Glen Korstrom
Northern News Services

INUVIK (Mar 12/99) - Though some Inuvik residents find the motivation and self-discipline to keep in shape on their own, some couples find going to the gym together helps them stick with work-out goals.

Such is the case for Deena Clayton and partner Dave Watt who work out at the gym three or four times a week, as well as enjoy skiing and hiking on area trails.

"I think we do spur each other on, partly just to get there," Clayton says.

"Sometimes if you're feeling a little low and you don't feel like going, if you have someone who is meeting you there or expecting you to be there, it encourages you to go."

Watt, who has worked out regularly since his teens, says the 'No pain, no gain' mantra followed by some means that those weight trainers are doing more harm than good.

"If you feel pain the next day, or feel stiff and sore, that means you've overtrained," he says.

"You should come back very patiently and do a very light routine the first two or three weeks."

Though reluctant to give advice to people at the gym on training methods -- he says if they want advice they will ask -- Watt sometimes still gives small pointers on how to most effectively use the equipment.

On the stationary bike, for example, many people have their seat too low.

"Your legs should almost come to full extension on the down stroke. Otherwise it's hard on your knees," Watt says.

Caught in the middle of his routine on a sunny Sunday afternoon, Bernie MacNeil takes a time out between bench-press sets to explain how his gym habit helps him feel stronger and more energized.

His every-other-day routine at the Aurora College gym starts with a cardiovascular warm-up, which could take place on the stationary bikes, the step machines or the treadmill.

Then he alternates between working on his legs, on his back and shoulders or on his arms. Though MacNeil has been working out for about six years, he only cemented his current work-out pattern about two years ago.

And as he places a barbell back on its stand, he says he sticks to his regimen religiously.

"If I'm down south visiting, I try to be near a gym so I can get in a work out," he says.

And, like Watt and Clayton, what can keep MacNeil motivated is that he sometimes works out with his partner, Debbie Cockney.

"Bernie's been after me for years to be working out," says Cockney, who has been a daily gym-user since June and works with MacNeil at Arctic Digital.

"It feels good. You'd think you'd be tired but I usually come at lunch and then feel energized for the rest of the afternoon."

Cockney says once she started feeling toned and stronger, if she missed a day at the gym she would feel sluggish.