Written By: Mohammed Ombadi
Workout and Fitness in the life of a Grad School Anteater
“For a healthy mind, one needs a healthy body” (Arabic Proverb)
The ability to maintain work-life balance is perhaps one of the most important “skills” a graduate student needs to successfully navigate the voyage of graduate school. While there are numerous ways to achieve such balance, a regular workout schedule is an excellent pathway that is arguably second to none. Investing your time and effort in workout will pay off, more than what you would expect. First and foremost, it helps you achieve a peaceful state of mind amidst the stress of classes and research, provides you with opportunities to meet and connect with new people, and of course helps you get in shape and stay healthy.
How do I start?
Personally, I started to have a regular workout schedule halfway through my second year of graduate school; needless to say, my only regret is that I did not start earlier. Following a regular schedule of workouts can be a daunting task at first; however, as it is with most things in our lives, persistence and “power of habits” is key to achieve that. Starting with a light schedule of one to two days per week is a good place to start from. Don’t over-exhaust yourself; instead keep your exercise moderately challenging and enjoyable. That way, you ensure that your body will want to go to the gym over and over again. Once workout becomes a habit, your journey towards fitness will be nothing but smooth sailing.
Where is the best place to exercise?
The Anteater Recreation Center (ARC) https://www.campusrec.uci.edu/ provides great facilities for almost all types of exercise. There are two fitness clubs within the arc; they both have weightlifting machines, free weights (dumbbells and bars) as well as cardio machines. There is also the swimming pool which can be a great help to complement your exercise. In weekdays, the ARC fitness clubs are usually open from the very early morning till after midnight which allows you to pick the most suitable time that fits your schedule. After some time, you will figure out what time is best for your schedule, and times that you may want to avoid when the ARC is crowded. If you live in off-campus housing, there are different chains of fitness clubs in Southern California that provide affordable gym subscriptions such as 24 hour fitness https://www.24hourfitness.com/ and LA fitness https://www.lafitness.com/.
What about home and outdoor exercise?
You might not always have access to fitness clubs, certainly not at the time when this blog post was written. COVID-19 has impacted the lifestyle of all humans in the globe, and similar outbreaks might occur in the future. During such times, exercise can be even more important than in normal days. Training at home can certainly be a good alternative, and there are countless resources on YouTube that teach you complete workout routines that can be performed at home with no equipment. Taking a run is another alternative which allows you to enjoy nice scenery around UCI campus while getting some exercise done. There are many places to take a run, but I recommend the circular UCI campus ring road which is approximately 1 mile long (Obviously, this helps you to track easily how many miles you ran). The William R. Mason regional park https://www.ocparks.com/parks/william/ is another nice spot that is not far from the UCI campus, and it has nice tracks for running. There are many phone applications you can use to track how many miles you ran, your average speed and many other things. I recommend the Nike Run Club app https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nike-run-club/id387771637 which is handy and easy to use.
Diet, does it matter?
Bodybuilders say “Abs are made in the kitchen” referring to the importance of diet in achieving fitness. It is most likely that you don’t intend to become a professional bodybuilder; nonetheless, diet is essential to achieve your fitness goals. Be aware of the most basic information regarding nutrition and have a healthy balanced diet of protein, fats and carbs. One phone application that you can use to track the amount of macro-nutrients you consume during the day is MyFitnessPal https://www.myfitnesspal.com/.
What did you get back?
Following a regular workout schedule has been one of the best investments during my graduate school. I often found that workout, whether at the beginning or end of the day, helps me disconnect for a brief time from thinking about my research, and consequently come back with fresh mind to tackle the problems at hand. In some occasions, I had “Eureka” moments during or right after my workouts. I was also lucky to meet many interesting people and make friendships in fitness clubs.