As the new school year rolls around, new classes have been added, including another strength training class. In previous years, weight training classes have been available at West Linn but, as time has passed, strength training has become more popular. The subjects are similar, but differentiated by two main things. In Strength training, you work on your strength ability and try to increase that weight over time in small increments. While Weight training you are also lifting weights but tend to try and gain physique and muscle size. 

Brooke Cates, a health and physical education teacher, teaches the strength and weight training classes.

“Last year, I was assigned [Strength Training] to begin with, and I just fell in love with the class because it’s just fun to see the growth of students,” Cates said.

Strength training is a class where students learn the fundamentals of building muscle, which includes using body weight or resistance training. A portion of the students in strength training have never lifted weights before. After learning how certain machines work, some students attend local gyms to continue their training.  

Both strength training and weight training are coed classes, meaning there are both girls and guys in each class, but there happens to be more girls in the strength class with a few guys. This could be because girls might want to build more strength and guys want to build more muscle.

“So, the classes are very, very similar, even though the [structure] might be a little bit different, but they’re really similar,” Cates said.

According to the Mayo Health Clinic, strength training is where you enhance your overall strength. By doing strength training you can develop strong bones, manage your weight, and manage chronic conditions that you could have later in life. You can also do Strength training at home or in the gym. This is because you can use your body weight, resistance band, and free weight at home. But it’s important to remember if you don’t increase weight over time you may not move forward. However, research has shown that overall, strength training can make you healthier over time. 

“Nothing tastes as good as being fit feels,” Cates said.

When students walk into her class, Cates notices that they’re overall confidence changes over time. She observes that kids are more motivated when working out in general, and continue to train in the future. 

“It’s a class that, by the end of it, kids are more lean and fit and healthy and confident… and you can really see the benefits by the end of 18 weeks.”

The strength training class moves students to feel overall confident after 1 semester. And positively affects your physical and mental health.

“Last year I was assigned [strength training] to begin with, and I just fell in love with the class.” Cates said.

She expressed that the class just made her happy, and her love for exercising made it even more enjoyable. The class is designed for students who are just starting out when it comes to weight training to help them work their way up to lifting more and learning the habit.