Oh, to be Amara Okpala
Meet senior Amara Okpala, a science researcher with sculpted biceps. To keep her arms pumped for long hours of pipetting, Okpala does three sets of 20 10-pound bicep curls. She also mixes in 12 abdomen crunches between sets to keep her core strong.
After that, to ensure she’s always ready for a long day of racing around the lab, Okpala goes on a 15 minute run at an average of 6 mph. She is adamant about following her routine every other day of the week. “I’ve always had goals of getting stronger and staying consistent with exercise,” Okpala said. “By working out every other day, I allow myself ample time to recover while not falling off course.”
Without using any fancy gym equipment, Okpala’s routine is perfect for anyone looking to build some muscle this summer without needing to hit the gym.
What it means to be a gym rat
Senior Jacob Federici is no stranger to the gym. Since middle school, he’s been building muscle and today he follows a precise routine that hits all major areas: back, chest and legs.
On his “push day,” which targets the chest, shoulders and triceps, he begins with bench pressing for 10 repetitions in three sets. He follows up with four sets of 10 incline bench presses and chest flies. Finally, he finishes with five sets of 10 cable lateral raises.
On “pull day,” or “fun day” as Federici likes to call it, he starts off with four sets of 10 pull-ups and then five sets of 10 lateral pull downs. Next, he completes four sets of 10 seated rows and three sets of 10 hammer curls. He finishes up with three sets of 10 face-pulls and curls. “Pull day” is meant to target the back muscles such as the lateral dorsi and the trapezius.
For a well-rounded routine, Federici targets his legs on separate days by warming up with three sets of 10 barbell squats. Once ready to go, he does four sets of 10 hack squats, leg extensions and hamstring curls. To top the workout off, he goes for a 10 minute climb on the stairmaster.
“I’ve always found it super important to target all muscle groups,” Federici said. “In the past, I’ve endured injuries such as tendonitis because of a lack of doing so. I think my current routine helps balance my body to avoid injuries in the future.”
Addicted to the runner’s high
Junior Akshay Kumar enjoys blowing off steam by leaving competitors in the dust. As a varsity cross country runner, Kumar must focus his attention on building up his leg muscles.
Therefore, his routine starts with three sets of six goblet squats. He then does two sets of 24 calf raises and 8 barbell squats. Following this, he does three sets of eight hamstring curls followed by two sets of 10 adductors before completing two sets of leg extensions until his legs give out.
“I began running when I was younger to lose weight,” Kumar said. “Although it started off pretty hard for me, I now think of running as a relaxing activity. Working out to build leg muscle is almost a prerequisite for just getting to do what I love.”
Of course, Kumar must also run six times a week each for several miles at a time. Because of his strenuous routine, Kumar is now able to run at a sub-6-minute mile pace for three miles.
