1. NOVEMBER, 2008
AB MY TH 3: DOING ABS ON A STABILIT Y BALL WILL
NEW CARDIO MACHINES
Welcome Letter IMPROVE BALANCE.
October was truly an eventful month at HFC. We The use free weights by athletes, functional training TREADMILL
had the Blue Devil 5K /10K Run/Walk and the and movement training are based on one theory
Strongman & Strongwoman Competition. called the theory of Speci city - It says strength,
balance, & coordination is very speci c to the
The weather was perfect for the race and we had movement.
over 135 runners and walkers. The Strongman
and Strongwoman had over 7 men and 4 women Simply put, if you want to get better at running, you
competitors and they all could lift some heavy run; if you want to get better at running on a treadmill,
weights. I listed all the winners for both the you run on a treadmill not outside. The more close
events. Who knows your neighbor might be in the exercise to the movement or skill which you are
there. trying to improve, the better. So if you lay on a ball
and do crunches, you will only become more
We also bought 16 new treadmills & ellipticals this balanced lying on a ball and doing crunches.
month. Now what’s your excuse for not working out?
The balance you gained lying on the ball won’t carry
Anoop Balachandran over to other activities, like running or walking. ELLIPTICAL
Health & Fitness Center Coordinator
balachandrana@uwstout.edu AB MY TH 4: HANGING LEG RAISES WORK YOUR
LOWER ABS.
Anatomically speaking, there is no lower or upper
AB EXERCISE MYTHS abs. The rectus abdominis is one single muscle. They
are called upper and lower abs because they are
AB MY TH 1: DO NOT USE WEIGHTS FOR AB
innervated by different nerves and hence could be
EXERCISES.
emphasized differently. And even if they could be
emphasized, leg raises do not do a good job.
I see this myth all the time in the gym, but see no
logic whatsoever. If you use weights for biceps, chest
and every other muscle, why not use weights for
abs? Your abdominal muscle is no different than the
rest of the muscles in the human body.
If you can already see your abs, using weights can
only make them look a lot better. If it is under a thick
layer of fat, your focus should be on your diet and COOL FEATURES:
cardio than ab exercises in the rst place.
Touch screen.
The only ones who should stay away from weights for The major function of the rectus abdominis muscle is
abs are those have a lot of fat around their abs; exion or rounding of your spine. If you are just
Charge your I-pod & view your songs on the
doing abs with weights can make their stomach look raising your legs without rounding your spine, you are
display.
mainly using a different muscle group called hip
bigger as the muscle grows underneath.
exors. This is simply because ab muscles are not
Use the landscape, track & mountain views to
attached to your legs and hence abs in no way can
AB MY TH 2: HIGH REPS WILL TONE YOUR ABS.
motivate yourself.
raise your legs. The burn you feel from leg raises is
Spot reduction is the most well known myth in mainly from the hip exors which run deep below the
Use the USB to create, download workouts and
tness. Ironically, you see people in every gym lower part of the abdomen.
track them online.
across the world trying to “spot reduce”. You cannot
lose fat from a speci c area on your body by exercis- If you want to emphasize lower abs, make sure your
Use the virtual trainer to talk you through the
round your spine when you bring your legs up. The
ing that speci c area, period.
different features of the machine.
same applies for upper abs too.
Women have more fat on the back of their triceps &
hip; men have more fat on their low abs and low back. Anoop Balachandran
It is simply because that’s how we are wired Health & Fitness Center Coordinator
genetically and is not because you do less exercise
for these speci c body parts. So it doesn’t really
matter whether you do low, medium or high reps for
your abs, or for that matter any other muscle.
When you start losing weight (eating less and doing
cardio), the body gradually loses fat from those
stubborn areas, including your abs.

2. NOVEMBER, 2008
STRONGMAN / STRONGWOMEN
BLUE DEVIL WINNERS
NEW CARDIO MACHINES
COMPETITION RESULTS
DISPLAY FEATURES
10K RUN WINNERS The eleventh annual Strongman & Strongwoman
competition was a success thanks to the many
Under 18 enthusiastic participants. Many competitors exceeded
KAYLA BRICE their expectations of their physical capabilities,
endurance, and strength at this year’s event. On behalf
19-24 of the Health and Fitness Center, we would like to
DAVID SCHONSCHECK thank all who participated. We would also like to
BRENDA HUEBSCHER congratulate this year’s winners.
25-34 After enduring The Viking Grip with 20 lb weights, the
JOE ANDERSON 70lb Farmer’s Walk, and the 150 lb Axel Dead Lift,
KRISTA MOORE Laura Freund won the woman’s por tion of the
competition. The rivalry was erce among the
35-54 women as Laura Freund and Jenny Wegner battled
JOHN ZBARNIK it out. Upon calculating all of their points, the two
JO WILSON tied. However, after the tie-breaker event, Laura won
by a mere 0.2 seconds in the Farmer’s walk!
65+
PHILIP MCGUIRK The Men’s event consisted of a choice between 400
or 450 lbs for the Axle Dead Lift, the Press Medley
event in which competitors are given one minute to
5K RUN WINNERS press the 150lb Regular Bar, the 185lb 2” axle 225lb
8” diameter log from the oor. Men also competed in
the Tire Flip and Plate Carry Competition. For this
Under 18
event, they ipped a 550lb tire 6 consecutive times,
JORDAN BRINGOLD
and then proceeded to carry a 200 lb plate down the
track and around the cones for 120 feet. The last two
19-24
events were the 300 lb Farmer’s Walk and the 25 lb
LUCAS WILSON
Tire Throw. Ryan Thompson was the overall winner for
DANIELLE BLOOMQUIST
the men and Dave Langer came second.
25-34
All participants received a wide array of prizes, and
JUAN RAMIREZ
there was a raf e contest for spectators. Thank you
EMILY HODGE
to all who made it a very fun event, we look forward
to future successful Strongman & Strongwoman
35-54
Competition.
GERALD PORTER
JEAN BRINGOLD
By Grace Brown
HFC Personal Trainer
55-64
JOHN MIKESELL
COMPETITION STANDINGS
65+
ROBERT NESVACIL Men’s Standing
RYAN THOMPSON 1
DAVE LANGER 2
JORDAN NELSON 3
JOHN TARASIK 4
JAKE REGNER 5
JUSTINE LAVALLE 6
DREW SOWLE 7
Women’s Standing
LAURA FREUND 1
JENNY WEGNER 2
AMANDA JOHNSON 3
ERIN DAHMS 4
Laura Freund, Jenny Wegner David Langer, Ryan Thompson