Gym Bros or Book Worms? Student Fitness Guide
Now that we’ve gone on some exciting jogs and walks from the last post, it’s time to hit the gym! At university, you can’t overestimate the importance of staying healthy – both physically and mentally – throughout stressful assignment seasons and long fun weekends. I’m personally not the biggest fan of gym culture, and full-time study combined with part-time work and a rich student social life doesn’t leave me too much time and space to do sports. But just imagine how nice it is to get out there once in a while and shake it all off! Check out some of my absolute favourite fun sporty spots around London on a map:
1. Gyms (Blue Pins)
Now, gym might be the quickest solution to all your New Year’s resolutions and late-night shower reflections, when you decide to finally get your life ‘sorted’, learn five new languages, and get back into reading. London has a vibrant gym scene, offering memberships of all price categories according to your personal goals in health and fitness. I personally prefer group classes (see the next section of this blogpost) but do drop by a gym once in a while to exercise with no coach pressure. If you really find ‘your zone’, swipe some training advice from YouTube and just go with the flow, the experience can be very relaxing and even therapeutic. It especially helps me throughout busy exam seasons – if you figure out a comfy routine to interchange mental and physical exercise, you’ll find yourself more energized and motivated than ever!
As a busy student I would strongly suggest you purchase a range of individual before committing to longer contracts classes or just top up your membership card as you go. You’ve always got so many options! PureGym, for example, has facilities local to Goldsmiths in Greenwich and Lewisham, is fairly cheap, and doesn’t require a contract. At the same time, it can get very busy, so make sure you schedule off-peak visits to secure the best spots at weightlifting stations, cardio machines, and changing room lockers. My personal favourite in London, however, would be Fitness First, as their London Bridge location has multiple workout rooms, a swimming pool, and even a sauna! As a student, I don’t get to go on many beach holidays, so a quick swimming session could really replace a good SPA.
2. Teamwork (Green Pins)
The hardest thing in learning a new healthy habit is always starting. Going to the gym can feel quite overwhelming – everybody just seems to know what they’re doing so well! What helps me get through the initial challenges of working out is grabbing a friend to assist me with my new IT-girl lifestyle. Having a trusted accountability partner could definitely help you strengthen your connection, find some new fun activities, and build a fresh friend group around sports! I love a good group class, my favourite being Pilates at Frame in Shoreditch – located in a hip area straying not too far away from Goldsmiths, full of young staff and attendees, and offering student and loyalty discounts. Another great tool would be Class Pass – a new app to buy credits for wellness appointments, where you get 52 free credits as a new customer, can connect to other gym-goers and schedule group sporty hangouts. If you grab a friend for a workout, make a day out of it – treat yourself to some delicious lunch after a sweaty class and plan your next session straight away.
Finally, Goldsmiths student Union offers affordable yearly and termly memberships to over 100 societies, including sports clubs, such as badminton, volleyball, basketball, football, jogging, MMA, tennis, pole dancing, and more. Enrolling yourself in some could be a brilliant way to meet other students, make life-long friends, improve your fitness skills, and even perform in some inter-university competitions. Some societies also offer discounted or free tickets to watch big sports events, so a membership with them is really a bargain. I personally do tennis, and recently realized that my strongest friendships and biggest motivation to do sports at university comes exactly from our weekly coached and social sessions. The grind is tough, but I always leave looking forward to more!
3. Funzies (Orange Pins)
And finally, remember that at the end of the day, staying sporty is just really not that deep. If you’re not enjoying yourself, don’t spend your precious university time on a tedious activity! While resilience is crucial to achieve tangible results, it is the experience throughout that will determine whether sports are for you. This is why I love occasionally saturating my fitness routine with fun activities, and sometimes even totally reduce it to them. Don’t underestimate the ‘silly’ (as season gym bros would put it) activities, as they could help you develop a passion for healthy challenge and only boost your interest in sports. Go climbing, bowling, mini-golfing, play pool or visit a ball pit – every little counts! Fitness might not be your first priority at university (I would actually be far more surprised if it was), so you might as well make a day out of it.
A brilliant location for some fun exercises would be the Arch climbing wall in Surrey Quays and Bermondsey. Bouldering can significantly increase your strength and time flies extremely fast, as this sport basically feels like a computer game in real life. Each wall is of different incline, height, and level of difficulty – would you like to find out how many mounts you can conquer? Dance classes are also great fun – you feel like you’re on a disco night out, while also spending healthy energy! I attended some at the London Dance Academy and, again, in the SU – and absolutely loved them all. The summer is fast approaching too, so if you prefer outdoor activities, grab some friends for a BBQ, a swim, and a tan at the Hampstead Heath ponds, which will both be such a nice day out and properly engage your muscles.