By Nicholas Grenke
Western Herald
With cold weather and heavy clothes, many Western Michigan University students have trouble keeping off the extra pounds during the winter months. There are however, numerous ways to stay in shape around the holiday season.
Easily accessible to students (and heated) is the Student Recreation Center on campus. Membership is free for full time students and the facilities offer basketball and tennis courts. A ninth of a mile indoor track allows students to jog even if there’s snow outside. Also available is a full weight room and exercise machines such as ellipticals, treadmills and stationary bikes.
“Most of the people who work out here and work here are students,” junior Jess Herndon, who works at the Rec, said. ‘It’s nice to be around people your own age that you see in classes.”
In fact many students come to work out to break up the routine of school during the winter. Junior Tony Clark plays basketball outside in the summer, but turns to the Rec during the colder months.
“There’s not a lot to do in the winter other than school or work. I like to run into people I know and most of the time you can get into a pick up game,” Clark said.
Some students complain about the traffic of people at the Rec and having to sometimes wait for a bike or bench press, but it’s not too busy right now, according to Herndon.
“It usually picks up a lot after New Years and before spring break,” Herndon said, “but there’s always plenty of room.”
However, some students living off campus have a hard time going to the gym on a regular schedule. In order to stay in shape they work out at home.
“With classes and work I have a hard time getting motivated to go to the gym,” senior David Lund said. “For Christmas one year I got a weight set, so I lift at home and can still jog to my apartment while the snow’s not here. Sometimes I take a break from my homework to lift.”
There are also other less conventional ways to work out with the aids of new technology. Nintendo offers the Wii Fit, which unlike a regular video game, helps one move around by showcasing exercise programs instead of keeping one on the couch. Local cable companies Charter and Direct TV have exercise channels that provide workouts to the viewer such as Yoga and Tai Chi. Most of the shows are more beneficial but less entertaining than Richard Simmons’s “Sweating to the Oldies” to the audience.
If one wants to keep the pounds off it’s also good not to party as much and consume empty calories. In addition to being good for schoolwork, less drinking can help you stay in better shape. If there is a big party or a night out at the bar there are also new light beers that have less calories than your average beer, such as Miller Genuine Draft 64 and Budweiser Select. Also instead of drinking that rum and Coke, have rum and diet instead.
Keep in mind that students don’t have to wait until January first to work out, lose weight and make better lifestyle choices. Whether by going to the Rec or by other ways, it’s easier to keep the pounds off during the winter than to try to lose them when Spring rolls back around.
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