Gymratdoña

I realize for the next two years of my life I will be hardcore nerding out. But that doesn’t mean I want my body to atrophy in the meantime. So today my goal was to investigate the gym, which subsequenlty lead to a very nice workout!

From what I was told by two more senior students just prior to visiting, the Recreation & Wellness Center on East campus is the lesser known/frequented recreation center. The main recreation center is on city campus and accommodates a larger influx of the student body. Being introverted, older than 79% [citation needed] of the student body at the gentle age of 30 and married i.e. not looking to impress any females, the less contended space of the rwc really appealed to me.

There were free all day lockers with a programmable pin codes, a track, squat racks and barbells, kettlebells, pull up bars & rowing machines: everthing important to me. I tend to enjoy more crossfit style workouts and for today we had freshly served:

  • 500m row
  • 640m run
  • 10 backsquats @20kg
  • 10 frontsquats @20kg
  • 10 thrusters @20kg
  • 20 calorie row

The workout was light, fairly short (about 25 min) and completely off the cuff. Although I tend to be a little hard on myself during workouts, it’s been 2+ months since I have been consistenly active. Now that I’m a litte wiser and more in touch with what my body can handle (getting old sucks), I’m hoping this short chipper served as proper easement into a long lasting routine. Have mercy on me DOMS!

I also did a little inquiring on my wife’s behalf to see how much it would be for her to use the facilities. I naively thought she might have free access as I am now a “faculty member of sorts” (read with posh accent). But spouses & dependents must purchase secondary memberships for $37/month or $147/semester which works out to about $30/month. My wife is currently on the lookout for cheaper alternatives.

Quick Update on Econonics TA

I learned today that I will be assisting with:

  • ECON 215H - Statistics

    Introduction to the collection, analysis, and interpretation of statistical data used in economics and business. Probability analysis, sampling, hypothesis testings, analysis of trends and seasonality, correlation, and simple regressions.

And

  • ECON 417 - Intro Econometrics

    Designed to give undergraduate and master’s level economics students an introduction to basic econometric methods including economic model estimation and analyses of economic data. Hypothesis formulation and testing, economic prediction and problems in analyzing economic cross-section and time series data are considered.

I’m feeling confident about ECON 215 but have some hesitations about ECON 417 because I’m unfamiliar with SHAZAM. I fully expect growing pains, but I’d rather it not be trial by fire. My plan is to audit the classes I will be assisting with so that I can learn alongside the students and stay one step ahead. This means I will be attending 5 courses total. I’ve done this before as an undergrad. But, I’m not sure what to expect as a grad student.

My office hours are set and I will be meeting with both professors next week for a debriefing and introduction to the class. I’m a little nervous as I haven’t done this before. Hopefully, I’ll feel more prepared after attending the 27th Annual Campuswide Workshops for Graduate TAs tomorrow. At the very least, there is free food!