As the holiday season comes around, full of large family dinners and lounging around binge-watching Christmas movies, it is the perfect time to get “swole.” For all you oldies out there, Urban Dictionary defines “swole” as “having extreme musculature; ripped; jacked.”
The school provides students with the opportunity to get “swole” during the school day by offering weight training as a course. In weight training, students are taught the correct form for lifting. Students are expected to be able to bench press*, squat*, deadlift*, power clean*, and sometimes they are even expected to do cardio. Weight training is available for all grades to participate in.
Taking weight training for her second year Ally Lenhoff (’21) can bench press 75 pounds, squat 145 pounds, deadlift 100 pounds, and power clean 100 pounds. Lenhoff recommends that, when squatting, “your thighs should be parallel with the ground, which will make it much harder.” This forces you to bring your butt lower to the ground, making it harder to bring yourself to a standing position.
Aaron Winsker (’19) has been taking weight training since freshman year. Winsker can bench press 190 pounds, squat 315 pounds, deadlift 225 pounds, and power clean 165 pounds.
“My freshmen year I could only bench press 95 pounds and squat 135 pounds, so I’ve improved a lot since then,” Winsker said.
Jack Marshall (’19) has been lifting since seventh grade but joined the weight training class his sophomore year. Marshall can bench press 265 pounds, squat 425 pounds, and deadlift 400 pounds. Since his freshmen year, he has added 40 pounds to his bench press.
“People squirm around when they lift, which makes it harder,” Marshall said. “For example, if you are on the bench press, don’t move your legs around, you need to need to focus all your energy on the muscles lifting the weight.”
If you don’t take weight training class during the day, it can be hard to motivate yourself workout after a long day of school.
“You just gotta grind,” Winsker said.

*Bench press: The person performing the exercise lies on their back on a bench with a weight grasped in both hands. They push the weight upwards until their arms are extended, not allowing the elbows to lock. They then lower the weight to chest level. You can use either a barbell or a pair of dumbbells.
*Squat: Crouch or sit with knees bent and heels close to or touching the back of the thighs.
*Deadlift: A weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, then lowered to the ground.
*Power clean: This exercise is composed of two weightlifting movements: the clean and the jerk. During the clean, the lifter moves the barbell from the floor to a racked position across the deltoids, without resting fully on the clavicles. During the jerk, the lifter raises the barbell to a stationary position above the head, finishing with straight arms and legs, and the feet in the same plane as the torso and barbell.