San Jacinto Times
Local trainer knows no bounds Vol. 21, No. 15
The Student Publication of the San Jacinto College District
March 28, 2011
www.sanjacintotimes.com
TIMES SPECIAL: HEALTH AND FITNESS
Ruhl rules at the gym BY CHRIS SHELTON San Jacinto Times
Photo by Chris Shelton/San Jacinto Times
Zack Ruhl helps his friend Dustin sculpt his biceps and shoulders.
Student gains but loses weight BY AMANDA RAE SOWA San Jacinto Times
Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Smoothies, Chips, Soda…sound about right? College students don’t have much eating choices while being stuck on campus all day, and without moms cooking, its no wonder there’s the “freshman fifteen.” Although debatable, college freshman can expect to pack on an extra 15 pounds by their first year of college. When it comes down to it, weight is a big issue in this country, and many people are not only overweight, most are simply not healthy. According to overweightteen.com, two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight. Kirsten Selley, 18, who was recently featured on MTV’s I Used To Be Fat, has struggled with unhealthy eating habits her whole life. Knowing that college cafeterias are already far
from healthy, getting ready to move away for school at her weight was a big wake up call to her. “I was sick of going around and feeling one way and then looking in the mirror and seeing a totally different person. I had always been overweight and I was sick of not looking the way I thought that I looked,” says Selley. Wanting to break her cycle, Selley dedicated her whole summer to getting healthy. I Used To Be Fat is a new show on MTV, helping teens about to start college lose the extra weight that they have been carrying, while gaining the self confidence they need to start college. The teens were set up with a personal trainer and pretty much lived in a gym for their whole summer. Selley said the program was far from easy, definitely being the hardest thing that she had ever done, claiming it was not only a physical journey, but an emotional one as well. SEE WEIGHT page 5
Zack Ruhl embodies the physical and mental attributes expected from a fitness trainer. He has the tattoo laden ripped biceps that any gym rat would covet, a personable attitude and a spirit that inspired me to attempt 50 push-ups even though I max out at seven. There is one discernable difference between Ruhl and other trainers, though; he has no legs. Any reasonable coach would accept no legs as an excuse from gym class but it is an excuse that Ruhl has never allowed to limit him. As a trainer at Fitness Connection, a localgym not far from San Jacinto College’s North Campus, the generic and mediocre excuses do not resonate with him. “I am tired” or “my arms are sore” will not be tolerated in his journey to improve the lives of those he trains. How many people can legitimately say that they have positively transformed five lives at the age of twenty one? The transformation from which Ruhl takes the most pride involves one of his closest friends, who is similarly named Zach. Zack and Zach both attended CE King high school. Today they are both trainers at Fitness Connection. This is a great example of how far a person can grow and develop in a short period of time through sheer hard work. According to Ruhl “[Zach] hit the gym with me five days a week and
gave 110 percent.” Zach was able to lose about 100 pounds or almost half of his total weight today. After weighing 300 plus pounds in high school Zach now weighs 215 pounds. He used the inspiration Ruhl offered. Ruhl noticed that what keeps most from achieving their weight loss dreams is procrastination and the expectation of a quick easy solution. Both qualities need to be shed before a person can experience the body of their dreams. Both were relinquished by Zach at the beginning of his quest to cut pounds. If you combine a mental determination with a physical guidance from a fitness trainer like Ruhl, bailout recipients American International Group (AIG) and Lehman Brothers have a better chance of failing. According to Ruhl a healthy diet intertwined with a personal training regimen is necessary to achieve your body sculpting goals. He stated “getting healthy is 40 percent diet, 20 percent cardio, and 40 percent working out.” He also warned of using cardio as your only method of fat burning because it does not tone your body as you lose weight. Instead of tight arms and washboard abs a person could be left with undesirable and excess flab. If a good proportion of weight training is used a person could burn fat and gain muscle at the same time as long as proper form is used. SEE RUHL page 5
Photos courtesy of Kirsten Selley
Kirsten Selley before (left) and after (right) displaying her amazing weight loss transformation.
From yoga to boxing, our staff gives you plenty of ways to keep fit BY ASHLEY ALLYN San Jacinto Times
Want to stay fit and healthy yet don’t know which workout program to choose? There are tons of different ways to get the body that you are looking for. Do you want to be tone, sculpted, and/or lose weight? Here are a few benefits to local fitness programs that will help make your decision in what type of workout you are looking for. Yoga- this relaxing workout will increase flexibility; increase lubrication of the joints, ligaments, and tendons; massage all the organs of the body; posture and excellent toning of the muscles. The outcome of this workout is a sense of ease and fluidity throughout your body. Pilates- this system of strengthening and stretching exercises are designed to develop the body’s core, mobilize the spine and build flexibility. From body awareness, a stronger core and body control. This workout
Next Week
Opinion
A full issue highlight- An in-depth look into the vice of alcoing the impending hol abuse. Page 2. state budget crisis. Page 2.
Google Images
Blog Post
will allow you not gain as much bulky muscles, but rather lean and tone muscles. Power Kickboxing- Depending on the extent and length of this workout, you can burn up to 1,000 calories per class. With fast pace music, kickboxing not only improves your self-defense moves but it can reduce stress, boost confidence, improve coordination, and burn off calories quick. With this full body cardio work out, you will find that you are strengthening every muscle. Mixed Martial Arts- Even if you are not interested in the M.M.A. fighting world, you can still train in M.M.A. classes to lose weight and body fat by burning up to 1,000 calories per class. With this program you can learn the art of self-defense, get fit, healthy, and toned. Other benefits also include, relieving stress, feeling rejuvenated, and increasing your energy level. Spinning- this indoor cycling class is a cardiovascular workout on a stationary bike can help to burn hundreds of calories. By controlling the tension or resistance on the bike, this will depend on the level of fitness and how challenging you want your SEE SKINNY page 5
The most interesting student blog posts of the week Page 7.