks and the Health Fitness program, contact Kelly St. Cyr at kstcyr@ccsnh.edu.
Kelsea Durham and Charlotte Fournier are students at Manchester Community College.
Note: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the student author and do not reflect the opinions or endorsements of any affiliated or mentioned high school or college.
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