Interhall Council's Herd The Werd: December 2014 - January 2015 Issue by Rosilda Xavier

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New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Resolutions

Story Time with Jack Moonlight Trip

Random Acts of Kindness Fighting Winter Blues

Note to My Grade 12 Self

Safe Gryphon App

Herd The Werd Committee Editor-in-Chief John Paul (JP) Pendon Fiona Cashell Watson Hall Jack Fisher Johnston Hall Wolfgang Kaufmann Prairie Hall Chirag Patney East Hall

T A B L E

Costa Soutos Mountain Hall Cassandra Topalis Maritime Hall Rachel Cass Lambton Hall Featured Contributors Claire Bilik (SNAP) Ms. Sheila Atwell (Hospitality Services) Praveen Atheray Lindsay Williams

3 4 7 9

O F

Kaitlyn Ruiter Lennox-Addington Hall Rebecca Young Artz Haus

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C O N T E N T S

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Why It Sucks Having a Holiday Birthday? Note to My Grade 12 Self Ways to Workout in Your Room Elfism: Are You Truly a Holiday Moive Buff? 10 of the Biest Forgotten Holiday Movies Easy Holiday Cooking Random Acts of Kindness Tips to Beat the Winter Blues On Resolutions Tips to be Successful with Your Fitness Goals for 2015 Eighteenth Falling Into Place Make this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Resolution your last Safe Gryphon App Story Time with Jack: Moonlight Trip Movie Review: Mocking Jay

Why It Sucks Having a Holiday Birthday? By Cassandra Topalis

Your birthday is the one day a year when everything revolves around you. You get to choose the day’s activities, spend time with all your favorite people and get awesome surprises just for you... That is, unless you share your birthday with a holiday. Those of you who have holiday birthdays totally understand the struggles. So here are the biggest struggles that come with being born on a holiday. 1. Everyone forgets your birthday. There’s so much going on during the holidays, and everyone’s so busy baking, decorating, shopping, and traveling that sometimes your special day gets lost in the holiday craze. Sometimes even your close friends don’t remember your birthday; sending a “Merry Christmas” text rather than a “Happy Birthday”. 2. You never get to do what you want to do. Holidays come with endless family gatherings and visits, which means you end up spending the majority of your break with your extended family. Of course you totally love the fam, but spending what’s supposed to be your day listening to your Uncle Bob’s dumb jokes and dealing with your crazy zoo-like cousins was not what you had in mind as the perfect birthday. 3. All your friends are busy hanging with their families, too. Even if your parents would let you hang with friends over the holiday, all your friends still have to spend the holiday with their families. So, hanging out with your pals on your birthday just isn’t an option. 4. You have to share the spotlight. Your birthday is supposed to be all about you, but you’re upstaged every year by Santa, the Easter bunny, even Cupid or whatever holiday you had the misfortune of being born on or around. 5. No surprise parties for you! Sharing your birthday with a holiday pretty much guarantees that you’ll never have a birthday party on the actual day of your birthday. And you can forget having a surprise party! Everyone is too busy planning holiday gettogether’s and wrapping presents to also plan an elaborate surprise party for little ol’ you. 6. Annoying holiday theme parties. Even if you share your birthday with a less commercialized holiday, like St. Patrick’s Day or Halloween, and your friends and family actually have time to plan a party for you, it’s always all about that holiday. Their intentions are good, but you wish you didn’t have to wear a themed-costume to your birthday party every year. It gets to the point where even your friends are annoyed that every year they have to dress like the lucky charms mascot just because your birthday is March 17th.

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7. No birthday cake. Being born on holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas means that everyone will be baking pies, cookies, and other yummy treats already, which means there’s no point in making a separate birthday cake for you. 8. Everyone gets gifts on your birthday. Is it selfish to want just one day where you get to open awesome presents while everyone watches jealously? Sharing your birthday with Christmas pretty much guarantees you never have to worry about giving anyone gift envy on your birthday. What also sucks is when your fellow family members, especially your siblings, get even better gifts than you do.

S9. Double duty gifts. If you are born on a holiday that includes presents, like Christmas, to save time and money, people will often only give you one present. You get it… but at the same time? You totally don’t. In a way, you get the short end of the stick because instead of getting one gift on each celebration, you get one gift which is cheaper for the gift-giver but unfortunate for you. 10. Everyone wraps your gifts in holiday wrapping paper. You appreciate the gifts and all, but when your presents are all wrapped in the same paper as your siblings’, they don’t exactly feel like special birthday gifts and just make you feel kind of irrelevant. 11. You have to wait all year for your gifts. Most people have two chances to get gifts every year, but not if you share your birthday with Christmas or Hannukah. Not only do you have to wait an entire year to get your gifts, but you also have to make sure your wish list is on point because you only have one chance to get the perfect presents you asked for. On the bright side, depending on your birthday holiday, you usually have at least a few days of vacation for your birthday. If you get really “lucky” and your birthday holiday falls in late December, you get a couple weeks!

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Notes to My Grade 12 Self By Fiona Cashell It’s a new year, new semester, and a fresh start for all of us. While this annual transition makes us look to the future, we are also forced to look back at how far we’ve come in the past twelve months. For many of us, this involved graduating from high school and becoming a part of the University of Guelph. Over a semester, we have gained so much more perspective than we had last summer. Here are the top ten things I would tell my grade 12 self if I had the chance. 1. Relax. It seems like your entire future is in your hands at this moment, but trust me, you have time to change your mind about a lot of things, including your major. 2. The total amount you spent on prom? That’s about the amount you’ll spend on books first semester. 3. Taking a gap year won’t ruin your chances in university. Sometimes you need a little time to find what you really want in life. 4. Don’t ask people about their specific grades. You never know how hard someone had to work to achieve that mark. 5. Sometimes you will work really hard at something and it won’t result in a high mark. It will hurt, but you will carry on. 6. No one cares about who got early acceptance once you get to university. 7. As much as graduation is hyped up to being a big good bye, you will see a lot of those people again. Those times will either be exciting or really awkward. 8. You may not admit it, but you’re going to get a little homesick. 9. University won’t be as hard, easy, fun, frustrating, or predictable as you think it will be. It’ll be unlike any of your expectations, and that’s what makes it great. 10. You’ll be okay.S

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Ways to Workout in Your Room! By Wolfgang Kaufmann NOTE: PerformPerform all exercises at your own risk. We at HTW are not responsible for any harm you inflict upon yourself. We all know the benefits of regular exercise. But we all have those moments where we don’t want to venture to the gym or bundle up for a run outdoors. Don’t you worry fitness fanatics! I’ve got some dorm friendly exercises for you so you don’t have to venture far to get fit. Callisthenic or Body Weight Training: The most popular type of dorm room training is callisthenic or body weight training, and rightfully so! You don’t need any equipment and your body can provide you with all you need for a good workout. Here are some of the most popular moves: Pushups: Pushups are one of the most popular exercises, great for building upper body strength in your chest, triceps and anterior deltoids. In addition, pushups aid in core stability if done with correct form.

Pushups can get repetitive as you are able to do more. If you feel confident, try these push up variations to add variety into your dorm room workouts: Slow Down the Tempo: Try doing a push up that takes you 8 seconds on the way down to reach the bottom of the rep, then take another 8 to go back up. Try out longer or shorter tempos. Explosive pushups: Control the pushup on the negative part of the rep then explode up as high as you can and control the rep till you reach the end of the negative part of the push up.

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Squats: Squats are by far one of the best exercises for your lower body. Squats primarily work the three main muscle groups in your legs; your quads, hamstrings, and glutes. Squats can help with leg strength stability and if you do squat jumps can also help with power. When you get bored of regular squats, try these variations! Squat jumps: This oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pretty simple: you squat down and jump up as high as you can. PRO TIP: donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t jump so high that you hit your head onff the ceiling. One Leg Pistol Squats: With pistol squats try to squat down like you normally would, but only keep the one leg planted and the other as straight as possible.

Plank: Planking is one of the best exercises for core stability. Planking is easy to set up -- just focus on squeezing in your abs, lower back and glutes, and try to keep your body as flat as possible. For your plank, you should have only four main points of contact with the ground: your two forearms and your toes. Planking primarily works your transverse abdominis. Start by testing how long you can plank for, then practice holding it longer each time. Once you master a basic plank, try these variations: Side plank: Rather than four points of contact roll over on to your side and use only two. Start on one side then match it on the other side. Herd The Werd

One Arm Planks: Now when you’re in your plank, hold it and lift on arm straight ahead of you. This will provide a different stimulus that your body will have to adjust to. Remember to switch arms and match your time on the other side. In conclusion, you don’t always need a gym to get your sweat on! This is only scratching the surface of what your room can offer in terms of a workout. Remember, no excuses! Anywhere can be a gym as long as you make it one! (Well, maybe not in class…)

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Elfisms: Are You Truly a Holiday Movie Buff? By Lindsay Williams

Every holiday season, a common tradition amongst many Canadian households is watching their favourite holiday movies. From the spirited ‘Elf’, to the time-honoured ‘Home Alone’ series. From the romantic-comedy ‘favourite Four Christmases’ to the original ‘cartoon ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’ and the newly adapted version featuring Jim Carrey. Every family has their go to. Are you willing to test your knowledge of these seasonal favourites? Out of the selected lines from these Holiday classics, fill in the blank with the answer you think is correct! Best of luck! 1. “I love smiling,_______________!” Elf (2003) A. “Smiling makes me happy!” B. “ Smiling makes others happy!” C. “ Smiling is my favourite!” D. “ Everyone smiles at the North Pole!” S 2. “This is my house,_____________.” Home Alone (1990) A. “and I’m home alone” B. “I have to stay here.” C. “I should hide.” D. “I have to defend it.” 3. “If you utter so much as one syllable, ____________________! If you’d like to fax me, press the star key.” The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (2000) A. “I WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR TOYS!” B. “I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND GUT YOU LIKE A FISH!” C. “I WILL KICK THE DOG ACROSS THE STREET!” D. “I WILL PREVENT YOUR CHILDREN FROM HAVING CHILDREN!” 4. “Nora Krank, we’re here for ________!” Christmas With the Kranks (2004) A. “Frosty!” B. “Turkey!” C. “Presents!” D. “Cookies!”

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5. “I believe... I believe... it’s silly, but _______.” Miracle on 34th street (1947) A. “I believe.” B. “I believe in Santa Clause.” C. “I want a puppy.” D. “I feel the Christmas spirit.” 6. “Fella, _______________, I’m just looking for your Santa Clause (1994) identification. As soon as I find out who you are, I’ll give you a lift back to the mall.” A. “If you’re alive,” B. “If you’re breathing,” C. “If you can hear me,” D. “If you can still move,” 7. “She falls down a well, ___________. She gets kicked by a mule. They go back. I don’t know.” National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989) A. “Her eyes go cross.” B. “She gets a dent in her head.” C. “Her arms go all out of wack.” D. “Her eyes go wide.” 8. “There’s children throwing snowballs/ instead of throwing heads/ they’re busy building toys/ and absolutely no one’s __________!” A. “In Bed!” B. “Ahead!” C. “Said!” D. “Dead!” 9. “The trouble with being the Prime Minister’s sister is, it does put your life into rather harsh perspective. What did my brother do today? He stood up and fought for his country. And what did I do? I made ___________________.” A. “supper for my family.” B. “my bed this morning.” C. “ a fool of myself somehow.” D. “a papier mache lobster head.”

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Love Actually (2003)

10. “There’s no greater gift than ___________.” A. “Family” B. “Being alive.” C. “Friendship.” D. “Love.”

ANSWERS: 1. C 2. D 3. B 4. A 5. A 6. C 7. A 8. D 9. D 10. C Herd The Werd

10 of the Best Forgotten Holiday Movies By Rebecca Young #1- Babes in Toyland

#4-R-Xmas

If you have not already experienced the masterpiece that is Babes in Toyland, please do. It is a classic of the ages, and even if you feel like the Drew Berrymore re-make is more your speed, I guarantee you will feel happiness in your heart when you watch this movie. The population of Toyland will make you reminisce of the days of yore, with such classic characters as Mary Quite Contrary, Little Bo Peep, and Mother Goose, from everyone’s favourite classic nursery rhymes. Worth the watch for the nostalgia and the laughs.

This is another beautiful tale of giving and spirit of good will in the holidays that you have probably skipped over. This is the tale of a drug dealer’s last stand, as he is kidnapped and held at ransom on Christmas Eve. You probably didn’t watch this last Christmas, so why not change it up? Featuring Ice-T.

#2-WhiteChristmas White Christmas is an excellent movie about love, loss, and the spirit of giving. It starts with these gentlemen in the war, who are performers for the troops. After the war they go on to do great things and become very famous in the entertainment business. Along this journey, they meet some lovely ladies who they take with them on a trip up north to go skiing and frolicking in the snow, where they run into their old general from the war whom has a failing chalet business. As you can imagine, this is a heart-warming tale, truly in the spirit of Christmas, it’s absolutely hilarious, and did I mention it’s very musical? #3-All that Heaven Allows This is a pretty sad story about a lonely widow who finds happiness in a much younger gardener, but her greedy kids guilt her into leaving him to live the rest of her life alone. Yet another moral Christmas story for the ages, although there are dark undertones, (and overtones) this movie sure will show you a meaning of Christmas, for some people.

#5-Meet me in St Louis Meet me in St. Louis a feel-good family movie starring Judy Garland and set in a town in St. Luis around 1904. Love and deception play a role in this classic tale, and many songs are sung in the spirit of the holidays. In this Movie Judy Garland initially debuted the song, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, and it was a success. Worth the watch if you like romance, drama and musicals . #6-Bad Santa This movie starts off with a crooked Santa and his elf accomplice as they attempt to rob department stores. As the plan goes awry, the miserly Santa realises his bad deeds and learns the true meaning of Christmas. It truly is an ode to the Grinch, stealing the presents on Christmas Eve and all that, as well as his learning a lesson business that always seems to follow the trend of holiday movies, to show the true humanity of it all. #7-BlackChristmas For a change of pace, here is a horror movie based around the plot of a murdering psychopath who returns to his childhood home to find it taken over by a sorority, and murders ensue on Christmas eve. One major plot hole in this story is that there would be no reason for them to still

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be in their sorority house over Christmas, however then there would be no-one for the psychopath to kill and it would destroy the whole plot. I digress, this is a nice Christmas movie if you want scary and not joyous, this Christmas season. #8-Less than Zero (1987) This is less of a Christmas movie, more of a teen 80’s movie, but young Robert Downey Jr. is in it so that’s exciting. It mostly about a guy who returns home at his x-girlfriend’s request, and finds his best friend has fallen into an out-of-control drug habit, and he helps him through it. It really shows how people can change and help others in their time of need instead of focusing on themselves. That is what the holiday season is all about. #9-Scrooged If you have not seen Scrooged, you are missing out. Bill Murray is a treasure and always has been, especially playing a rich, selfish business owner. This is a modern-adaptation to a Christmas carol, and as always, Bill pulls it off with aplomb. Heart-warming, emotionally –charged and full of good cheer- truly a movie for the holidays. #10-Comfort and Joy Yet another different take on Christmas, this is the story of a woman who is a materialist, and then she gets in a horrific car accident, and wakes up to a family of two kids and she mostly works from home. This is a story of perspective, and changing the view and outlook on life to realize that there is more than material wealth and possessions. Christmas can come without packages boxes or bags.

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Easy Holiday Cooking Mashed Potatoes • large russet potatoes, peeled and cut in half lengthwise •1/4 cup butter •1/2 cup whole milk •salt and ground black pepper to taste Directions Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20-25 min. Drain, and let dry. Mash the potatoes and add butter and milk. Mash until fluffy- no chunks. READY IN 40 MIN.

Peel, core and slice apples and mix in sugar and cinnamon.

YIELD: 8 SERVINGS

Apple Cider

Directions Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F Whip butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Stir in confectioner's sugar, cornstarch and flour. Beat on low for one minute, then on high for 3-4 minutes. Drop Cookies by spoonfuls onto and ungreased cookie sheet.

READY IN 25 MIN. YIELD-2 DOZENS

Directions

Cook for 50-60 Min. at 350 degrees F

1 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup confectioners sugar 1/4 cup cornstarch 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Bake for 12-15 min. in preheated oven.

• 2 1/2 pounds medium Granny Smith and Golden Delicious apples (about 5 or 6), peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick • 2 to 3 tablespoons granulated sugar • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon • 1/4 teaspoon fine salt • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar • 1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour • 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter(1/2 stick), cut into small pieces, plus more for coating the dish

Then mix the oats, brown sugar and butter for the streusel, and sprinkle over the apples in the dish.

Shortbread • • • •

SSApple Crisp

• • • • •

1 (64 fluid ounce) bottle apple cider 3 cinnamon sticks 1 teaspoon whole allspice 1 teaspoon whole cloves 1/3 cup brown sugar

Directions In a slow-cooker combine apple cider and cinnamon sticks. Wrap allspice and cloves in a small piece of cheesecloth and add to pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. READY IN 1 Hr. MAKES 8 SERVINGS

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Random Acts of Kindness Talk to the Shy Person Sitting Alone

Write a Real Letter and Mail it 13

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Put Sticky Notes of Encouragement on the Mirrors in Restrooms

Donate to Charity

Hold the Elevator

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Give Up Your Seat on Public Transit

Buy Someone a Coffee

Call Someone You Miss Herd The Werd

Leave Some Change for Someone at the Vending Machine

Take a Smile

Write a Note of Encouragement to Someone Who Inspires You Give an Unexpected Gift Herd The Werd

Tips to Beat the Winter Blues By Wolfgang Kaufmann

Get outside when it’s light out The short amounts of sunlight in the winter can sometime leave you feeling tired and exhausted. Nothing the sun can’t cure though! So this winter season bundle up in your warmest clothes go out and enjoy the sunlight in the winter!

Drink Hot Beverages Sometimes one of the things that can keep us feeling the winter blues is the constant cold. But beat the coldness by filling yourself with something hot! On campus there’s no shortage of places to get hot beverages. We’ve got multiple tim hortons scattered around campus, two starbucks location, in every residence area you can find a place to get a hot drink whether you go to mountain cafe in south or creelman in north. Grab yourself some tea, coffee or hot chocolate and beat those cold blues!

Plan something fun everyday One thing that can also bring down spirits in the winter is not planning anything fun! In the summer something is always happening so why not keep it going into the winter?! So be sure to everyday have something to look forward too. This will keep you motivated to keep working hard till its time to relax and have some fun! This fun thing could be anything from grabbing dinner with a friend to kicking back and watching an episode of your favourite show.

Winter Activities There is only a limited portion of time every year where we can enjoy certain winter activities. So take advantage of this short amount of time and stop dreading winter! Also if you haven’t tried all the winter actives challenge yourself and try something new! There’s no shortage of activities: theres skating, skiing,, snowshoeing, snowboarding, snowball fights, snow fort building and the list goes on. Herd The Werd

Tobogganing While the snow is here go tobogganing. Even if you don’t have a toboggan get creative and make one/repurpose something to be a toboggan. Some popular makeshift toboggans include laminated calendars, trays of all types and sitting on a friend’s snowboard/ski equipment. Be sure to use all the warm/waterproof clothing you have because it can get pretty wild on the hills!

Have a summer themed get together Get our your swim trunks and put on your floral shirts because if we can’t make it hot we will convince ourselves it is! Summer themed get togethers are great because you get to rock your summer attire in a time where it’d normally be unacceptable and forget about the cold weather. You can also finish off your summer themed get together with a midnight swim at the UofG pool just like you’re swimming in the summer again.

Keep healthy eating habits Lastly, eat healthy! No matter what time of year healthy eating can always help your mood. In the winter especially healthy eating habits tend to go out the window because the constant cold weather makes us hungrier and hungry for the foods that are higher in fat. So help keep your body happy and fuel it well and keep kicking out those winter blues.

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On Resolutions: Ah, the New Year. A time for celebration, new beginnings, and –for some of us- a night of questionable (albeit happy) choices. So hey, what’s not to love? As of today (the 4th of January) it is officially time to get back in the saddle and start off the new semester with a running start. Although personally, it might be more of a slowish-zombie-march as I try to completely re-establish my horrendously erratic sleeping patterns; so I can wake up for all my 8:30am classes. That being said, I really am very excited to be back! I’m looking forward to learning about all the complex and (mostly) interesting things in my courses, hanging out with friends, and getting involved around campus and the city! Another important part of this time of the year is the ever (in)famous New-year’s annual resolution. Many of us tend to use the New Year as starting point in accomplishing our goals. Whether those goals are getting more involved, hitting the gym, better grades, learning to knit, making new friends, or even just getting enough sleep; January is a good time for step one. So in these resolutions, something that helps me take that step is by making sure that it’s not too big. That is to say, I’m not going to be able to lift my body weight overnight… or if I am I should probably go talk to Guinness World Records… or a doctor. So what I do, and what I’d encourage others to do, is to break down my goals into much smaller, more attainable parts that I know I can finish. Video games are an excellent example here; you don’t fight the biggest baddest boss at level one. You just don’t. Big stretches seem smaller when you take them in parts. The second thing that I would suggest is to know what motivates you and use it to achieve your goals. I’m not sure I’m able to describe this more than that, but for example: maybe I’ll hold off on that episode of Netflix till I’ve finished reading a few chapters of my textbook. Then who knows, maybe I’ll start on that assignment I’ve been procrastinating. It’s still hard, and I’m still suck at essay writing, but now I’ve started it. Maybe all your resolutions didn’t hold, or maybe you still have a long way to go. Either way I’m just so very, very proud of you. You’ve made it this far; you made it through last semester, and you’ll make it through this one. Good luck you magnificent, beautiful, fantastic Gryphon. Have an excellent semester. -Megan

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Tips to be Successful with your Fitness Goals for 2015 It’s that time of year again! Time for New Year’s resolutions and goals for 2015!

Quite often one of the most common resolutions that I’m sure we’ve all heard am “I wanted to improve my fitness and live a healthier lifestyle” (or some variation of that). Although this is common resolution it tends to be one of the most challenging to follow through on. But although there are challenges there are many strategies to overcome these challenges. Here are some of the best strategies to help you achieve your goals and follow through with your resolution all the way to 2016! Tell Someone Your Goals! It’s one of the easiest yet most effective things you can do to be successful with your resolution. It not only forces you to commit to your own goals but it also gives you someone else to hold you accountable outside of yourself. This works best with someone who you are really close with or spend a lot of time with so that they can be sure you are continuing to commit to your resolution. Have Specific Goals It’s hard to follow through with a plan if you have no idea of what you’re trying to achieve so set a specific goal for yourself. Some of the most common ones I’m sure we’ve all heard are “I want to get bigger” or “I want to lose weight” but those don’t have a timeline or a concrete goal. A better example of more specific concrete goals are “I want to be in the gym for 45 minutes each session 4 times a week for 10 weeks and put on 4 pounds of muscle” or “I want to do yoga 2 times a week for 8 weeks and be able to hold a tripod headstand at the end of the 8 weeks”. These not only sound better when you’re telling someone, they also remind you of exactly what you want to achieve. Explore your options There are unlimited options of ways to keep fit outside of the stereotypical treadmill and weights approach that seems to pull resolutions in. Although the weights and cardio room are awesome options for pursuing your fitness resolutions don’t be afraid to explore. At UofG alone there is Rock Climbing, Dance Classes, Zumba, tons of intramural sports, Swimming, Yoga, Tabata Classes, squash, boxing, skating and the list goes on. I’m sure you’ll be able to find one(if not many) on campus fitness options that you enjoy. Herd The Werd

Write your specific goals down and post them somewhere where you look frequently Although this may seem like it could get annoying to be constantly looking at what you have to do, it isn’t all that bad as long as you’re keeping up working towards your goal. It’s only when you start losing motivation that it gives you a friendly reminder to keep working. Some great places to post your goals are: as your phone background, on your wall in large letters and/or in your wallet/purse. Give yourself time Nothing worth achieving will happen overnight and this is especially true for fitness. As a general outline it is said that it takes 4 weeks of hard work for you to notice change in yourself, 8 weeks for your friends to notice and 12 weeks for everyone else to notice. And Despite what miracle pill or magic treatment you hear about there is no substitute for hard work and time. If there was a magic pill that worked I’m sure we’d all be taking it, but there’s no substitute for good old fashioned hard work. Don’t forget about your diet! What you put into your body is just as important as keeping active. Being sure to eat healthy is essential for achieving any fitness goal because how can you perform at your best without being fueled properly. Being fit is a lifestyle choice and it requires that you devote just as much time to what you’re eating along with the time you spend exercising. Hope all these tips will help you be successful with your fitness resolutions for 2015. I’d love to hear your resolutions as well as share mine with you so we can both motivate one another and hold each other accountable. Feel free to email at wkaufman@mail.uoguelph.ca with your goals or if you have any questions related to goal setting and fitness. Peace, Love and Healthy Living

- Wolfgang

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Over this winter break I had the once in a lifetime chance to turn 18 years old. The big passage from childhood to adulthood. Yet, for me it just felt like any other day. I still woke up the same. I still ate my cereal like every other morning and then I just watched cartoons on TV. The point I’m trying to make here is that I still feel the same as I did when I was 17. Only real difference now is I can vote and buy lottery tickets. Two things that I probably won’t be doing any time soon anyway. So why all this hype? I’d like to know who decided that 18 was the age we become adults anyway? Is it because we can legally get married now? Because in Kenya it’s 16 and in China it’s 22 for men and 20 for women. So, that can’t be it. How about the fact that we can legally vote now? Well, in Brazil the legal age to vote is 16 and in Japan it’s 20. So, I guess that’s not it either. Yet, in most countries around the world you can legally consume alcohol at age 18. However, in most Canada provinces it’s 19 and in the United States it’s 21. So once again, I ask why 18? Well, I have met many people over these past 18 years of my life and I can say for a fact I know some 16-year-olds that are years ahead of some 26-year-olds that I know. Seeing that has shown me that adulthood comes at a different time for everybody. It could be when you are 15 or even when you are 30. I believe that when it does happen, you will know. And for me personally, I don’t think it’s happened yet. I’m completely fine with still being a child. In fact, I embrace it! I will be ready for adulthood when it comes knocking at my door, if it ever even decides to. But until then, I’ll be eating my cereal and watching cartoons on TV just like I have been.

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