Fitness

i am pretty new, currently a college student . We have a small gym in each of the dorms, so I try to go there for exercise in the morning (it is about 40 degrees outside).
What I normally do is just run on the treadmill. However, that gets a bit boring and I don't think too much running is that good for my knees.

Picture of Exercise Room

Not in picture : 2 treadmills, 2 ellipical, 1 bike machine, punching bag

What are some exercises I can do there, just to mix up my work out a bit? btw  I am 19, 5ft, 100lb. fitness level-wise, I can jog for 25 minutes at 5mph, better with short distance, can do push ups, but can't do pull ups/chin ups (and would like to be able to do them at some point)

Thank

Oooh, oh, check out Mistressing the pullup - using that progression and starting with the negatives you should be able to do a full chin up in short order. A peripheral acquaintance of mine went from being able to do one-half to doing 9 chins in about 6 weeks, and she's about your size(~100lbs) so you should be able to get to the full chin up pretty fast.

 You're right about the knees and the rest -30 minutes, 3xweekly seems to be the highest useful frequency for a recreational trainee, there's a marginal increase in the rate of cardio fitness gain but a non-marginal increase in the rate of injuries and orthopedic surgery if you run more often.

 For some other workout ideas - well, check out Stumptuous.com or this List of weight training programs - and you might want to look closesly at The New Rules of Lifting for Women which a lot of posters here really like.

Wow, you go to MIT!  I just had to say congrats on the admittance (even if you were accepted a while ago), and good job wanting to keep up the workouts despite the amount of work you have to do! =]

Have you ever considered martial arts? You will burn more calories than jogging as well as attaining body control, balance, flexibility, focus and overall confidence, not to mention jogging on a hard surface is awful for your joints.

Start doing push-ups by standing upright and using a wall. The farther you move your feet from the wall the more strength it will require. Eventually you can move to the floor, but start on your knees instead of your toes.

Your gym has a lat machine (the one you sit and pull the bar down to you) you can use this machine to build the muscle required for pull-ups. Start with a weight you can lift at least five times-then slowly work up to your weight.

Rock climbing is also a fun way to develop core muscle.

There are many ways to enjoy your workout!  Remember the balance of your body and mind,  it should be fun!!!!

Original Post by davidtkd:

Have you ever considered martial arts? You will burn more calories than jogging as well as attaining body control, balance, flexibility, focus and overall confidence, not to mention jogging on a hard surface is awful for your joints.

 I LOVED LOVED LOVED martial arts but I have to tell you, it was murder on my knees! Masters, Senseis or whatever you end up with love to push you pretty dang hard which includes stretching, bending and explosive movements that play havoc on knees.

Also to answer the question, I'm becoming a huge fan of intervals with jumping rope and bodyweight exercises for off-weights days.