While most of us got some well-deserved rest over the break, the women’s volleyball team was hard at work. Not only did they play games, but they signed yet another top recruit.
The Marauders signed Hayley Brookes in early December. Brookes comes from the Halton Hurricanes, a club team in Burlington. The Hurricanes have won consecutive national championships, and the team consistently churns out top university recruits. This includes a standout rookie from the Marauders, Marina Vesovic, who is tied for second-most kills over the season for the Marauders with 42.
Brookes is a five-foot-eleven libero whose defensive prowess will certainly be noticed by opposing teams come fall 2020. A libero is resemblant of a game manager, using offensive passing to place the ball for a setter to use to their advantage. They are also primarily responsible for mitigating the opposing offence’s attack.
Signing a top recruit was not the only big event that happened over the break.
Every year the University of Winnipeg holds a tournament called the Wesmen Classic. This year marked the Wesmen Classic’s 53rd iteration as they hosted eight teams including the Marauders. The maroon and grey won their first game against the Brandon University Bobcats in three sets. Unfortunately, they lost their next three straight games without taking a set. To cap off the tournament, the Marauders once again beat the Bobcats in the seventh-place game to take seventh place.
The team’s return to the court was not entirely sour. They faced the University of Toronto Blues on Jan. 3, winning the match in the fifth set. The Varsity Blues sit tied with Ryerson atop of the Ontario University Athletics East division with a record of eight wins and one loss. A win against the Blues provides the women’s team with great momentum heading into the remainder of the season.
The team has a double-header against the Lakehead University Thunderwolves on Jan. 10 and Jan. 11 to start the new year. The Thunderwolves have been struggling so far this season, having won only one one out of eight games, however beating them still won’t be easy.
A challenging schedule lies ahead of the women’s team following their double-header. They have two matches against the Brock University Badgers, who sit atop the OUA West, and one with the Ryerson University Rams, who are tied as the leading team in the OUA East with a record of eight wins and one loss.
Even though the Wesmen Classic may not have gone as well as the team would have hoped, it was a productive winter break for the Marauders as they not only played hard, but also secured a recruit who should be a key athlete for the future.
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McMaster University’s Department of Athletics & Recreation is home to a wide range of facilities. With three different gyms, two dance studios, an indoor track, a climbing wall, a sports hall and a mindfulness centre, there is only one thing missing: separate gym hours for different genders.
Personal health and finess is not limited to a specific gender and should be practiced by everyone.With the rise of body image insecurities and a growing advocacy for judgement free atmospheres, numerous fitness facilities in Canada are creating more welcoming and supportive spaces for women to achieve their personal fitness goals.
Though McMaster does offer a women’s only circuit within The Pulse on Mondays and Wednesdays from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., it does not exclusively open the facility up to just women. It certainly does not support women who want to work out individually, and feel comfortable on their own terms.
Besides Curves, which is a women’s only gym dedicated to building strength and confidence plus diligent weight loss programs, GoodLife Fitness has been adapting and actively responding to women’s fitness and health needs. GoodLife Fitness for Women offers over 100 ‘For Women’ locations and almost 50 ‘GoodLife for Women’ clubs.
In addition to women’s facilities, GoodLife also caters to other needs by offering a child-minding team to keep children active while moms exercise, attend dance classes, or do a full circuit workout in 30 m inutes.
A few universities have been considering the possibility of on campus women’s-only gyms.
With the rise of body image insecurities and a growing advocacy for judgement free atmospheres, numerous fitness facilities in Canada are creating more welcoming and supportive spaces for women to achieve their personal fitness goals.
In February 2016, McGill University’s Facebook page had an intellectual discussion in the comment section of a Facebook post about the possibility of having women’s only gym hours in the McGill Athletics Centre, and excluding men from the fitness centre for just four hours a week.
According to McGill Daily, Ryerson University and the University of Toronto have already implemented women-only gym hours, and revealed that participation increased in facility spaces that usually had low female participation, which is understandable given that many women typically don’t enjoy an environment of unnecessary grunts and toxic masculinity. I certainly wouldn’t. This is why it is important for us to include everyone in the pursuit of healthy living.
Undeniably, men and women are different in certain respects. In addition to physical diversity, in most religions and cultures, men and women have different roles and responsibilities.
I’m sure for women who wear hijab, sweating in what would be comparable to a hat and scarf and doing 30 lb squats in front of men would not encourage women to go to the gym. Which is why women-only gym hours is a more equitable resolution for women. With this solution, McMaster does not need to invest creating a new recreational space. In addition, excluding men from the gym for a certain number of hours may increase productivity and focus for each gender, knowing that they have a certain time frame to achieve their fitness goals.
I’m not saying that men and women should be separated altogether. Women-only gym hours do not mean that there will be no women in the gym. It just means that for those who don’t want to share the co-ed experience, they won’t have to. In the 21st century, diversity and equity in the gym isn’t much to ask for.
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By: Paulina Prazmo
You walk into the Pulse and head straight up to the cardio section of the gym. That’s where all the other girls are anyways, running on the treadmills or ellipticals. You think to yourself, “Well, cardio is important; I’ll just run on the treadmill for 30mins!” Now, since I’m no fitness guru, I took the time to talk to the amazing and very helpful personal trainers on campus here at the Pulse. Imagine my surprise to find out that a successful workout doesn’t just consist of running and focusing on one body part. (This must be what most MAC girls believe - just take a glance up on the cardio deck.) Here’s what four McMaster trainers had to say about what women’s workouts are really missing.
Brandon Sferrazza, a personal trainer director at the Pulse says that the importance of achieving that well rounded workout actually consists of weight training. That’s right ladies, time to step off that treadmill and head on downstairs to the weight area. Sferrazza encourages female students to come down onto the main floor despite how intimidating it might seem. There is a common misconception that women are going to turn into a female version of the hulk if they include weight training in their workouts. However, all the personal trainers informed me that this is not the case.
“Women are afraid they’re going to get big and bulky and it just doesn’t happen. One percent of women fit that description and they’re all on the national bobsled team so there’s not much to worry about. Spending hours and hours on cardio isn’t really going to help much because you won’t have that muscle mass to burn the calories,” said Sferrazza.
The personal trainers at the Pulse are constantly trying to encourage the female student population that there is nothing scary about lifting some weights. And if you are unsure and need some assistance there is always a trainer on-call, ready and eager to answer any questions and help you get that workout you strive for.
Even a female personal trainer like Eni Kadar was once afraid of lifting weights. She tells me that many girls are guilty of missing out on weights. “They stick to cardio because that is the easiest way to workout and are too focused on achieving one specific body type,” she said. Other areas that are missed in the workouts of girls are core trainings, along with flexibility, stability and full body weight exercises.
Keith Medeiros, a former Pulse trainer says that the best way to start working out is by doing push-ups, chin-ups, bridges, planks, squats and lunges. In his opinion, these exercises require little weight but train the muscles and work on the target areas for fat loss. The workout of a female differs from a male workout at the Pulse because of that split between the two floors.
“I don’t think you are working out if you can read a book at the same time. The structure of a girl’s workout is misguided. If they can push themselves and get out of the cardio deck into the weights or even in the aerobic studio to do other things, it would be more beneficial,” said strength and conditioning trainer Rob Morton.
Pulse trainers recommend getting yourself familiarized and educated with the machines. If there are machines that you haven’t got a clue how to use, ask the trainer on duty to give you a hand. Group classes are also highly recommended. “It’s something that gets you motivated with a good atmosphere and everyone is very supportive. It’s also great when you’re not keen on making your own workout,” Kadar explained.
Or, you can grab your girlfriend and head down to the weight area together where both of you are able to influence one another and not worry about everyone staring at you. “Chances are the guys in the weight area don’t even know what they’re doing and are just surprised to see a girl lifting weights,” Kadar said with a laugh.
All trainers agreed that a typical workout should last no more than an hour and a half and that it is crucial to make time to head down to the Pulse. Whether it’s two days a week for beginners, or four to five times a week for the experienced, it is very important to schedule the workout time. So in the future when I head down to the Pulse for my weekly workout I’ll be looking for all of you MAC girls pumping that iron. Because the last time I checked, girl power should still be alive - especially in the gym.
