This Year's Project: Cold Water Therapy Plunge Pool
About Our Organization
The Beatrice YMCA is part of a nonprofit organization of over 2,700 Ys located in 10,000 communities across the United States dedicated to strengthening the communities that they serve. With a focus on developing the potential of youth, improving individual health and well-being, and giving back to and supporting communities, your participation brings about meaningful change not just within yourself, but also in your community.
Our Mission: To put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy mind, body, and spirit for all.
Current Project: Cold Water Therapy Plunge Pool
As part of our Phase 3 Pool Renovation/Addition, we are adding a Cold Water Therapy Plunge Pool to the list of amenities the Beatrice YMCA offers the community for mind, body, and spirit.
Cold Water Therapy Plunge, also known as an ice bath or cold water immersion, refers to deliberate cold exposure in water that is typically less than 60°F. While this may sound terrible, a cold plunge has several benefits:
* Enhanced Mood & Focus ~ A cold plunge at 57°F can cause up to 250% increase in dopamine levels, and a 530% increase in noradrenaline levels that lasted for several hours! Dopamine is the 'feel-good' hormone that is associated with feelings of happiness, focus, motivation, and alertness. Noradrenaline is commonly referred to as your body's 'fight-or-flight' response. It is associated with attention, mood, and alertness. Low levels of noradrenaline are known to cause anxiety and depression.
*Reduce Inflammation & Muscle Ssoreness ~ Taking a plunge in a cold therapy tub is also effective in reducing inflammation and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). DOMS refers to the muscle soreness that you feel 1-2 days after an intense workout.
*Immunity Booster ~ A study in the Netherlands found that cold water exposure via cold plunge over cold showers led to fewer sick days at work.
*Reduce Stress & Improve Resilience ~ You can work on how your brain responds to stress when you deliberately place yourself in a state of stress. The cold water acts as a place where you can focus on breathing and remaining calm. This can help you deal with day-to-day stressors outside of the tub.
*Accelerate Metabolism ~ Metabolism has been shown to increase by up to 350% during a cold plunge. A short, one-time plunge may not burn a significant amount of calories but repeated plunges in cold water can increase the body's production of brown fat which can regulate body temperature and burn calories. Consistently plunging in cold water can then lead to improved metabolism!
The Beatrice YMCA is so thankful for your donation! Because of you, we can remain a facility that provides Gage County with various amenities that keep our community healthy, happy, and active!
Finish the Indoor Walking Track Project
Project Details
Two years ago our Big Give Project was to replace our indoor walking track. At that time we requested $25,000 and were blessed with $13,000 from your generous donations! This year we would like to be able to complete this project and provide a new track for our members.
Walking is one of the easiest ways to stay healthy at any age and Indoor tracks with temperature-controlled environments are especially needed for year-round physical activity. We are happy to host an average 800-1,000 walkers on our track each month but our track is in dire need of repair. The benefits of an indoor track include increased safety and security, medical response if needed, and having close amenities such as drinking fountains and restrooms.
· Walking tracks are also shown to
· Maintain a healthy weight and lose body fat
· Prevent or manage heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, cancer and type 2 diabetes
· Improve cardiovascular fitness
· Strengthen your bones and muscles
· Improve muscle endurance
· Increase energy levels
· Improve your mood, cognition, memory and sleep
· Improve your balance and coordination
· Strengthen your immune system
· Reduce stress and tension
·
We are thankful for your donation to repair our indoor track and continue to provide all of these benefits to our community!
New Hot Tub
Project Details
Every month approximately 2,000 patrons visit the hot tub at the Beatrice YMCA from Southeast Nebraska and Northwest Kansas.
There are many benefits to using a hot tub including:
*Pain Relief and Relaxation
*Stress Reducer
*Respiratory Benefits
*Bone Health Improvement
*Present-Mindedness
*Burning Calories
Our current hot tub is in need of many costly repairs. As we embark on the 3rd phase of our Capital Campaign, we look forward to moving the hot tub to a new location which will provide space for our competitive swimmers and spectators in the current pool area. Help us reach our total goal of $160,000!
New Indoor Walking Track
Project Details
Walking is one of the easiest ways to stay healthy at any age and Indoor tracks with temperature-controlled environments are especially needed for year-round physical activity. We are happy to host an average 800-1,000 walkers on our track each month but our track is in dire need of repair. The benefits of an indoor track include increased safety and security, medical response if needed, and having close amenities such as drinking fountains and restrooms.
· Walking tracks are also shown to
· Maintain a healthy weight and lose body fat
· Prevent or manage heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, cancer and type 2 diabetes
· Improve cardiovascular fitness
· Strengthen your bones and muscles
· Improve muscle endurance
· Increase energy levels
· Improve your mood, cognition, memory and sleep
· Improve your balance and coordination
· Strengthen your immune system
· Reduce stress and tension
·
We are thankful for your donation to repair our indoor track and continue to provide all of these benefits to our community!
Vision 2020 Capital Campaign
Project Details
We are thrilled about the Y's renovation, but one of the areas we are most excited about is the Teaching Kitchen. This kitchen will be located right next door to our Learning Center/Before & After School Childcare room so it will provide meals for both of these programs as well as kids during Summer Camp. Did you know the Y provided roughly 100,000 meals to kids in our Childcare programs in 2019? Did you also know that one in four children in Nebraska is overweight or obese, with 30% of adults being obese or overweight? Renovating this space in particular at the YMCA will enable us to continue programs that have been established for disease prevention and support, and will allow us to offer additional programs for children and adults to address issues like obesity. For the past 5 years, our kid's summer camp program has grown a vegetable garden to teach the children how to plant/grow a garden as well as exposure to healthy eating. The addition of a classroom with a teaching kitchen will expand this by allowing the children to learn to prepare/cook the food that they have grown. In addition, the teaching kitchen will be used by our adult disease prevention/management programs like Living Healthy with Diabetes, LiveSTRONG at the Y for cancer survivors, Parkinson's, and obesity education and prevention classes.