Patrycja Popowicz

Do you want that summer body before the weather warms up? Well, there is a secret that most girls do not know about and you are about to find out!

Most girls stay clear of the weight room on campus because they either do not know what to do, or are intimidated by the atmosphere of all guys lifting. However, if you add a weight routine when you go to the gym, you will get a lean, more toned, and strong body FASTER!

How you may ask? When you do just cardio, you are only making areas of your body slimmer without any control of your trouble areas. After a 20-30 minute cardio warm-up, whether it is on the machines or a run outside, you should hit the weight room.

Once you are in the weight room, allow yourself about 10 minutes of stretching your legs, arms, and back to avoid any future injuries and increase your flexibility. Then, plan each day based on the areas of the body that you want to focus on. So, one day you will do all legs and the other day you will do arms, etcetera. Ideally, you would want to do 2-3 sets of 20-25 repetitions with each exercise.

On the days that you decide to focus on achieving that toned 6-pack that you have always wanted, start with 50 basic crunches followed by side crunches. Continue with planks (both on your elbows and on your side), bicycle crunches, crunches on the yoga ball, and reverse crunches. You can also add vertical crunches, Russian twists, and the rowboat.

The love handles are one of the trickiest areas to get rid of. There is a machine in the weight room, called the Roman Chair, which targets that specific area (as well as every other abs). You start with back extensions lying facedown along the machine, and once you are in a secure position grab a 10 lbs. weight and bend down at the waist. Then straighten your body out with each repetition. Do the same on the sides.

With every gym session, a girl wants to be able to show off her progress of her new toned, lean body. What better way to show off what you got than with your cute gym outfits? The outfits are half the game when it comes to attracting attention from those who are at the gym. Cute gym outfits do not only possess the capability of flaunting your best features, but they also have the power of giving you that extra motivation to work out harder because YOU LOOK SO GOOD!

Now, most people struggle with what is considered to be “appropriate gym wear.” What is the best thing that you can wear that will not only make you feel confident but also project that level of confidence to others? Well, this is where I come in to save the day. As an avid gym rat, I have been a member of many gyms in different states and have gotten the overall picture of what is popular at the gym scene.

The most popular piece of clothing is yoga pants! Not only do they show off your shapely behind, but they are primarily found in black (a slimming color at all angles) with a little bit of extra glam with the neon, bedazzled bands around the waist. What’s even better with the yoga pants is that they do not give you the illusion of a “muffin top” that you do not have because of their tightness of the waist. They make me feel confident to work out in ANYTHING, and that’s saying something.

Year: Sophomore
Hometown: Shrewsbury, MA
Major: Not Declared. Intended Major in Politics Psychology and Minor in Theater and Social Justice Policy

HerCampus: You have been featured in a 24-Hour musical here at Brandeis. How did you start your
career in theater?
Sneha: So, I have known about the 24-hr musical since last year by a couple of friends who did it. I do
theater on campus, but I didn’t do the 24-hour last year. I really regretted it. So, I took the
chance to try it out this year. I’ve always like theater in high school, but never really got involved. Last
semester I decided to do the comcasting (for In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play) where you basically
try out for a bunch of shows through one audition, and I was cast in a show. I had a really good time.
This semester I am in a theater class, and I’m also in Macbeth this semester.

She teaches possibly the hardest topic on the planet (Organic Chemistry), she runs around throwing frisbees with her teammates, and also is saving homeless animals back at home! This girl is multifaceted, and this is why Ari Boltax was recently awarded the Brandeis Achievement award along with a $5,000 scholarship per semester for all her accomplishment. Want to get inside the brain of this science athlete and see what gets her motivated?  Keep reading!

Name:Ari Boltax
Hometown: Great Neck, Long Island
Major: Chemistry and Biology
Minor: HSSP
Year: 2014

Her Campus: Congratulations on receiving the prestigious Brandeis Achievement Award Ari! Would you be able to tell Her Campus readers more about the award and what it entails?
Ari Boltax: The award is offered to sophomores with a GPA of 3.5 or higher who have made significant contributions to the community. A total of five are chosen from all the applicants. The application processes consisted of an essay describing the how you contributed to the community and two letters of recommendation from Brandeis faculty. The other recipients of the award this year were Fiona Aguilar '14, Daniel Boyle '14, Rebecca DeHovitz '14 and Sara Shahanaghi '14.