Song: Dark Horse Trap Remix

by Jessie Santer

With the unpredictable weather Mother Nature has been providing for us New Englanders, taking the walk across campus isn’t something most students look forward to. The gym becomes foreign to most hibernating students not looking to leave their warm beds for anything other than class or the dining halls next door. So when the weather gets to be unbearable and the gym seems hopeless, what can you do?

The gym is set up to provide students with the best equipment for being able to maintain a healthy fit lifestyle. However, with a creative mind, a dorm room can become your own personal gym.

The use of your own body weight can be just as effective as using free weights when done right, meaning a 20-30 minute dorm workout can provide you with as much satisfaction that you’d get at the gym. Some examples of body weight exercises that you can do are planks, lunges, squats, and stretching routines like yoga.

The dorm room doesn’t leave you much space to spread out but it does provide you with just enough room to be able to do a successful body weight routine. By clearing a section of your room and dedicating a small amount of time, you can have a decent workout without having to go outside.

Making a workout plan to fit you is half the battle. The Internet offers great workouts now-a-days and so does the iPhone app store. Nike Training Club is an easy to use app that gives you 30-45 minute workouts with visuals that will help you along the way. It will also keep a countdown and voice command you directions.

If you are lacking in the iPhone department or would rather follow a video, YouTube has plenty of usable workout videos. Jillian Michaels routines are uploaded with full video content along with other personalized videos of workouts like the popular p90x and Insanity programs. Chris Freytag from Exercise TV also leads many interval, cardio and yoga workouts that are available online. I recommend her Cardio Kickboxing – 41 minutes of pure burn – that can be found by searching “Exercise TV 10 lb Slimdown” on YouTube.

Fitting a workout to a dorm-sized room can be frustrating, but they aren’t impossible. It may take some rearranging and creativity but students shouldn’t be losing out on a workout because of the weather or stress from school. Burpees, high knees, and running in place will up your heart rate if you’re looking for some cardio.

If motivation is something you need, upbeat music can always help with that. Pandora has stations from Pop Fitness to Hard Rock Strength Training that can be found under the “Workout” genre in browse. If you’re a Spotify user, there are countless workout playlists that you can follow from the millions of users.

Find a soft surface, put on a rocking playlist, and get ready to enjoy your workout. Just because you’re in a dorm room isn’t any reason to deny yourself a satisfying sweat.

Jessie Santer can be reached via email at [email protected]