We’re approaching the final countdown, people: five weeks left in the quarter. That’s five more weeks of cushy, “it’s okay to be unemployed” college living, four more weeks of lecture and four more weeks of silly column mugs from yours truly.
More importantly: Only five more weeks I have left to use the Activities and Recreation Center, better known as the ARC.
The ARC has been sadly underutilized by me ever since I was a wee freshman. In fact, I didn’t visit the ARC until midway through my first year, when I arrived in jeans, sandals and mascara. (I was one of those girls, I know.) Since then, my visits have been few and far between.
Really though, how can you blame me for underutilizing an amazing facility when it’s clear I don’t belong? I lack any athletic grace, apathy gets the best of me during sporting games and my feet were made for walking, not running. Additionally, although the ARC is known as a prime venue to check out guys, sweaty dudes in basketball shorts and bro shirts with the arms cut off just don’t do it for me. Sorry.
Even so, I’ve made a pact this past quarter to get my arse in shape, so if doctors say that people need at least 35 minutes of aerobic exercise for general health, 35 minutes it is!
Knowing all too well that paying for an all-access pass to the classes would only go to waste, my workouts are typically limited to the elliptical machines across the track. But other than watching people run around, and around, and around again, it gets to be pretty boring.
With that being said, I offer you my own sweet workout playlist, because music-paced exercise is the best kind of exercise – as long as it’s not the crap they play at the ARC.
Metric, “Help I’m Alive.” It’s important to start off your workout on a strong note, especially if you’re like me and look at exercise as a chore. Canadian band Metric (an offshoot of Broken Social Scene) have the right kind of synth-driven pop with a bassline that’s just fast enough to get you going.
LCD Soundsystem, “North American Scum.” LCD Soundsystem in general is good for exercising – think dance-punk with a tinge of disco with deadpan lyrics like “And for those of you who still think we’re from England/ we’re like … ‘No.‘”
Minus the Bear, “Spritz!!! Spritz!!!” There’s really only a threshold of poppy dance ditties I can take within a five minute period. Seattle-based band Minus the Bear is always good for a dose of energetic prog-rock that will provide a bit of variety to this mix.
Deerhoof, “Spiral Golden Town.” If you’ve heard anything by San Francisco band Deerhoof, your initial reaction might be doubtful. And I understand – their experimental spirit paired with little girl cutesy vocals seem a bit too twisted for a gym setting. But in the case of “Spiral Golden Town,” it works.
Robyn, “With Every Heartbeat.” Even though I’ve tried to stray away from the prototypical cheesy pop tunes in this mix, Robyn is an essential to any good workout. She’s upbeat, she’s poppy and, most importantly, she’s Swedish!
Menomena, “Boyscout’n.” Almost as important as starting your workout off right is ending it with a song that finalizes the sweat, blood and tears you spent on the elliptical. This song is a bit of an outlier in the exercise soundtrack, but it provides good closure for your cool down.
RACHEL FILIPINAS is sweatin‘ to the oldies with her sweet “So You Think You Can Dance” sweatband. If you think you can dance, e-mail her at rmfilipinas@ucdavis.edu.
