A exercise plan you can actually stick to
With the spring exam period quickly approaching, you’d be forgiven for straying from the exercise routine you committed to as a New Year’s Resolution. After all, an hour spent in the gym is an hour that could’ve been spent working on your summaries or catching up on readings. Nevertheless, in honing the mind, one should not neglect the body. Here are some exercises ideas that can be easily integrated into the schedule of a law student:
- Weightlifting: Dust off the 1,036 page, hardcover criminal law textbook that’s been sitting in a drawer since the end of 1L—it’s worth its weight in bicep curls. Mix in some lunges and triceps extensions and you’ll quickly work up a sweat. For added difficulty, stack a copy of the Income Tax Act on top. Perform weighted push-ups, pull-ups, and dips by wearing a backpack stuffed with all the things you need for a full slate of classes. Perform three sets of twelve repetitions for each exercise.
- Sprints: Since coffee is only available in Jackman Hall on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, on any other day of the week, getting your caffeine fix will require a trip outside the confines of the law school. Make a mad dash for the closest Starbucks in the ten-minute window between classes. You’ll appreciate the benefits of this exercise when you’re frantically scrambling through the PATH to find the office where your interview is scheduled.
- Basketball: Though the Faculty has finally relented to student demands regarding changes to the electronic exam notes policy, you can still make use of the notes you’ve already printed by employing them as ammunition in a game of trash can basketball.
- Stretching: Sit in the front row of the classroom. Each time your professor asks a question, raise your hand as high as you can. Hold the pose until your professor relents. View this exercise as an opportunity to test your understanding of the course content while improving your flexibility. If you really want to make your answer a stretch, respond using material you learned in another course that’s only loosely related to the topic at hand.
- Studying: Research suggests that intense mental activity slightly increases (10-20 cal) your daily caloric expenditure. Here’s an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone without having to leave your desk.
Editor’s Note: Ultra Vires is not responsible for any physical injuries or academic penalties you may incur as a result of following the advice in this column.
