Enduring, not endangered

A special breed of turtle thrives at Lincoln Laboratory

The Enduring Turtles getfit@mit team was born out of "locker room talk" says team captain Cathy Keller. "One afternoon, I just collected the names of everyone in the ladies' locker room at the Lincoln Laboratory Fitness Center who wasn't already on another team. I also included Steve [Thompson], who obviously wasn't in the ladies' locker room but was suggested by Laura [Brattain], who runs with him regularly."

Team composition has changed a bit over the last two years-for example, Maria Kuffner, an "honorary" first-year member, became an official Turtle last year when one of the original members moved on to a new job-but the team's enthusiasm and persistence have remained unchanged. Although none of the team members work in the same area at Lincoln Laboratory, they see each other regularly and frequently take part in group activities. "Members of our team typically work out at lunch time," Kuffner explains. "It's great motivation for me to join in the fun-and the sweat! As a working mother, my lunchtime is the only time I have for exercise most days."

The team was among the top finishers in both years' getfit@mit "Team Spirit" competitions, in which teams vie to log the most minutes exercising together. "We made a special effort to have all of us show up for the lunchtime fitness classes that week," Evelyn Mann says.

"It was great to have eight Turtles on spinning bikes at the same time," Keller continues, "even though Steve hates spinning and Laura gets dizzy. And although I really don't like running very much, I went running with Steve and Laura that week to make sure we had three team members working out together, so it would count toward our Team Spirit total." The Turtles ended Team Spirit week with a Saturday afternoon hike through the Nashoba Brook conservation area near Kuffner's Acton home, followed by hot chocolate and apple crisp.

Like many other successful getfit@mit participants, members of the Enduring Turtles have used the challenge as an opportunity to try out new activities. Mann took snowboarding lessons the first year and ended up liking the activity enough to buy her own board. And last year, after watching her son play ice hockey, she was inspired to try the sport herself. "I found out there were opportunities for beginner, older women to learn and play ice hockey," she recounts, "and I'm getting better and better at it. My kids think I must be going through some sort of midlife crisis to take up snowboarding and hockey at my age, but it's been great fun!"

The Turtles celebrate the end of each year's challenge with an "awards luncheon," featuring a healthy main course and, for dessert, a turtle-shaped cake. Last year's awards included "Most Valuable Turtle," "Most Enduring Turtle," and, for Steve Thompson, the lone man on the team, "Sexiest Turtle."

Now the team is looking forward to their third year of participation in getfit@mit. "Even though we are all regular exercisers, we do a lot more during the challenge," Keller says. "I know I definitely exercised more both years during getfit and felt trimmer for it."

"Our team name is really fitting," adds Mann. "We're not all fast, but we are enduring, because we continue to exercise."