- Boot Camp: $200/month
- Results desired=6-8 months
- Personal Training: $717.60/month
- Results desired=2 months
- Boot Camp will take 4x longer to achieve the desired results; HOWEVER
- Personal Training can achieve the same results in ¼ the time, but with 3 ½ x the cost of the Boot Camp.
Still not sure what is the right fitness program for you? Everyone is familiar with the details of what a one-on-one Personal Training session entails, but let’s take a quick look at how they differ from today’s version of Fitness Boot Camps.
A Fitness Boot Camp is a type of physical training program conducted by gyms, Personal Trainers, and also former military personnel. In the past several years, Fitness Boot Camps have grown in popularity for various reasons, and have continued to grow in both the number of trainers/instructors teaching them and the number of people interested in them. Boot Camp training often combines running, interval training, and many other exercises using weights and/or body weight to lose bodyfat, increase cardiovascular efficiency, increase strength, and help people get into a routine of regular exercise. Most will offer nutrition advice as well, but few are Certified Nutritionists or Registered Dieticians and therefore have the capability to do so or even legally are allowed to do so. These types of group exercise programs are called "Boot Camp" because it trains groups of people, typically outdoors, and is likely similar to military basic training.
The term "boot camp" is currently used in the fitness industry to describe group fitness classes that promote fat loss, camaraderie and team effort. They are designed to push people a little bit further than they would normally push themselves in the gym alone or in other traditional group exercise classes such as step aerobics or pilates. Most Boot Camps are often organized outdoors in parks using bodyweight exercises like jogging, sprinting, plyometrics, push-ups, pull-ups, squats, lunges, calisthenics, burpees, intermingled with running and competitive games. The idea is that everyone involved works at their own pace as they team up and work towards one goal, either in pairs, small teams of three or four, or even two teams head on. The key advantage of most Fitness Boot Camps is that the large group dynamic will often help motivate the participants.
There is obviously no shortage of Fitness Boot Camps out there now days, just go to your favorite search engine and checkout the ads and more than likely at least one (if not half) of them are local Boot Camps advertising some cockamamie story for next to nothing. Why the sudden surge in the past few years? It’s not just the rising increase in popularity, you also have a number of other unconsidered factors at hand here:
- Unstable Economy: Lack of overhead for the trainer=more $$$ in his/her pocket.
- Decreased Risk and Accountability: No Certification legally required and nobody to watch over them to ensure safety of clientele.
- More $$$, Less Time: They pack their camp as full as possible caring less and less about each individual.
- Cut camps down to 8-12 participants max: Ensures low trainer to client ration (similar to teacher/student ratio)
- Engaging design to ensure client/camper attention & enjoyment:The average adult attention span is 11 seconds for men, 14 for women. Do the math.
Bonus: Summer Shape Shifter Samples
Over the past several years of doing my Boot Camps I've developed a "playbook" of fitness programs, combining the timed sets of suspension training (etc.) combined with other cutting edge systems, methodically pushing the envelop on fitness, sports performance, body sculpting and weight loss. Allowing all-purpose and completely modifiable sets to lead the way, we are able generate highly individualized programs on a daily basis, using everything from suspension training to yoga, for both our Boot Camp and Personal Training clients. I have developed several different formats of which are functional for both time, exercise completion, group numbers and results over the past several years. But for now, I will include two of my camper’s favorites simply to demonstrate the differences between two equally challenging and beneficial, yet different Boot Camp exercise formats.
Below are two sample workouts for you that were generated for one of my recent Boot Camps. Full of male and female clients with the majority aiming for a drop in body fat, sculpt and tone specific areas, as well as achieve general health and fitness, but with 45 minutes to get it done.
Keys to remember with the Summer Shape Shifter Workout Formats:
- Proper warm-up of walk/jog for 4-6 minutes
- Perform 2-4 different quick functional stretches/movements to further activate your ligaments/tendons: Jumping jacks, Walking Knee-ups, Standing Windmills forward/backwards, etc.
- Each of these should only be 20-25 seconds max
- Only perform 1 set of each simply to get loose, not fatigue.
- Once beginning the workout, aim to minimize your time between exercises. It will likely take 20-45 seconds after completing one exercise to get to the next exercise and be ready to begin it, and this amount of time essentially “transitioning” between exercises will suffice for the required rest for most.
- Please note though that this is assuming your doctor has approved your current health for exercise
- You control you own intensity throughout the workout; Therefore if you rest too much it can be just as detrimental as working too hard too fast. Find your healthy medium to “tote” the line of pushing just enough, but never crossing that line, and I assure you your results will come much faster than expected and you can still walk to your own car without being carried.
- Once you have completed the workout, you will need to ensure a proper cool-down as well as a few stretches via static or functional.
- Walk for 2-3 minutes until you can state your First, Middle and Last name followed by your birthday, without taking a breath. This is a clear sign that your heart rate has returned to a safe enough zone to ensure your body immediately starts repaying oxygen debt. Example: “ John Allen Doe, December 1st, 1955”
- During your stretches whether static or functional, aim to stretch the 2-3 muscle groups that feel the most fatigued or did so during your workout. Don’t overstretch and don’t bother spending an additional 15 minutes stretching each and every muscle group, as this will only further increase the likelihood of soreness and possibly raise your HR back up.
Sample Workout #1- Format “Perfect 10”
This entire sequence consists of 10 total exercises of 45 second rounds, but is best to start off with 30-second rounds for the first few times. You don’t have to have an expensive gym timer (GymBoss, etc.), nor do you need to carry an old coach’s watch around your neck looking like you’re missing your whistle and daisy dukes. If you’re going to be at a public gym with others around, a simple stop watch will suffice ($5-$10 at Wal-Mart). If you’re going to be at your home or at a private gym, a simple cooking timer will prove the best as it not only lets you modify the time easily, but also start/restart each set quickly and easily, all the while only costing $1 at your local dollar store(assuming you don’t already have one).
Total A/B Workout Length: 42-45 minutes
Instructions:As you can see, you have 10 exercises labeled “1-10.” Start at #1 and perform this for 45 seconds (or 30 seconds if you’re just beginning to exercise). After completion of #1, immediately transition to exercise #2 begin. You will continue to do this, performing 1 set of each exercise before moving on to the next, until you reach exercise #10. After completion of exercise #10, take this quick minute to use the restroom or get a drink of water, then immediately return back to exercise #1 and make a second round through the 10 listed.
Modifications for Beginners? ~Begin by only doing one round of the 1-10 exercises at 30 seconds
~After you’ve completed this workout a few times, you can increase the difficulty level by:
- Increasing your time to 45 seconds on each station
- Keep your time at 30 seconds, but complete two rounds of the 1-10 exercise
~Increase your station time to 45 seconds each
~Add second round of workout
~Add a third round of the workout with any three of the 10 exercises
| Perfect 10 Workout | |
| 1 | Bodyweight Supine Pull-Ups On Bar-Smith Machine: Laying on back, grab v-bar hanging from bar on smith machine & perform Pull-up |
| 2 | VersaClimber Interval:RPM goal 120 |
| 3 | Alternate Pique & Push-Up On Ropes: With feet in ropes & hands on handles, perform pique (90 degrees), then perform pushup at bottom of movement |
| 4 | Lateral Rope Jumps (Side to side):Using green tube at knee height; Hop over it to the left, then hop back over to the right; Go all the way down the tube then turn around & come back |
| 5 | Speedy Jabs-Alternating on Punching Bag:Put gloves on! Stand with feet in good shoulder width stance; Hands/arms in tight, alternate jabbing the punching bag at the “X;” Don’t worry about power, worry about SPEED |
| 6 | Alternating T-Bar Core Rotation in Corner W/Barbell: Grab bar with both hands; Stand underneath bar head; Keep arms straight & rotate weight over to Left Hip, then back to center; Rotate bar to Right Hip, then back to center. |
| 7 | Wall-Sit W/ “Bus Drivers” on Wall: Sitting against the wall with legs at 90 degrees as if in a chair; Holding 1 weight plate straight out in front of you(in line with shoulders); Turn weight all the way around from 6 o’clock to 12 o’clock |
| 8 | Treadmill Interval: Incline@5 with Medicine Ball Overhead: Hold ball straight up in the air while running |
| 9 | Ab Roll-outs W/E-Z Bar: On knees on black mat; Both hands on Bar; Roll-out similar to ab-wheel, but with wider grip |
| 10 | Speedy Bicycles on Straps From Top of Cable Machine: hanging from straps on cable machine, alternate knees into chest FAST AS POSSIBLE; SPRINT! |
Sample Workout #2- Format “A/B”
This entire sequence consists of 10 total exercises of 45 second rounds, but is best to start off with 30-second rounds for the first few times.
Total A/B Workout Length: 38-42 minutes
Instructions:Start with exercise #1 – letter “A,” you perform 1A, then 1B, then go back to 1A, then back to 1B. Now you’re complete with stations #1, and will move forward to #2. In the same fashion, perform 2A, followed by 2B, back to 2A, now back to 2B.
| A/B Workout | |
| 1a | Extended Plank Alternating Dumbell Rows: Push-up position with 1 DB each hand. Row the RT dumbbell up to RT side of ribs, bringing elbow straight back dragging against side, resulting in shoulder blade retracting to middle of back. Lower dumbell back down to ground & repeat on opposite side. Alternate on each side. |
| 1b | Rowing Cardio Interval:Use concept rower or water rower; Fast as safely possible with full range of motion |
| 2a | Alternate Stationary Lunges With Barbell Overhead: Holding barbell straight into air isometrically, feet side by side; Step out with 1 foot into a lunge; Bring that foot back, then repeat with opposite foot. Continue alternating for duration of time frame. |
| 2b | Alternating T-Bar Core Rotation W/Barbell:Place 1 end of barbell in bottom corner of wall. Grab opposite end of bar w/both hands. Stand underneath bar head, knees slightly bent & looking straight up at ceiling; Keeping arms straight, rotate bar down to side of hip/thigh; bring back to center then repeat on opposite side; Continue rotating side to side for duration set. |
| 3a | Rope Battling-Waves:Alternate swinging arms/rope and making waves in the rope fast as possible with both arms. “Whipping the garden water hose to untangle the knots” |
| 3b | Lateral Box Stepovers With Barbell On Back of Neck: Alternate sides stepping over box laterally (from side) with bar on back of neck |
| 4a | VersaClimber Interval:RPM goal= 140+ |
| 4b | Spiderman Push-Ups On Suspension Ropes: With feet in rope perform push-up; On the way down for push-up bring your right knee up & out towards right elbow; On the way up from push-up return right leg back to starting position; Repeat on left side. “Same way Spiderman crawls up a wall” |
| 5a | Squat & Speedy Jabs Alternating on Punching Bag : Put gloves on; Stand with feet shoulder width apart; Hands/Arms in tight; Squat until reaching 90 degrees; Then raise up & jab right-jab left, before returning into a squat; Repeat for duration set. Squat-jab rt-jab lt-squat |
| 5b | Bunny Hops on a Bench:Standing on side of bench; Hands grip front of bench; Act as if feet are “glued together” & hop feet & lower-body over to other side of bench; As soon as your feet reach other side immediately hop back over to otherside. Repeat for duration set. |
I hope you enjoy the Sample Summer Shape Shifter workouts I’ve given above! Remember that these are merely samples of a couple of the past workouts we have done in the past few weeks. There are a million different exercises, a million different methods of modifying those exercises to be easier or more difficult, a million different techniques to organize the writeout for time and workout efficiency, as well as a million different reasons why you should come try it out first hand at Fitness Mastermind!
For help getting into a time efficient program that produces results far beyond imagination, contact Fitness Mastermind today and come try out Boot Camp for free. We look forward to it.
Keep It Fit!
Fitness Mastermind, LLC
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