Everyone has a different fitness regimen, and certain things impact each person’s body differently, regardless of whether balancing fitness and college coursework is of utmost vitality. Keeping that in mind, let’s dive into one of the student-led fitness clubs at Seattle Central, which assist students in finding a routine that matches their fitness goals, interests, and prior workout experience.
Central’s Weightlifting club, led by Vice President Franklin Wetzel, meets once a week at the Mitchell Activity Center (MAC) from 12:00 P.M. to 1:00 P.M. Their meetings discuss agenda items and upcoming events, typically followed by a presentation on weightlifting or fitness-related topics, sometimes including demonstrations and short workout sessions. The club provides an in-depth idea of the practice and guidance from certified trainers and competitive powerlifters. Being a part of the Weightlifting club prepares students to do any fitness activity within any club, exercising their strength.
Wetzel explains that resistance training is an extremely important component of a fitness regimen. “I believe fairly recently there have been a few studies that indicate that just retaining muscle mass can have a lot of beneficial impacts to cognitive performance, so your mental and emotional health and wellbeing, as well as long-term health,” says Wetzel. Retaining muscle mass is very important for maintaining a good quality of life, not just for the sake of the ability to do things but for the sake of having a healthy, robust metabolism. In addition, it contributes to a healthy nervous system – good cardiorespiratory fitness and good metabolic conditioning. “The goal of the club is to bring diversity [to the practice],” explains Wetzel.
Regarding whether students get a trainer or train on their own, Wetzel states, “The general idea is that the club will give anyone an opportunity to meet like-minded people and ask questions.” So far, the club has not done any hands-on demonstrations; it has simply held administrative meetings—something the team hopes to change. “We want to create more hands-on training so that people are lifting safely and understand basic biomechanics,” concludes Wetzel.
Regarding diets, Wetzel shares that “I’m a personal trainer, and I encourage my clients to eat intuitively. If food makes you feel energized if it makes you feel ready for the day if it makes you happy, that is good food to eat,” he says.
Moving on to the question of whether the club requires people to have prior fitness experience, Wetzel explains that “weightlifting is absolutely for everyone at any level of fitness. It doesn’t matter if you’re young and you’re just getting into it; weightlifting is for you. If you’re 84 years old, like my oldest client, weightlifting is absolutely for you. … it is not limited to any particular segment of the population in any way.”
If you are interested in joining the Weightlifting Club or exploring other fitness opportunities, visit the Student Leadership Building or All Clubs.
Author
Vrindha, an international student from India, is fueled by her fervent love for diverse art forms such as dance, drama, music and theatre. Eager to immerse herself in new experiences and broaden her horizons, she sees her involvement with the Collegian as a gateway to both sharing her passions and delving into new realms of knowledge.
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