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If you hated gym glass as a kid, you probably hate working out now

Middle school gym class. What exactly comes to mind when you hear those words might just determine your feelings on exercising in your adult life. Researchers from Iowa State University surveyed more than 1,000 Americans, aged 18 to 40 years old, using a specially created lengthy online questionnaire. Scientists then analyzed participants’ positive or negative attitudes toward gym class with the participants’ current behavior and attitudes toward physical fitness. Participants also were asked to describe in detail, their best and worst memories from gym class. For those who disliked gym class, their worst memories typically involved embarrassment, bullying, or a general lack on enjoyment. Seven percent of people shared their best memory as a day when they skipped gym class or didn’t have to take it any more. Not surprisingly, people who reported enjoying gym class were more likely to respond that they enjoy physical activities today. They were also…

These two workout classes are dirtier than your toilet

Gym classes are a great way to keep up motivation to workout. However the camaraderie you build when spinning or spotting isn’t the only thing you’re sharing. It seems that certain gym classes leave you more open to swapping bacteria. While all gym equipment — and all public places, for that matter — carry some expectation of germs, a recent study conducted by EllipticalReviews.com found that there are two gym classes in particular that are more unhygienic than a toilet. The researchers took three swab samples from equipment in four different workout classes (spin, hot yoga, barre, and weight-based workouts). The swabs were measured for the volume of microbes found and then the three samples were averaged to determine the level of colony-forming units (CFU). Weight-based workouts were the worst, with an average of 153,410 CFU detected on an average barbell. For comparison, a toilet seat comes in with about 3,200 CFU — that…

Why being skinny was easier for your parents

It’s unfair but true: Even if young adults today ate the same diet as their parents did at the same age, they would still be heavier. According to a study published in Obesity Research & Clinical Practice, adults in the ’70s could eat more food and exercise less with significantly less chance of gaining weight. The study observed the diets of 36,400 Americans between 1971 and 2008, as well as physical activity logs of 14,419 people between 1988 and 2006. Researchers found that people whose eating and exercise patterns were on par with people 20 or 30 years ago, still weighed about 10 percent more. The study shows that weight management is much more complex than commonly thought. “Our study results suggest that if you are 25, you’d have to eat even less and exercise more than those older, to prevent gaining weight,” Jennifer Kuk, a professor of kinesiology and health science…