2008 Woodie Awards
Shape up for the new semester
Ryan Hagan
Issue date: 2/6/08 Section: Expressions
With the arrival of the spring semester, Samford students have moved back into their living spaces and delved into a new set of classes. But spring has brought more than long lines at the bookstore and a renewed sense of busyness; it gives all a new chance to start the semester in a healthy way.
With the recent opening of the Pete Hanna Center, students are crowding the new treadmills, elliptical machines and Hammer Strength weight equipment, but for many, the beginning of this semester has already proven too busy to fit more than a couple minutes of free time into their schedules.
For sophomore business major Walt Reed, working out in the new weight room area in the Pete Hanna Center is not the only mode of exercise.
“I usually run about four to five miles per day, probably four days a week. On the weekends I like to get a longer run in like 12 to 13 miles. Then, when I get back to the room, I like to do some push-ups and crunches,” Reed said.
Ryan England, another sophomore business major, said that he typically cranks out 100 push-ups and crunches from the comfort of his own apartment. He recommends splitting them into sets of 25 or whatever may be most comfortable for the individual.
John Wright, a sophomore biochemistry major, said that no matter the person, it is important to “change up what you do. Don’t do the same exercise everyday because you want to build different muscle groups, and plus – it can get boring.
“The more you change things up, and the more you pick exercises you enjoy, the more likely you’ll be having fun and want to keep exercising,” Wright said.
There are many students who may not like to hit the roads as often as Reed, and there may be some who prefer to do something a little more exciting than a few sets of push-ups every night.
Fortunately, there are many alternatives that can be done in the convenience of a dorm room.
Crunches (the basic of all abdominal exercises)
With the recent opening of the Pete Hanna Center, students are crowding the new treadmills, elliptical machines and Hammer Strength weight equipment, but for many, the beginning of this semester has already proven too busy to fit more than a couple minutes of free time into their schedules.
For sophomore business major Walt Reed, working out in the new weight room area in the Pete Hanna Center is not the only mode of exercise.
“I usually run about four to five miles per day, probably four days a week. On the weekends I like to get a longer run in like 12 to 13 miles. Then, when I get back to the room, I like to do some push-ups and crunches,” Reed said.
Ryan England, another sophomore business major, said that he typically cranks out 100 push-ups and crunches from the comfort of his own apartment. He recommends splitting them into sets of 25 or whatever may be most comfortable for the individual.
John Wright, a sophomore biochemistry major, said that no matter the person, it is important to “change up what you do. Don’t do the same exercise everyday because you want to build different muscle groups, and plus – it can get boring.
“The more you change things up, and the more you pick exercises you enjoy, the more likely you’ll be having fun and want to keep exercising,” Wright said.
There are many students who may not like to hit the roads as often as Reed, and there may be some who prefer to do something a little more exciting than a few sets of push-ups every night.
Fortunately, there are many alternatives that can be done in the convenience of a dorm room.
Crunches (the basic of all abdominal exercises)
- Simply lie flat on your back with your feet flat on the ground and knees bent. Arms should go behind the head or across the chest.
- The idea is to contract the abdominal muscles together. Use momentum to bend upwards, but the purpose of a crunch is to target your stomach muscles – make sure you feel them burn!
- Lay on your side with legs fully extended.
- Slowly lift your top leg to shoulder level, and then slowly return your leg to its original position. A solid three sets of 20 or 30 leg lifts will target some muscle groups most weight programs cannot work, including the muscles in the back, which are often forgotten.
- For a tougher routine, add ankle weights of two to five lbs. this will increase muscle growth.
- Alternate sides to work both legs.
- Instead of coming up straight toward your knees, alternate turning left and right. This will target the area commonly known as “love handles.”
- Simply take a can of soup, or something of comparable size and weight, and grip it with one hand.
- While standing with the can in your hand, slowly lift your arm in front of you to shoulder level and hold it for two seconds at the top. Make sure you count to eight on your way up before you finally reach shoulder level, and then count to eight again before you reach a resting position.
- Counting should make the motion very slow, targeting the smaller muscles in your shoulder that aren’t usually worked with heavy weights in a gym. A good rule of thumb is to start out with three sets of 10 reps with shoulder exercises.
- The same exercise can be done with the arms going to the sides of the body, as in a “T” shape.
- Lay down on your side with legs fully extended.
- This time, step your top leg over your bottom leg with the top leg’s foot flat on the ground close to your bottom leg’s knee.
- Proceed to lift the bottom leg upward. Again, three sets of 20 to 30 repetitions will provide a good work out.