Photo credit: Phoebe Casparian

Attendees recover in red light after a yoga sculpt class at Heated Room, a fitness studio with locations in Santa Monica and West Hollywood. Alex Bridwell (’27) is a frequent participant in yoga sculpt classes and said the heated workouts help her feel accomplished. “I feel like if I’m going to go to a class, then I want to get the most out of it,” Bridwell said.

Whether it be reformer pilates, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) classes or simply going for a run, exercise is clinically proven to boost cognitive skills as well as reduce the risk of injury. Archer’s fitness and wellness curriculum ends after 10th grade, leaving the decision to exercise up to individual students. For students wishing to continue some form of exercise in their junior or senior year, they have a variety of options, as Los Angeles is a hotspot for fitness studios.

Other than A-train, Archer’s semiweekly after-school strength training program, upperclassmen have limited options for physical activity they can participate in without playing a sport at school. Many students have found other ways — outside of Archer — to get occasional or often physical movement.

Alex Bridwell (’27) often goes to the yoga sculpt classes at CorePower Yoga, a nationwide yoga studio chain. She said the heated rooms and challenging exercises leave her feeling accomplished and motivated after a workout.

“I feel like I just sweat everything out, which can be nice. You have to make sure you seriously hydrate after, otherwise it can be [bad] for you,” Bridwell said. “I feel like I do my homework and stuff a lot better and stay on track when I get some sort of workout in.”

Sasha Poole (’26) was on Archer’s swim team from middle school to 10th grade, but she stopped as her academic workload increased. She now stays active by attending reformer pilates and training outside of school with a private trainer twice a week. Poole said she thinks her fitness journey has impacted her both negatively and positively, as she tries to find a balance between work and physical activity.

“I think mental health is something that’s definitely important to address when we talk about exercise. I think I felt more confident in myself since I’ve begun going to the gym,” Poole said. “But at the same time, I feel like I’ve started noticing my body a bit more and how it changes and what makes it change.”

Through her evolving fitness journey, Poole said she tries to counteract negative emotions about her continuously changing physical and mental state with determination.

“I feel like I can be hard on myself when I don’t achieve a certain look, or I don’t … put in the effort for myself, and I’m not getting the results that I want to be getting. It can be frustrating,” Poole said. “But at the same time, if I do get those results, or I do feel stronger, I gain more muscle, then I’m also very proud of myself. So it’s a fine line between confidence and insecurity.”

Seventh grade fitness and wellness teacher Stephanie Ferri participates in multiple HIIT classes a week at Training Mate, a fitness studio with locations across California and Texas. According to Training Mate’s mission statement, their classes are not only rooted in building strength and muscle, but building connections across “mates.”

“Our community is rooted in mateship. Our workouts are designed so you’ll never go it alone,” Training Mate wrote in a statement on their website. “Our coaches will meet you where you’re at and push you when you need, all with a healthy dose of humor.”

Ferri said she finds the community-oriented structure of Training Mate classes motivating, as being present in a class pushes her to perform better.

“Since the pandemic, I hadn’t really found an in person workout studio. I was doing a lot of at home Peloton app stuff like strength training, pilates [and] treadmill workouts,” Ferri said. “I have a Peloton bike, but I don’t really ride very often… And I feel like, after about a year and a half, two years of that, I just needed in person motivation.”

According to Mayo Clinic, regular exercise releases endorphins, brain chemicals that release a feeling of well-being and can help ease feelings of depression or anxiety. Regular exercise can also help boost confidence physically and create a sense of self-pride. Ferri said she found that during extremely difficult times of her life, exercise was a constant she used to help with feelings of depression or anxiety.

“Mental health is number one. That is something immediately that I feel is like an instant stress relief,” Ferri said. “After my son passed away, [exercise] was integral in having endorphin release and helping to counteract all the sadness and pain that came with that. So I feel like exercise has always had a role in my life.” 

Poole said she finds it important to maintain a balance of challenge and grace, as unrealistic standards could result in feelings of incapability can block necessary motivation to keep moving.

“I mean, it’s hard. It’s challenging, like anything that you set your mind to, but I think it can definitely be very rewarding, and it’s also fun. If you have a certain expectation for yourself, or if you make it too restrictive in a way, then you might lose your interest,” Poole said. “But I think if you’re doing it because you’re interested, then it’s really fun. I would say, just go for it, try it out and see what you like. Maybe one thing that works for you doesn’t for someone else.”