Health and Exercise Major

[system]

Has anyone here been a Health and Exercise Science major in college? I’m pre-med but since major doesn’t matter for that I’m a psych major. I’m considering switching to HES though since I have a big interest in exercise and nutrition and I’m pretty sure all of those who major in it get certified after graduation (not that I care that much about that but it’s a nice benefit).

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Anyway just looking for some extra input in addition to what I’ll be getting from talking to people here.

Thanks

[PB_Andy]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Thanks [/quote]
Well you’ll be getting a lot of that.

I like my major, it is “Movement Science” under Kinesiology and I get to take some pretty cool classes. For example: Applied Musculoskeletal Anatomy, Physiology of Exercise, Biomechanics, Motor Control and Learning, Advanced Exercise Physiology, Biomechanics of the Neuromusculoskeletal Systems, & Movement Neuroscience. It is also very open-ended, meaning you can do a lot of things with this major. Pre-med, PT/OT, Strength coach, etc.

An internship with USOC just opened up so I am applying for that. If I get that I could work with Olympic teams, how awesome would that be?

[Kurtis_Frank]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Thanks [/quote]

Then stay the hell away from dietetics.

I’ve heard that all the exercise related majors at my university have a lesser percentage of said dumbasses. My guess is that they can be called on their bullshit by being dragged to the gym or track, whereas you can’t prove much with dietetics without clinical testing.

[buffalokilla]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
Has anyone here been a Health and Exercise Science major in college? I’m pre-med but since major doesn’t matter for that I’m a psych major. I’m considering switching to HES though since I have a big interest in exercise and nutrition and I’m pretty sure all of those who major in it get certified after graduation (not that I care that much about that but it’s a nice benefit).

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Anyway just looking for some extra input in addition to what I’ll be getting from talking to people here.

Thanks [/quote]

I did an ACSM focused HES major for my undergrad and then went to do a masters in biomechanics. My advice: pick a real major. Exercise science was a colossal waste of time as a major, I had two classes in the department I’d consider worthwhile. Especially if your goal is medicine, I’d do biology or physiology. Granted there were some cool people in HES, but there’s good people in every discipline and you’ll meet the cool ones in HES at the squat rack anyway.

-Dan

[system]

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
Has anyone here been a Health and Exercise Science major in college? I’m pre-med but since major doesn’t matter for that I’m a psych major. I’m considering switching to HES though since I have a big interest in exercise and nutrition and I’m pretty sure all of those who major in it get certified after graduation (not that I care that much about that but it’s a nice benefit).

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Anyway just looking for some extra input in addition to what I’ll be getting from talking to people here.

Thanks [/quote]

I did an ACSM focused HES major for my undergrad and then went to do a masters in biomechanics. My advice: pick a real major. Exercise science was a colossal waste of time as a major, I had two classes in the department I’d consider worthwhile. Especially if your goal is medicine, I’d do biology or physiology. Granted there were some cool people in HES, but there’s good people in every discipline and you’ll meet the cool ones in HES at the squat rack anyway.

-Dan[/quote]

I’m a little confused by this. Why exactly was it a waste?

Honestly, the only reason I’d be changing is if it’s 1. easier and 2. more interesting. The actual content doesn’t matter that much as far as real world application since I plan to go to med school regardless of major. Although even considering that it seems those types of classes would have much more real world application than a psych major.

The only thing I’m concerned about is having all my pre-med science classes PLUS the HES sciences on top of that…might be too much of the same type of material but I’m not completely sure

[buffalokilla]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
Has anyone here been a Health and Exercise Science major in college? I’m pre-med but since major doesn’t matter for that I’m a psych major. I’m considering switching to HES though since I have a big interest in exercise and nutrition and I’m pretty sure all of those who major in it get certified after graduation (not that I care that much about that but it’s a nice benefit).

One thing though…I don’t know about you guys but I absolutely HATE when dumbasses act like they know a lot about nutrition/exercise and have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. That seriously annoys me more than almost anything else and I have this feeling that’s how everyone will be in all of these classes lol.

Anyway just looking for some extra input in addition to what I’ll be getting from talking to people here.

Thanks [/quote]

I did an ACSM focused HES major for my undergrad and then went to do a masters in biomechanics. My advice: pick a real major. Exercise science was a colossal waste of time as a major, I had two classes in the department I’d consider worthwhile. Especially if your goal is medicine, I’d do biology or physiology. Granted there were some cool people in HES, but there’s good people in every discipline and you’ll meet the cool ones in HES at the squat rack anyway.

-Dan[/quote]

I’m a little confused by this. Why exactly was it a waste?

Honestly, the only reason I’d be changing is if it’s 1. easier and 2. more interesting. The actual content doesn’t matter that much as far as real world application since I plan to go to med school regardless of major. Although even considering that it seems those types of classes would have much more real world application than a psych major.

The only thing I’m concerned about is having all my pre-med science classes PLUS the HES sciences on top of that…might be too much of the same type of material but I’m not completely sure[/quote]

It’s a waste because you don’t really learn anything that wouldn’t take 5 minutes (okay, slight exaggeration) on wikipedia to figure out. Cardiac anatomy, the energy systems, and some real basic muscular anatomy and function are all that came out of the classes in the major.

If you want an easy major, I guess go for it. It is interesting, though the classes you’ll have in undergrad won’t get into the really interesting things but just graze the surface. All but a couple of the classes will be blowoffs if you’re a reasonably intelligent person, which I’m guessing you are since you have med school plans. I’m not sure how good HES will look on a med school application though, I don’t know anyone personally who’s tried it.

You will definitely see overlap between some of the science classes, but the HES ones will be very, very easy versions compared to the med ones with the possible exception of anatomy.

[jehovasfitness]

I graduated with an Exercise Science degree.

I was an accounting major for 2.5 yrs, then switched and loved every minute of it.

Never missed a class and this is coming from someone all through school would miss the max amount of days allowed, and into college got a little better but still would miss classes and not enjoy going.

Never regret making that decision except for the student loans

[PB_Andy]

I disagree in saying that Exercise Science is easy. Actually it depends on your concentration. For my major, Movement Science, in addition to the classes I listed in my first post, I also need to take: Mendelian Genetics, 2 Chemistry’s and Organic Chem, Calculus, Physics. I’ve already taken most of those but as you can see there is a heavy focus on math/science. The other concentration at my school is Exercise and Fitness and that one is on the easier side, which is why most at my school take it.

[buffalokilla]

[quote]PB Andy wrote:
I disagree in saying that Exercise Science is easy. Actually it depends on your concentration. For my major, Movement Science, in addition to the classes I listed in my first post, I also need to take: Mendelian Genetics, 2 Chemistry’s and Organic Chem, Calculus, Physics. I’ve already taken most of those but as you can see there is a heavy focus on math/science. The other concentration at my school is Exercise and Fitness and that one is on the easier side, which is why most at my school take it.[/quote]

I guess I was a little unclear in my post; the general science requirements can be challenging depending on your institution. The actual classes for the major, though, taken within whatever college HES is housed in, are usually not very hard at all. I’m considering classes like Exercise Programming, Biomechanics, Exercise Physiology, etc.

That’s why I recommended biology or full-on phys; the same types of sciences (if not more) are required.

[system]

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:

I’m a little confused by this. Why exactly was it a waste?

Honestly, the only reason I’d be changing is if it’s 1. easier and 2. more interesting. The actual content doesn’t matter that much as far as real world application since I plan to go to med school regardless of major. Although even considering that it seems those types of classes would have much more real world application than a psych major.

The only thing I’m concerned about is having all my pre-med science classes PLUS the HES sciences on top of that…might be too much of the same type of material but I’m not completely sure

It’s a waste because you don’t really learn anything that wouldn’t take 5 minutes (okay, slight exaggeration) on wikipedia to figure out. Cardiac anatomy, the energy systems, and some real basic muscular anatomy and function are all that came out of the classes in the major.

If you want an easy major, I guess go for it. It is interesting, though the classes you’ll have in undergrad won’t get into the really interesting things but just graze the surface. All but a couple of the classes will be blowoffs if you’re a reasonably intelligent person, which I’m guessing you are since you have med school plans. I’m not sure how good HES will look on a med school application though, I don’t know anyone personally who’s tried it.

You will definitely see overlap between some of the science classes, but the HES ones will be very, very easy versions compared to the med ones with the possible exception of anatomy.[/quote]

Hm, if anything that makes me want to take it even more lol. I could definitely use a break with easier sciences after having to deal with Chem, Orgo, Physics, Genetics, etc…any idea if they have labs? I guess I’ll just have to find out on my school site. Looking at the requirements now and it seems like the only ones that might be slightly difficult are anatomy&physiology and biomechanics

As for how it would look to med schools, Everything I’ve read on the topic has said it absolutely does not matter (which is why I am currently a psych major)

[Xab]

Well, I have some perspective for you, but I need to tell you about me first so it makes sense.

I started out double majoring in Journalism and Public Relations. I had just gotten my NSCA-CPT cert before the fall classes started, and I’m working on my CSCS now. Naturally, taking college courses in biomechanics and kinesiology would make sense since I needed more electives. So, I took Treatment of Athletic Injuries, Anatomy, and Nutrition for Sports.

I’m hoping it’s just my school, but it was a clusterfuck of heavily outdated information.

The nutrition course was Grade A, 100% dietitian bullshit. They were saying shit like recommending no more than 75g of protein, even for very active strength athletes like football players, and advocating low-fat diets for fat loss. The anatomy course was useful (although the teacher didn’t know how to teach) and the treatment course was well-taught, but the textbook and the materials were all at least 10 years old.

Academia usually comes up with theory first, and then it works it’s way into the professional world. It’s backwards with anything related to kinesiology, biomechanics, or exercise physiology though. The shit that guys like Poliquin, Cosgrove, Tate, and Simmons have been saying for years won’t be taught in classrooms for a while, because it’s too much of a departure from the safe norms, which are currently a joke.

All I can say is the piece of paper might be worth it, but be ready for four years of pulling your hair out.

[challer1]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:

I’m a little confused by this. Why exactly was it a waste?

Honestly, the only reason I’d be changing is if it’s 1. easier and 2. more interesting. The actual content doesn’t matter that much as far as real world application since I plan to go to med school regardless of major. Although even considering that it seems those types of classes would have much more real world application than a psych major.

The only thing I’m concerned about is having all my pre-med science classes PLUS the HES sciences on top of that…might be too much of the same type of material but I’m not completely sure[/quote]

It’s a waste because you don’t really learn anything that wouldn’t take 5 minutes (okay, slight exaggeration) on wikipedia to figure out. Cardiac anatomy, the energy systems, and some real basic muscular anatomy and function are all that came out of the classes in the major.

If you want an easy major, I guess go for it. It is interesting, though the classes you’ll have in undergrad won’t get into the really interesting things but just graze the surface. All but a couple of the classes will be blowoffs if you’re a reasonably intelligent person, which I’m guessing you are since you have med school plans. I’m not sure how good HES will look on a med school application though, I don’t know anyone personally who’s tried it.

You will definitely see overlap between some of the science classes, but the HES ones will be very, very easy versions compared to the med ones with the possible exception of anatomy.[/quote]

[quote]
Hm, if anything that makes me want to take it even more lol. I could definitely use a break with easier sciences after having to deal with Chem, Orgo, Physics, Genetics, etc…any idea if they have labs? I guess I’ll just have to find out on my school site. Looking at the requirements now and it seems like the only ones that might be slightly difficult are anatomy&physiology and biomechanics

As for how it would look to med schools, Everything I’ve read on the topic has said it absolutely does not matter (which is why I am currently a psych major)[/quote]

I was a kines major and we didn’t learn anything worthwhile, and I took all the “hard” classes in the major. It was a waste of time, I echo the other posters sentiments. It doesn’t matter if you’re taking biomechanics or neural basis of movement, you’re going to be held back since the rest of your class is a bunch of jerk offs that are looking for an easy major and just got stuck in the “hard” class because it was the only thing that would fit in their schedule.

If you’re worried about the difficulty of your current material, consider changing program tracks. If you consider anything you could possibly be doing as an undergrad to be remotely challenging, the MCAT is going to be a bitch.

[PB_Andy]

Agreed that the information you learn will largely be useless. The only thing it is good for is your resume.

[system]

[quote]Xab wrote:
Well, I have some perspective for you, but I need to tell you about me first so it makes sense.

I started out double majoring in Journalism and Public Relations. I had just gotten my NSCA-CPT cert before the fall classes started, and I’m working on my CSCS now. Naturally, taking college courses in biomechanics and kinesiology would make sense since I needed more electives. So, I took Treatment of Athletic Injuries, Anatomy, and Nutrition for Sports.

I’m hoping it’s just my school, but it was a clusterfuck of heavily outdated information.

The nutrition course was Grade A, 100% dietitian bullshit. They were saying shit like recommending no more than 75g of protein, even for very active strength athletes like football players, and advocating low-fat diets for fat loss. The anatomy course was useful (although the teacher didn’t know how to teach) and the treatment course was well-taught, but the textbook and the materials were all at least 10 years old.

Academia usually comes up with theory first, and then it works it’s way into the professional world. It’s backwards with anything related to kinesiology, biomechanics, or exercise physiology though. The shit that guys like Poliquin, Cosgrove, Tate, and Simmons have been saying for years won’t be taught in classrooms for a while, because it’s too much of a departure from the safe norms, which are currently a joke.

All I can say is the piece of paper might be worth it, but be ready for four years of pulling your hair out. [/quote]

lol that’s exactly what I think could be a problem, that will probably piss me off so much with dumbasses thinking they know stuff when it’s all wrong.

That even happened in my bio class yesterday, TWICE. First my teacher tells me that high protein will cause a lot of stress to your kidneys and is dangerous and then goes on to tell how keto diets are very dangerous and causes metabolic acidosis. Not that she’s entirely wrong but the generalized crap and misinformation really got to me. I’m sure that will be 10x worse in some of these classes but hopefully they’re not too outdated.

[quote]challer1 wrote:

I was a kines major and we didn’t learn anything worthwhile, and I took all the “hard” classes in the major. It was a waste of time, I echo the other posters sentiments. It doesn’t matter if you’re taking biomechanics or neural basis of movement, you’re going to be held back since the rest of your class is a bunch of jerk offs that are looking for an easy major and just got stuck in the “hard” class because it was the only thing that would fit in their schedule.

If you’re worried about the difficulty of your current material, consider changing program tracks. If you consider anything you could possibly be doing as an undergrad to be remotely challenging, the MCAT is going to be a bitch.[/quote]

Again this kind of sounds like good news to me. I’m not lazy and I like to learn interesting material but the fact that it seems a lot of you are saying the classes are easy and will go slow for the slower students is one of the reasons I would want to take it. Every semester it’s always been my pre med classes + psych or other classes and every semester the pre med classes have been a lot of work and the other classes are comparatively easy. Considering the pre-med workload I’d be happy to have the rest of my classes but interesting but relatively easy.

[quote]PB Andy wrote:
Agreed that the information you learn will largely be useless. The only thing it is good for is your resume.[/quote]

Is this how you feel about the information you’re currently learning? That it will be useless for what you plan to do after undergrad? I think this would be more of a concern if I didn’t have a plan for after undergrad but I’m sure it couldn’t be much worse than a psych degree, not too much you can do with that. At least with this I could get some certifications if I ever wanted to be a PT over summers of med school or something which would be cool.

It seems like you guys are just saying that it would be relatively easy and if anything maybe irrelevant right? Doesn’t seem like there are other downsides, not that have been mentioned anyway.

[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
I graduated with an Exercise Science degree.

I was an accounting major for 2.5 yrs, then switched and loved every minute of it.

Never missed a class and this is coming from someone all through school would miss the max amount of days allowed, and into college got a little better but still would miss classes and not enjoy going.

Never regret making that decision except for the student loans :D[/quote]

And you’re a PT now right? How were the classes you had to take as far as difficultly and interest (well I guess you were clearly interested given what you said).

Was the information outdated and annoying to listen to or actually up to date?

[Bill_Roberts]

I did not major in it, but as my major left a lot of room for electives, I took physiology, exercise physiology, and exercise prescription – the last one or the last two being their top level courses – from the Department of Exercise Science.

The difficulty level and overall caliber of students were jokes.

In microbiology, I had to work reasonably hard to do well and did not necessarily score top of the class in any given exam, in fact quite often did not, at least one contributing reason being there were others who studied much more diligently than I did.

By reasonably hard, I mean starting studying and doing a pretty hard job of it usually the day before an exam (sometimes the morning of.) I never did ongoing studying as I should have, but just relied on having listened to the lectures. But this still was real work and counted for a lot more than doing nothing. I’d have failed in microbiology if I’d done essentially nothing. No doubt.

In these classes though I generally never studied at all – not a lick, other than probably just a single read-through of the book, and that a fast clip – and invariably scored top of class.

This despite the physiology class having over 500 College of Health and Human Performance students in it.

And in discussions with them, they considered the class HARD.

This was, I thought, a sad commentary. As they studied and I did not, at least some of them should have matched or surpassed my test scores, where I missed any.

And as mentioned this can’t be accounted for by just attributing amazing ability to me, because I did work in microbiology and did get beaten by other students on tests, and in smaller class sizes than that.

My point is, you may be setting yourself up to be competing against a slow field. In the long run this won’t do you a favor compared to putting yourself in with a faster, sharper crowd as will be the case in some other majors.

Please note, I’m not saying any individual person who took this major at another university, or for that matter at UF in a different class than I took, may not be extremely sharp. But the sample size I saw was pretty substantial, with quite lame performance.

[system]

[quote]Bill Roberts wrote:
I did not major in it, but as my major left a lot of room for electives, I took physiology, exercise physiology, and exercise prescription – the last one or the last two being their top level courses – from the Department of Exercise Science.

The difficulty level and overall caliber of students were jokes.

In microbiology, I had to work reasonably hard to do well and did not necessarily score top of the class in any given exam, in fact quite often did not, at least one contributing reason being there were others who studied much more diligently than I did.

By reasonably hard, I mean starting studying and doing a pretty hard job of it usually the day before an exam (sometimes the morning of.) I never did ongoing studying as I should have, but just relied on having listened to the lectures. But this still was real work and counted for a lot more than doing nothing. I’d have failed in microbiology if I’d done essentially nothing. No doubt.

In these classes though I generally never studied at all – not a lick, other than probably just a single read-through of the book, and that a fast clip – and invariably scored top of class.

This despite the physiology class having over 500 College of Health and Human Performance students in it.

And in discussions with them, they considered the class HARD.

This was, I thought, a sad commentary. As they studied and I did not, at least some of them should have matched or surpassed my test scores, where I missed any.

And as mentioned this can’t be accounted for by just attributing amazing ability to me, because I did work in microbiology and did get beaten by other students on tests, and in smaller class sizes than that.

My point is, you may be setting yourself up to be competing against a slow field. In the long run this won’t do you a favor compared to putting yourself in with a faster, sharper crowd as will be the case in some other majors.

Please note, I’m not saying any individual person who took this major at another university, or for that matter at UF in a different class than I took, may not be extremely sharp. But the sample size I saw was pretty substantial, with quite lame performance.[/quote]

That kind of reminds me of some of the kids in my current math and all of my psych courses. Many of the other students talk about how hard it is, I guess because it’s all they’ve taken. For me, compared to the harder science classes, they’re pretty much jokes.

You mentioned that it might not be better for me being with slower students. I would totally agree if those were the only classes I were taking but do you think that would still matter considering I’ll still be taking plenty of harder classes for pre-med requirements? I would think it wouldn’t but am always open to opinions.

From what I’m hearing I’m actually looking forward to switching to a HES major, the only thing I could see being a problem is med acceptance committees thinking I took things too easily outside of the requirements, although as I mentioned everything I’ve heard/read says that major doesn’t matter. http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/214387-what-should-premed-major.html

[Bill_Roberts]

With plenty of other classes then the only problem could be if those reviewing your med school application downrated you because of having an opinion you were competing against a slow field. But with enough real science classes, if they are reasonable that shouldn’t be an issue.

I’ve also read that supposedly one’s major doesn’t matter, but when human beings are making the decision, it can be unwarranted to assume that they go utterly literally by what is “supposed” to be the case. It’s only reasonable to see more promise in someone who did well against a field that you believe was tough than in a person who did similarly well against, as Rahm Emanuel would say, a bunch of f’in retards. (Not that the situation was THAT bad in what I saw of UF’s program, but they weren’t the sharpest knives in the drawer.)

UF’s exercise science program was different in that there was essentially no room left for electives at all – three credits I think.

If the program at your school leaves lots of room then indeed there may be no real objection, if that’s what you want to do.

[buffalokilla]

[quote]pumped340 wrote:
And you’re a PT now right? How were the classes you had to take as far as difficultly and interest (well I guess you were clearly interested given what you said).
[/quote]

PT is a licensure for physical therapists, like MD or DDS. Physical Therapists get pretty pissy when you use it inappropriately. Just a heads up since you’ll potentially be dealing with them as a doctor later on.

[quote]Bill Roberts wrote:
Please note, I’m not saying any individual person who took this major at another university, or for that matter at UF in a different class than I took, may not be extremely sharp. But the sample size I saw was pretty substantial, with quite lame performance.[/quote]

My experience was similar to yours Bill, although we did have a couple of pretty intelligent people in Ex Sci who went on to PT school or other further study. Interesting side bar, as a part of our general science requirements Exercise Science students took Human Physiology with the nursing majors, and the Exercise Science students were goddamn all-stars comparatively. I’m genuinely afraid to go to the hospital now for fear poor nursing will kill me. I know there are good nurses, but statistically speaking, out of a class of 100, 4 got above a C.

[system]

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:

My experience was similar to yours Bill, although we did have a couple of pretty intelligent people in Ex Sci who went on to PT school or other further study. Interesting side bar, as a part of our general science requirements Exercise Science students took Human Physiology with the nursing majors, and the Exercise Science students were goddamn all-stars comparatively. I’m genuinely afraid to go to the hospital now for fear poor nursing will kill me. I know there are good nurses, but statistically speaking, out of a class of 100, 4 got above a C.[/quote]

I’m surprised, it seems like nursing is one of the tougher majors, I would think they would get pretty well prepared.

By the way, for Bill or anyone else, this is what the requirements seem to be at my school http://www.tcnj.edu/~nursing/healthex/academics/exercise.html it’s on that main link in case you wanted to check it out. Looks like there’s a decent amount of room for electives but I may have to talk to someone about moving some classes to senior year so I can fit in all my pre-med reqs before the MCATs at the end of Junior year.

Plus, if you click on “Academic Programs” to the left the page it takes you to has a guy actually squatting, so it must be good

[Artemisia]

As a nutrition major (I’m working on my second degree right now) who has a lot of classes with ex sci students, I can tell you the following things from my experience:

1. The nutrition classes you’ll take will generally teach you nothing you don’t already know from a practical application standpoint in terms of healthy eating, fat loss, etc., although in some courses there is biochem that’s helpful and interesting. Medical nutrition will probably be interesting, too, although I’m about 99% sure ex sci doesn’t cover that.

2. The same nutrition classes will drive you insane because if the school has CADE accreditation (most do) it follows ADA guidelines and you’ll get taunted for meal plans that contain more than 1g/kg protein and more than one egg a day. I have one bodybuilder in the program with me, and we commiserate often.

3. Sometimes you can get great instruction. We’re required to take a sports nutrition course now because the ADA supposedly has recently realized that athletes are “different animals” and you can’t tell them to follow MyPyramid (as if anyone should). My instructor for this class is just GREAT. On the first day, she told us that most R.D.s know nothing about nutrition for fitness, and that the field has a very bad reputation among the athletic. My ears perked up and I’ve learned a bunch - we’ve covered things like nutrient timing, and I never would have expected that based on my previous course experience.

The other few things…I started out doing my first degree as a psych major planning on going to med school. I liked psychology; I didn’t want to major in bio/biochem/chem like most pre-med students. Our pre-med honors society got a talk from a big-wig cardiothoracic surgeon from Harvard who majored in English lit when he was in undergrad and told us to do what we loved. There was also an article in either the WSJ or the Times (I don’t recall) a few years back that talked about how if a med school has a choice between two relatively identical students, the humanities/non-traditional major student is likely to win out because he has demonstrated a real passion for his chosen major by going against the norm (and had to do more coursework, too), and also is probably better at dealing with people. My fiance is in med school and his roommate majored in theology. So…do what you want!

As a side note, I find that there is ALWAYS, in any field, a large portion who act as though they know everything, when they’re really “dumbasses.” I’m in grad school for English right now, and there are more than a few who behave the same way a bunch in my nutrition classes do - superiority complexes abound.