The Fitness Gurus

Hey Exonians! Welcome (back) to campus! This year The Fitness Gurus has a new team of writers so we thought we briefly introduce ourselves. Lexi, a dancer, is back from last year with helpful hints on how to stay healthy on campus, and how to increase your flexibility. The Fitness Gurus is also welcoming two new writers: the Gray twins! This fall you can see Luke play on the Varsity football team, and Sam run for the cross-country team. Luke will help you decide what dietary supplements to take to enhance performance, and strength exercises you can do to build muscle. Sam offers helpful diet tips, some athletic gear suggestions, and exercises to improve endurance and stamina. For the next ten months, we are excited to help all you Exonians stay fit, healthy, and happy on campus!Tired of waiting in long D-Hall lines? Here’s a healthy habit that Sam suggests to make the D-Hall wait a much quicker and more nutritious experience. Instead of getting in line for the hot line, skip the line and head straight to the salad bar. Fill up a bowl of dark leafy greens, black/kidney beans, broccoli, tomatoes, cucumbers, seeds and whatever else is available that day. The fibrous veggies in salad form a great pre-meal cleanser. They’ll clear your gut and prepare it to better absorb important nutrients and carbs. Be sure to go for the mixed greens option, not the plain-old romaine lettuce (romaine lettuce is 96% water – good for hydration but not very nutritious). Not only do the mixed greens cleanse your gut, but they also provide many of the essential vitamins and minerals necessary for the Kreb Cycle; without these vitamins and minerals your mitochondria will not be able to convert any glucose you digest into usable ATP. Salads are a low-calorie appetizer that will leave plenty of room for whatever hot-line food you’re eyeing and also help your gut make better use of the calories and nutrients in your main entree. By the time you finish your salad, the hot line will be dwindling and your body will be primed and ready for your main course.In addition to you healthy meal, Luke has suggestions on dietary supplements to take to enhance performance: Whether you’re a Kai Greene, a Rich Froning or a Ronnie Coleman – type dude, I’ll make sure you know what supplements will help you reach your goals. First of all, for any new students, there is a Rite Aid down the street from Las Olas that has a great GNC section and even farther down the road there is an actual GNC store, which boasts a larger variety of brands. This week, since some readers are Varsity and Junior Varsity athletes currently competing, I’ll suggest supplements to take to maintain strength numbers in-season. Try taking GNC’s Amp. Or, try taking Whey Protein in either their BCAA 5000 Amino Drive formula, their L-Glutamine mix or their generic Casein protein. In addition, something to note about these supplements is that none of these products contain creatine, and I don’t suggest taking supplements that do. Such products can lead to gains, but also injury. So, stick with the supplements listed above and you will find you benefit without any major drawbacks.Finally, Lexi has a quick note about stretching. Sometimes when you stretch you might hear a pop or crack coming from your hips, knees, or other joints. As long as the cracking is not painful, no need to worry! The popping and cracking you hear is due to two main reasons. First, the popping could simply be your joints, tendons, and ligaments shifting as you stretch. When a joint moves the tendon may slide out of place. When the tendon returns back to its normal position, a popping sound is made. The other explanation to the noise is from the gas. Joints are surrounded by synovial fluid, and as the pressure of the synovial fluid decreases gas bubbles form. When you stretch, sometimes the connective tissue capsule surrounding your joint stretches too. This causes a drastic drop in pressure making the gas bubbles burst which is the cracking noise you hear (this also happens when you crack your knuckles). There’s some evidence that shows that mobility actually increases after popping your joints! So, the next time you hear popping and cracking while you are stretching know that the sounds are nothing to be concerned about.For our quote of the week we have the simple and iconic Nike saying: “Just do it!” Till next time,Lexi, Luke, and Sam P.S. Feel free to email any of us with questions throughout the term that you want answered in column at apae@exeter.edu, lagray@exeter.edu, and srgray@exeter.edu.