Once Again for Ben?

It still shouldn’t suprise us that once again another superstar athlete is in trouble with the law. This time the allegation involves alcohol and young women, a combination that over the years has been a recipe for disaster. For the second time in a year the suspect, Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers franchise quarterback, has been accused of sexual assault.

Roethlisberger continues to face a lawsuit from last July by a woman who says he raped her at a Lake Tahoe hotel and casino in 2008. Roethlisberger has continually fought these allegations since the case began.

Roethlisberger’s agent, Ryan Tollner, said in a statement that he is very skeptical of the alleged victims motives consider the happenings at the previous Lake Tahoe events two years ago. Roethlisberger, is currently not in custody and has not been criminally charged with either case.

The accusation came in a local college bar called Capital City, which is located in downtown Milledgeville, Georgia. According to the alleged victim, Amber Hanley, a 21-year-old college student, she and a few friends were in a VIP area in the club with Roethlisberger. She said she asked the quarterback to take a photo with her friend, whose boyfriend was a fan, but he seemed disappointed that's all she wanted. Hanley said she rolled her eyes, and Roethlisberger called her an expletive and walked away.

The nature of the occurrence was not described, yet Deputy Police Chief Richard Malone indicated that the incident was being termed a sexual assault. Malone added that Roethlisberger and the alleged victim were interviewed and the woman was taken to a hospital, where she was treated and released.

Guilty or not, I will never understand why these high-profile athletes feel the need to put themselves in these unwise positions. In this specific case, there was no reason for the 28 year-old Roethlisberger to be in a COLLEGE club consisting of young COLLEGE aged kids. There is nothing but trouble to find in such a place that is not meant for anyone of his persona. Especially after the past years episode, you would imagine that Roethlisberger would for steer clear of any night-club atmosphere let alone young college-aged women.

I understand that athletes are human beings just like the rest of us and that they also enjoy having a good time. However, there is a time and place for enjoying oneself and the nightclub atmosphere is just not the ideal place. I shouldn’t have to recount the various sexual assaults, shootings and robberies that athletes and other high-profile stars have been associated with while being inside and out of nightclubs. Do the names Adam Jones, Plaxico Burress and Darrent Williams ring a bell?

In the end, I don’t quite believe that Roethlisberger is quite foolish enough to commit such an act. His recent one hundred million dollar plus contract should might something to do with that. Either way, I hope that justice is served however that may be. With that being said, this last event will hopefully put an end to the partying days of Ben Roethlisberger. It’s about time that athletes grow up and avoid childish situations. There’s no question of your innocence if you’re at home taking care of business.

Ways for College Student to Maintain Health and Fitness

Eating healthy and staying in-shape is becoming harder and harder for college students to do now a days. Long days and nights cramming for exams, poor eating habits, minimal cash for groceries, and pizza nights have been the staple for most young students during the college experience. After a quarter or two, let alone a year or two, even a 19 year olds body can become subject to the dreadful "college weight gain". For those of us college students who would like a little guidance or just an extra push of motivation, this article should provide some of the necessary information that will help improve your overall health and fitness goals.
I took the time to gather information from several active University of Cincinnati students who were able to give me a great insight into how we can all not only get in shape but improve our overall level of health. These students included factors such as how to find the time to workout with a busy schedule, what exercises are most beneficial and how the average struggling college student can eat a nutritionally sound diet.
Senior Heather Thomas told me that she finds it easier for students to work out right after their classes are done for the day. "This allows you to get your workout done right away, without being able to find any excuses for why you couldn't make it to the gym." Junior Jared Butts agrees that this is an excellent approach to staying consistent and ensuring that you don't miss your workouts. Butt's stated that "If you can fit your workouts in earlier during the day you will find that no only will you miss less workouts, but you will also find that you have more energy during the earlier hours of the day."
In terms of the most beneficial exercises for students to use, I was able to email members of the Queen City Nutrition newsletter to receive their take. Members were able to give me more than enough good advice on exercises that my readers could easily perform while gaining quality results in their fitness routine. Tom Roberts told me that a workout consisting of prodominatly cardio-vascular activity along with moderate weightlifting is best for those trying to lose weight or stay in the best possible shape. Roberts added that "cardio-vascular workout are the best for not only cutting fat but also keeping the heart healthy." Rebecca Hammond replied that "Eliptical machines, treadmills and stairs steppers are not only great for performing cardio-vascular exercise but they also tone the legs as well." Hammond also added that "Cardio should be performed for about 45 minutes to an hour at a time for about four to five sessions a week."
Members Brent Friedson and Lauren Jacobs were also very helpful in providing me with more tips on great workouts. Friedson informed me that "weightlifting workouts should be performed about five times a week at high intensity." This will insure that muscles are being worked hard enough to grow yet they are given enough time to rest. Jacobs added to this helpful info by stating that "performing at least a half an hour of cardio after your training is most effective over performing cardio activity before weight training." The body is able to burn calories faster and at a much more significant rate when workouts are performed in this manner.
Urban Active diet consultants and University of Cincinnati students Kristen O'Neill and Hannah Spieles concluded my fitness questionare with their thorough input on how college students could most successfully eat a well rounded diet without surpassing their tight budgets. Spieles first stated that "The best route to eating healthy for less would be to make sure that you are only buying the necessary foods that are required in a healthy diet...it makes no sense to buy any side items that are adding unnecessary calories to your daily diet." O'meill commented that "The only items on your grocery list should include fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, and whole grains...all necessary to eat a healthy sound diet." Avoiding the junk food and snacks will not only make your trip to the grocery store cheaper but it will also keep your diet cleaner and your health up to par.
Overall, our bodies and health are the most important things that we own. We must do all we can in order to ensure that we take proper care of such a significant investment. Wether it's working out everyday of the week or twice a week, its best to ensure that you perform some type of exercise in order to keep oneself in good health. I hope that everyone can find these lessons helpful throughout their college life and beyond. We must remember that our bodies will treat us exactly how we treat them. In the long-run if you live by this simple phrase then you will be most likely to ensure that your health and fitness is a very significant part of your everyday life.

The Age Of Social Media

Social networking websites...one of the most popular and current forms of communication known to date. If you haven’t been living under a rock for the past few years, then I’m sure you either belong to one or have at least heard about one of the many that currently exist. Websites such as Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and many more are some of the more popular social networking sights that have taken over the internet. People can spend hours of their time on these sites without even holding a single conversation with someone else. Countless hours of time spent, without much to show at all right? Others may beg to differ, which brings me to question “Are social networking sights a pointless fad or a useful tool of the future?”
After speaking with multiple individuals about such websites, I was able to gather several contrasting feelings towards social networks themselves and their future. Beginning with University of Cincinnati junior Kristen O’Neill, I was given the perspective that social networks were a positive idea and would be around for many year s to come. O’Neill told me that social networks are popular due to the ability to “stay in touch and meet new people all with the click of a mouse.” I was then informed that social networks are the fastest growing form of media ever invented. “Facebook was the first form of media ever to reach 100 million users within 9 months.” This is very interesting considering the competition consisted of media outlets such as television, the internet, the radio, etc.
Next, senior Jarryd Armstrong of Mississippi’s Jackson State University had a somewhat similar opinion with his outlook on social networking sites. Armstrong found that social networking sights are the wave of the future due to the current dependence that society is placing on the use of the internet. “With the way that everything is being handled through the internet, why wouldn’t society heavily entertain the idea of holding their social life through the web as well?” Armstrong makes a solid point as the use of the internet has sky-rocketed over the past few decades, with only more dependency here in the near future. He also mentioned that the ease of use and accessibility made social networking websites practical for almost everyone, no matter the age.
As with any intriguing topic, there are always two sides to the tale. While asking my question I was able to find two tough critics that were especially opposed to the whole idea of social networking websites. Erick Johnson of Solon, Ohio and Tom Lowery of Tempe, Arizona made it clear about their feelings towards the popular trend. Johnson finds that social networking sights are overly intrusive and constitute as a “great way to waste valuable time without even realizing it.” He told me that “Sights such as Twitter and Myspace give away too much personal information about people and intrude their personal freedom”. He also added that “People spend so much time filling themselves in on what other people are doing with their lives that they forget how much of their own valuable time they are wasting away.”
Lowery, had a much similar take on the issue as well, stating that he previously wasted too much time doing irrelevant tasks on Facebook and Myspace. This led to him taking action by deleting both of his accounts. “I just felt like these websites distracted me from getting the more important things that I needed to be doing done…I had to avoid myself from using them in general.” Lowery added that people need to focus on their personal communication skills more before they take a turn for the worst by becoming too internet dependent. “It’s a shame that people would rather have a conversation through typing messages than through the phone or in person…this can’t be good for the personal communication skills of the upcoming generation.”
Overall, I found it quite interesting to take in the different perspectives of people about such a popular and highly debated topic. Personally, I can understand where both sides are coming from. I feel that social networking sights are great for staying in touch with distant friends and family. What better way to stay in touch on a consistent basis. The downside to this would be the invasion of privacy that comes along with the information that we post about ourselves and others on these sites. I feel that the user age on these sites should definitely be monitored accordingly. On another aspect, I would have to agree with many individuals that say that we indeed do spend too much time on these sights, not accomplishing much at all. I personally find that most college student in general spend too much time away from their work due to their activity on several of the more popular social networking sites. In the end, I’ve come to the conclusion that the best solution to this issue would be to monitor or limit the amount of time we spend on such sites daily. This would be the best way to prevent ourselves from the future title of “the Facebook Generation.”