How often do you exercise in medical school?

Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine
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How many day per week do you exercise in medical school?

  • Zero. I don't have any time!

    Votes: 13 8.6%

  • 1 Day

    Votes: 8 5.3%

  • 2 Days

    Votes: 6 3.9%

  • 3 Days

    Votes: 24 15.8%

  • 4 Days

    Votes: 33 21.7%

  • 5 Days

    Votes: 28 18.4%

  • 6 Days

    Votes: 19 12.5%

  • Everyday

    Votes: 21 13.8%
  • Total voters
    152
Foot Fetish

Foot Fetish

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I'm starting medical school in one month, and I am worried that I won't have time to lift anymore because it would detract from my studies.

How often do you exercise in medical school? Has it affected your grades?

Do the people at the top of the class make time to exercise or do they just study nonstop?

I really want to be top 5 in my class, and I don't know if that's possible while lifting. I'm willing to sacrifice my gains if it means being at the top.
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Med1 and Med2: 4-6 times a week
Med3: 3-4 times a week
Med4: During my SubI, 3 times a week. Planning on 4-6 once I'm past them.

I find it good stress relief and a way to stay healthy. It also gives me something to look forward to at the end of the day. Looking back, even if I had that extra hour-ish to study, it wouldn't have made a lick of difference.
 
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If anything, taking 1 hour a day to exercise will help you more than hurt you. It can relieve stress and make you feel good about yourself! I feel bad for my classmates who stopped exercising in 3rd year and now feel bad about their health. Our hospital has a killer burger bar though, so it is hard to blame them!

Personally, I get more out of little investments of exercise every day than large investments of exercise 3-5 times a week, so 1 hour a day is all I did the first 3 years. Give it a try and best of luck to you!

If you decide on ortho, it would be a good time to work on your bench, squat, and deadlift 😉
 
Foot Fetish said:
I'm starting medical school in one month, and I am worried that I won't have time to lift anymore because it would detract from my studies.

How often do you exercise in medical school? Has it affected your grades?

Do the people at the top of the class make time to exercise or do they just study nonstop?

I really want to be top 5 in my class, and I don't know if that's possible while lifting. I'm willing to sacrifice my gains if it means being at the top.
Click to expand...

Exercise definetly helps. It improves everything: your mood, your ability to cope with stress, your memory, your stamina during clinicals, your self-confidence, your Tinder game, etc. With a fit body, you can go harder, faster, longer... at just about everything.

One a broader note: nobody who did amazingly well at my medical school lived a one-dimensional life. They were all interesting people with diverse interests (whether that was research, leadership, or teaching). An extra hour of study a day really won't help that much, and "nonstop study" (as you seem keen on) will probably lead to burnout. The first two months of medical school are shock and awe anyways. Perhaps settle in and see how you go before entertaining grand ambitions for being in the Top 5.

Also, WTF is up with your username and avatar?
 
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Whoops made a mistake about user... LOL continue on
 
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songl4a said:
For these 1 hour gym sessions, what's the most efficient? I'm doing about 30-40 min a day lifting with 15-20 of skipping but I've hit a plateau. Muscle endurance is through the roof but not much mass added.
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Mass is added by eating more. It's called BULKING, my friend. You need to eat a caloric surplus. Also, you should strive to consume 1 gram of protein per pound of your bodyweight daily. This ensure maximum lean body mass gains. Don't skip leg day either. Gloots for the sloots.
 
songl4a said:
Cardiovascular before or after weights? Can't find a consensus on forums or studies.

As for bulking, I simply can't eat that much without shakes/supplements.
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Cardio AFTER weights. ALWAYS. Lifting is form-intensive. You need to do the lifting when you are "fully charged" to ensure that you are not cheating in your reps or using potentially injurious form due to being tired. In contrast, you can jog or do elliptical sloppily with little to no risk of injury and no impact on your cardio-gains...Personally, I always did the cardio on entirely separate days when I wasn't lifting...But if you insist on doing them in the same workout, definitely do the cardio AFTER you lift. You should be pushing yourself to lift heavier and heavier weights over time; don't cheat yourself by wasting your peak energy on cardio...

But, more importantly, EAT MORE. Calculate your TDEE and eat at least 500 calories above that. You will never get the juicy bod you want unless you BULK. Eat calorically dense foods if you must. Nothing wrong with that if it fits your macros.
 
Foot Fetish said:
Cardio AFTER weights. ALWAYS. Lifting is form-intensive. You need to do the lifting when you are "fully charged" to ensure that you are not cheating in your reps or using potentially injurious form due to being tired. In contrast, you can jog or do elliptical sloppily with little to no risk of injury and no impact on your cardio-gains...Personally, I always did the cardio on entirely separate days when I wasn't lifting...But if you insist on doing them in the same workout, definitely do the cardio AFTER you lift. You should be pushing yourself to lift heavier and heavier weights over time; don't cheat yourself by wasting your peak energy on cardio...

But, more importantly, EAT MORE. Calculate your TDEE and eat at least 500 calories above that. You will never get the juicy bod you want unless you BULK. Eat calorically dense foods if you must. Nothing wrong with that if it fits your macros.
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lol, you do cardio during a bulk?
 
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Foot Fetish said:
Cardio AFTER weights.
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Bro, only if by "AFTER" you mean like 3 months after.

To put on mass:
1. lift heavy weights, with good form, to failure. Some cycles in 8-10 reps, some cycle in 3-6 reps.
2. Eat. I'm not really down with the whole dirty bulk thing, though. Lifting heavy increases your BMR and you have to repair all those microtears. You have to compensate for those, but you don't have to put on a ton of fat.
3. Sleep. That's when you grow, bra.
4. F### cardio. That s### just burns off your gains.
5. This one's just personal. Do some neck exercises. It looks weird as hell when someone has a big chest & arms but a little pencil neck.
 
hurtem&healem said:
Bro, only if by "AFTER" you mean like 3 months after.

To put on mass:
1. lift heavy weights, with good form, to failure. Some cycles in 8-10 reps, some cycle in 3-6 reps.
2. Eat. I'm not really down with the whole dirty bulk thing, though. Lifting heavy increases your BMR and you have to repair all those microtears. You have to compensate for those, but you don't have to put on a ton of fat.
3. Sleep. That's when you grow, bra.
4. F### cardio. That s### just burns off your gains.
5. This one's just personal. Do some neck exercises. It looks weird as hell when someone has a big chest & arms but a little pencil neck.
Click to expand...

No it doesn't, simple exercise physiology and its correct execution will teach you that if you wake up (you are in a fasting state when u wake up) and first thing u do is cardio, you will actually burn off hepatic glycogen and fat stores before burning any muscle protein. if you are truly scared of burning the protein, simply just take a carb drink before doing cardio so you will consume that energy source first before burning any body stores, providing a buffer time.
 
fellowstudent92 said:
No it doesn't, simple exercise physiology and its correct execution will teach you that if you wake up (you are in a fasting state when u wake up) and first thing u do is cardio, you will actually burn off hepatic glycogen and fat stores before burning any muscle protein. if you are truly scared of burning the protein, simply just take a carb drink before doing cardio so you will consume that energy source first before burning any body stores, providing a buffer time.
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Simple exercise physiology will teach you that you can train for size or endurance, not both. "Burns off your gains" is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but I'll stand by the SAID principle.
 
hurtem&healem said:
Simple exercise physiology will teach you that you can train for size or endurance, not both. "Burns off your gains" is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but I'll stand by the SAID principle.
Click to expand...

Were we talking about training for something? I'm saying if all you are going for is a lean healthy look while in med school, you can do cardio during a bulk (and not waste your gains) if you do the cardio in a right way.
 
fellowstudent92 said:
Were we talking about training for something?
Click to expand...
He asked for tips on how to build mass. So, at least the info I was giving was about training for mass building. I am strongly of the opinion that it is much more efficient to have dedicated muscle building cycles rather than trying to do everything at once. e.g., if you're trying to gain 10 lbs of muscle and lose 10 lbs of fat or improve stamina, you will in all likelihood obtain none of those results. Gain the muscle, THEN lose the fat/build endurance while doing occasional maintenance to keep the size on.
 
Apologies to the OP for derailing the thread. I'm very interested in everyone's responses to his original question. Adding to it, i feel like endurance sports, namely running, is the predominant form of exercise for med students/doctors. Am I correct with this, or is it just the people I know? I loathe running, and I really don't understand how you can keep it up after the pre-clinical years since you're on your feet all day already.
 
hurtem&healem said:
Apologies to the OP for derailing the thread. I'm very interested in everyone's responses to his original question. Adding to it, i feel like endurance sports, namely running, is the predominant form of exercise for med students/doctors. Am I correct with this, or is it just the people I know? I loathe running, and I really don't understand how you can keep it up after the pre-clinical years since you're on your feet all day already.
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For a lot of people it is because most schools at least have some treadmills, while not all schools have great gyms (some of the ones I saw at interviews were just depressing). Depends on your school though. Mine has teams that play in local competitive/rec leagues like softball, soccer, volleyball, and I think one or two others. We also have a pretty decent crossfit following at my school. We also have professors/students that lead yoga and CORE (very intense circuit training) courses twice a week. We've got plenty of runners, but it's definitely not the only option.
 
OnePunchBiopsy said:
If you decide on ortho, it would be a good time to work on your bench, squat, and deadlift 😉
Click to expand...

Word. Op, there is no real reason to aim for top 5 or top 10 in your class unless you're aiming for derm or ortho. Since you lift, I'm guessing you're going for Ortho. This is the advice one ortho PD gave me during a brief conversation:

"If we're not 'mirin, you're not matching."

Lesson for you: do not focus entirely on schoolwork to the detriment of gainz, or it may all be for naught. :cigar:
 
Brahnold Bloodaxe said:
This is the advice one ortho PD gave me during a brief conversation:

"If we're not 'mirin, you're not matching."
Click to expand...

LOL! I dont know what specialty I'm gonna go for yet, but I'm definitely gonna try to get as thick, solid, and tight as possible just to cover all my bases.

Ironically, I'm currently interested in radiology. There would be no one around to mire me!
 
Foot Fetish said:
I'm starting medical school in one month, and I am worried that I won't have time to lift anymore because it would detract from my studies.

How often do you exercise in medical school? Has it affected your grades?

Do the people at the top of the class make time to exercise or do they just study nonstop?

I really want to be top 5 in my class, and I don't know if that's possible while lifting. I'm willing to sacrifice my gains if it means being at the top.
Click to expand...


Definitely find time after changing your username. Also, regarding the top 5, sorry to burst your bubble, but everyone wants to be top 5 in your class. There was a really good discussion on this elsewhere and to summarize, start medical school by gunning as hard as you can. Work your hardest and find out what works for you. At this time, limit your work outs to bare minimum to maintain. After the first COUPLE of exams, stand back and assess your standing. Are you at the top 5? top 10? top 25? top 50? bottom 50? failing? If you're able to hit the top 10%, I guess continue gunning and medical school will be more of a maintain strength mode (to technically answer your question). Otherwise, you're time is better invested in becoming a more well-rounded individual, while focusing on understanding the material so you have the opportunity to do well on the USMLE.

As for working out, I personally need to. If I don't I get super unproductive. During Step Prep, I run 3-5 miles a day over multiple times and lift every day or every other day. It may seem like a bad idea but that first hour after working out feels so productive if you're hydrated and you aren't drinking coffee or eating loaded carbs regularly. Everyone's different though. Some of my friends can literally sit for 15 hours and just take a single hour break to eat and watch an episode of House or something. I'm not sure how they don't get hungry but after a while I suppose your body gets used to it and I heard there are some benefits to fasting on cognition. Definitely wouldn't incorporate working out into my schedule if I went that route.

Also, work out smart so your study periods aren't affected. Don't go too fast with increasing the weight because if you get injured that just ruins the studying groove. Don't drink coffee because it ruins your studying groove and may give your flu-like symptoms making it a pain to wake up the next day. I feel it dries out the muscles and makes you more stiff and prone to injuries. Running is good for your overall mood (not to be underestimated) but it also slows down your metabolism and makes you hungrier. Gaining muscle will speed it up in the long run. You will be frustrated and at times you will need to take a week off from working out. Just go at a steady pace. I've seen people who have maintained top 5% while literally bodybuilding but everyone is different. Do what I said at the beginning and test yourself and see where you lie.
 
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It's incrediably easy to exercise during m1&2, if you don't then you are just making up excuses. M3 is a different story, it is very hard to muster the care when you've been getting 4 hours sleep and working 14 hour days
 
In hindsight... seriously not enough. I was REALLY out of shape at the start of M4
 
Is it common for medical schools to have swimming pool? I'll be extremely happy with just a pool and a treadmill 🙂
 
Miami_Postbac said:
lol because 1k is hard? That's a 450 pound deadlift, a 315 pound squat, and a 235 bench. There are large numbers of high schools girls that can deadlift 315 pounds.
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Yes, it is difficult. Indeed, your example split would suffice.

Can you quantify large? There are orders of magnitude in the difference between the number of medical students and high school girls. Likewise, medical students prerogative is to complete medical school while high school girls vary (perhaps finish high school, obtain college athletic scholarship, etc.).

I would hazard a bet, that at most 0.1% of graduating medical students are currently able to achieve 1,000 lbs total in the combined lifts of bench press, squat, and dead lift. Let's be honest, most medical students are not serious about fitness. Even those who are, not many are focused on power-lifting. For even those that are interested in power-lifting, most have a weak point and struggle to have the numbers required for the combined total.

If we really wanted to set the delta-force, Machiavellian the Prince, med student athletic requirements I'd put 1,000 lb club, sub 4-hour marathon, sub 6-minute mile, and sub 1-minute 400 m.
 
5 days a week usually. If there's no time for the gym, I do a quick home workout. Many of my classmates exercise a ton as well.
 
neusu said:
Yes, it is difficult. Indeed, your example split would suffice.

Can you quantify large? There are orders of magnitude in the difference between the number of medical students and high school girls. Likewise, medical students prerogative is to complete medical school while high school girls vary (perhaps finish high school, obtain college athletic scholarship, etc.).

I would hazard a bet, that at most 0.1% of graduating medical students are currently able to achieve 1,000 lbs total in the combined lifts of bench press, squat, and dead lift. Let's be honest, most medical students are not serious about fitness. Even those who are, not many are focused on power-lifting. For even those that are interested in power-lifting, most have a weak point and struggle to have the numbers required for the combined total.

If we really wanted to set the delta-force, Machiavellian the Prince, med student athletic requirements I'd put 1,000 lb club, sub 4-hour marathon, sub 6-minute mile, and sub 1-minute 400 m.
Click to expand...


Over the course of ~ 5 years I've done the 1000lb club, sub 4:30 mile, and sub 50 second 400m.

Haven't run a marathon.

I'm sure there are people out there in medicine who can surpass me.

Ortho was devastated I chose Derm.
 
wizzed101 said:
Is it common for medical schools to have swimming pool? I'll be extremely happy with just a pool and a treadmill 🙂
Click to expand...

Most are connected to a university fitness center, so most will.
 
Foot Fetish said:
I'm starting medical school in one month, and I am worried that I won't have time to lift anymore because it would detract from my studies.

How often do you exercise in medical school? Has it affected your grades?

Do the people at the top of the class make time to exercise or do they just study nonstop?

I really want to be top 5 in my class, and I don't know if that's possible while lifting. I'm willing to sacrifice my gains if it means being at the top.
Click to expand...

When I work-out at our university fitness center, I often see medical students working-out, too. Occasionally, we exchange friendly greetings, by saying "hello." I also see students jogging on the track, or swimming laps, or playing basketball, or participating in some other type of fun athletic activity . Some of them also play on a recreational basketball team composed solely of medical students. Some of them are also MD/PhD students, or MD/MBA students, or MD/JD students; and they're at the top of their class, despite their busy workload. When I was a student, I worked-out 4-5 days per week, and competed as an amateur swimmer ... no worries.

Do you manage your time well? These students manage their time well; and their lives seem to be reasonably balanced between study time, class time, non-study time, and non-class time. Proper time management is a useful skill to develop throughout the course of your career: student, resident, attending, professor, Nobel Laureate! 🙂 Anyway, you get the idea, eh? You'll need to exercise good time management skills in medicine, and in life, in general. Only you can figure it out. If lifting detracts from your studies, you'll probably stop lifting, or you might not lift as often as you did before beginning your first year of medical school. Once again, it's up to you.
 
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Miami_Postbac said:
Perhaps this is body-type driven, but my 3 lifts are around 1100 and I don't go to the gym more than twice per week and never for more than 45 minutes. Although endomorphic, I suspect most people could achieve 1k in year by doing the same.

I see a lot of people wasting time at the gym...the curl bars and tricep extension machines seem full and squat racks are often empty and a lot of people are resting 2-5 minutes between sets and then not going to failure.
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1K total for a female is very good, like very very good. Especially if they're under the 181# weight class. I am sitting right on the cusp of a 1K total in the 198# class (985# is the minimum for RAW 198.2# females to qualify for the XPC comp @ Arnold, USPA Nationals I think is very similar). Females in the powerlifting world right now are excelling in deadlifts, but most lag behind in their squats and benches. IE: 420# deadlift, but 150-170 bench and 300 squat. For many women, 175-185# on a bench is typically a hard plateau.

Anyway, for the non-athletic male, I'd bet you hitting 1K is harder than you think for many. Especially adding in below parallel squats, paused bench, and proper form. I highly doubt most men can break the 1200-1300 boundary without impeccable form/great genetics/boat tons of determination. If you're heavier (242+) it is a lot easier. Based on the men in my class and who I saw on interview trails, I haven't seen anyone above 220 and none were built like lifters.
 
Can't wait for cool fall weather to roll in so I see a jump in my speed and distance.

Distance running is stupidly accessible. Have shoes and a safe area? Run.
 
J Senpai said:
Can't wait for cool fall weather to roll in so I see a jump in my speed and distance.

Distance running is stupidly accessible. Have shoes and a safe area? Run.
Click to expand...

Enjoy your bone-on-bone knees 🙂

Jk...but I've always avoided running because I feel like it would be hard on my knees. I have a large frame, anatomically more suited for heavy lifting than running. I like the elliptical for cardio. Some people think it's not masculine enough, but I like that it's low to no impact on my joints while still giving my heart and lungs a good workout.
 
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You'll find time, but it won't be like the summer before starting. I used to be throwing iron a solid 4-5x a week, and now I usually hit 3x week (4 if I'm lucky).

I like to hit the gym after classes. Then go home, grab a late lunch and back to the library. Take snacks/protein bar [some coffee if that's how you roll!] and eat dinner when you get home at night. It's easier in this lifestyle to learn to be a late-dinner eater early on.


Btw: OP, you may have missed Pod as your calling.
 
sliceofbread136 said:
It's incrediably easy to exercise during m1&2, if you don't then you are just making up excuses. M3 is a different story, it is very hard to muster the care when you've been getting 4 hours sleep and working 14 hour days
Click to expand...

tumblr_nm8lai087T1sg31c4o1_500.png
 
Foot Fetish said:
Enjoy your bone-on-bone knees 🙂

Jk...but I've always avoided running because I feel like it would be hard on my knees. I have a large frame, anatomically more suited for heavy lifting than running. I like the elliptical for cardio. Some people things it's not masculine enough, but I like that it's low to no impact on my joints while still giving my heart and lungs a good workout.
Click to expand...
And squatting isn't??

Lol, the benefits of cardio are ridiculous. I def cross-train weights and body weight, though.
 
3x a week is most doable. During test weeks it is less. I feel like you can go everyday but you'd have to make it a priority and cut down on other things that you spend time on.
 
skiier54 said:
Lol at all these clubs and numbers. Upper body is the only thing girls care about. Speaking from experience, good abs, arms, shoulders, back, and chest gets you a lot of action. Also if you notice in movies they never accentuate a guy's legs, it's always only upper body.
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Myself and many females who I know disagree highly. If you look anorexic on your bottom and poofed up top, we would pass very quickly. (Jeans or slacks can hide this fact) it just shows you're lazy TBH. Be uniform and equal !
 
skiier54 said:
Lol at all these clubs and numbers. Upper body is the only thing girls care about. Speaking from experience, good abs, arms, shoulders, back, and chest gets you a lot of action. Also if you notice in movies they never accentuate a guy's legs, it's always only upper body.
Click to expand...

Not a girl so all I can say about that is maybe yes maybe no. However, most of your athleticism is derived from legs and core, so focusing solely on upper body will leave you with only aesthetics to show for it, but little functional benefit.
 
skiier54 said:
Lol at all these clubs and numbers. Upper body is the only thing girls care about. Speaking from experience, good abs, arms, shoulders, back, and chest gets you a lot of action. Also if you notice in movies they never accentuate a guy's legs, it's always only upper body.
Click to expand...

Stop doing curls in the squat rack. Men are trying to work out.
 
During MS1/MS2, what time of day do you typically work out? What optimizes your productivity during study sessions - morning, afternoon, or evening workouts?
 
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