Summer is approaching fast, which for many students means utilizing their newly found free time to get in shape. The beautiful thing about working out is that everyone has different personal goals and aspirations. Whether you’re a novice to exercise or a seasoned veteran at the gym, these tips might just inspire you to change up your routine.
Workout 1:
The Balanced Workout Plan
by Brandon Zimmerman, senior performing arts major
Minaret: Can you give us an overview of your diet?
Brandon Zimmerman: I eat a pretty healthy diet mostly fruits, veggies and a ton of white meat chicken. I try to eat as often as I can, but not snack on foods that are high in sugar and artificial ingredients. I try to stick to eating something every two hours as to keep my body going.
M: Can you give us your signature workout?
BZ: A body weight exercise focusing on three different styles of push ups, three different core and three different legs all done in sets of three.
M: How often do you hit the gym?
BZ: I make it out there three to four times a week for varying amounts of time. Nothing under an hour.
M: What’s one thing you wish someone had told you before you started working out?
BZ: Form is everything! I’ve had a couple injuries from improper form and no one to correct it.
M: What advice would you give to someone who is just starting to work out?
BZ: Don’t be afraid of the gym. Everyone there is working towards the same goal and often times are completely willing to help out. Also, don’t be afraid to lift within your comfort zone. You aren’t going to curl 50 pounds your first time and no one is going to judge you for picking up a 10-pound weight.
Workout 2:
The Calisthenics Workout Plan
by Andrew Pesale, sophomore exercise science
Minaret: Can you give us an overview of your diet?
Drew Pesale: My diet consists of mostly whole foods and I eat organic foods whenever I can. I try to avoid processed foods because they usually contain lots of unnecessary additives. I eat whenever I feel hungry after guzzling a few glasses of water. Sometimes thirst can be disguised as hunger.
M: Can you give us your signature workout?
DP: One of my signature workouts is freestyle calisthenics. Calisthenics is a branch of exercise that requires no special equipment and focuses on building with bodyweight exercises. I take at least one day per week to mess around with all the cool movements I can do and see what I need to improve.
M: How often do you hit the gym?
DP: I go to the gym almost every day. On the days I’m not there, I’m exercising outside.
M: What’s one thing you wish someone had told you before you started working out?
DP: One thing I wish someone told me when I first started working out is to listen to what the body tells you. We all follow all of these fad diets and never see the result we want because we listen to an expert over our body. To get more information about this I recommend reading Paul Chek’s “How to Eat, Move and Be Healthy.”
M: What advice do you have for people new to working out?
DP: The one tip I would give a new comer is make time for mobility and flexibility training. They’re the best for injury prevention and movement quality—which we all need to work on with our sedentary lifestyles.
Workout 3:
The Bulk Plan
by Branden Boston, sophomore biology major
Minaret: Can you give us an overview of your diet?
Branden Boston: At the moment I’m doing a high-protein diet with a moderate amount of carbohydrates and fats. I eat a lot of chicken from the caf as well as eggs (scrambled and hard-boiled). Most of my carbs are coming from Quaker Whole Grain Old-Fashioned Oatmeal and sweet potatoes. I eat about four meals every day.
M: Can you give us your signature workout?
BB: I enjoy doing weighted dips and weighted wide-grip pull ups!
M: How often do you hit the gym?
BB: I work out at the gym about six days a week. Almost every day!
M: What’s something you wish someone had told you before you started working out?
BB: I wish that I knew not to do cardio before weight-training and also not to do cardio on the same days as leg-training!
M: What advice do you have for people new to working out?
BB: Tips for new-comers? Eat plenty and eat right! if you’re getting less than three balanced meals a day then you’re cheating yourself.
Griffin Guinta can be reached at griffin.guinta@theminaretonline.com.