You DO NOT need a bootcamp to burn fat.
That's the first point.
But there's more.
Click here for info on the only Women's Barbell Club in WNY
A boot camp is not the best way to burn calories and “melt fat.”
What exactly does melt fat mean anyway?
I'm sick of reading that phrase. There is no such thing. Your bodyfat is not butter and jumping around doing burpees is not the stove burning the butter off the pan.
Yes, a bootcamp can help you lose weight/fat. It is one of the many forms of exercise that can help you achieve that goal.
Is it the best option?
That's debatable.
This is what an article from active.com says about boot camps-
“You're moving constantly, at a rapid motion, which burns major calories and you can usually expect to burn between 500 to 600 calories during one hour long session..”
You can eat two slices of pizza and wipe away all that good work of moving constantly at a rapid motion..
Boot camps are for today not tomorrow
If you have participated in a boot camp class you know the feeling of being tired, sweaty and out of breath.
It FEELS LIKE you are literally burning fat off your body. It helps that you've been told you are burning fat with each burpee or thruster.
Just because you feel something, doesn't mean it's true.
Losing weight, and “burning fat” is all about creating a caloric deficit. You can do this with a combination of nutrition and exercise.
Or with just diet alone.
Yes, you can lose fat by doing boot camp classes. along with diet.
You could also do this by walking daily and creating a caloric deficit by eating less than your body requires.
The choice is yours.
Some people enjoy the feeling of getting sweaty, out of breath and feeling exhausted from a workout; just as there are some people who do not.
Let me repeat one more time so it's clear- you DO NOT need to do boot camp classes to burn fat.
This brings us to a crucial point-
The Difference between exercise and training
If you enjoy doing 45-60 minute boot camp classes, I am not here to tell you to stop.
That is, if you truly enjoy them.
But you need to know what they are and what they AREN'T.
You should also know if there is a better option for your time invested in physical activity..
The difference between exercise (boot camp) and training (a structured strength training program).
Exercise is all about today. What you feel like now. Hot, tired, sweaty, out of breath.
It's hard, especially if you have never done it before.
If you stick to it, you will adapt.
Most exercise programs take about 4-6 weeks to adapt to.
This is why you hear of so many 4-6 week transformation challenges.
When you join a spinning class you feel crushed for the first few sessions. After awhile your body adapts.
The physical activity still burns calories but it no longer challenges your body enough to cause major changes.
After the initial adaptation takes place, you need to move on to something else. Or just “maintain”.
When your free month of bootcamp ends, what should you do? Join for a year, naturally.
It worked so well for a month!!You lost 10 lbs. And you feel great! It's all thanks to the genius boot camp workouts, of course.
If you went from sedentary to jumping around in a boot camp five days a week, it's no surprise you lost some weight.
You could have lost this same amount of weight by taking daily walks and reducing your calorie intake just slightly below maintenance.
I digress.
Boot camps are exercise. So is hopping on the elliptical for thirty minutes.
Boot camps are not boring. That's their big selling point. Just like p90x.
No workout is the same! You will sweat and “melt fat” and never be bored!
Training is physical activity done with a longer-term goal in mind, the workouts of which are designed to produce that goal.
From Mark Rippetoe's article “The Biggest Training Fallacy of All” -
"The thing that differentiates a good program from a less-good program is its ability to continue stimulating the adaptation. So, by definition, a program that requires a regular increase in some aspect of its stress is an effective program for a novice, and one that doesn’t is less effective. For a novice, any program is better than no program at all, so all of them work with varying degrees of efficiency. This is why everybody thinks their program works, and why you’ll always find perfectly honest testimonials for every new exercise program on TV or the internet. But nothing works as well as a moderate incremental increase in some loading parameter every workout for as long as an adaptation to the increase continues to occur, because this produces both stress and adaptation – the definition of progress. "
No matter what style of exercise you choose (p90x, boot camps, curves), it will “work” for a short period of time.
None are sustainable for the long-term. Just like extreme diets only “work” for a few weeks at a time. They are NOT sustainable.
In my opinion, this makes them an inferior choice to a properly designed strength training program.
If I was to write out the optimal program for you it would include the following:
3 days strength training following a progressive overload program (like Starting Strength)
caloric deficit with sufficient protein and fiber
After a few months if the goal is fat loss/improved conditioning, add in one day of high intensity interval training using a sled, airdyne bike etc..
I'm not here to tell you boot camps are pointless.
Do what gets you moving.
Boot camps are an exercise option.
There are plenty of options in the fitness industry, as you know.
Jumping from one to another is a good way to make zero progress. Just remember, the fitness industry is big money and BIG marketing.
They make their living on words like “new, improved, fun, core, abs, toned, variety, cutting-edge, functional..”
If I was to tell you that my program only uses a few exercises. We only use a barbell and weights. It's simple. Effective. Works every time. The tried and true basics are all you need.
Would you sign up?
For many women, the idea of lifting weights is not even a consideration.
Unless it's light weights for high reps as part of the boot camp or group training class.
This is a damn shame and I'm here to change that.
And no, you will not become a huge bodybuilder just by lifting some weights. Those women actually WANT to look that way, and they take performance enhancing drugs to help their bodies bulk up.
Women just don't have the testosterone naturally to get huge like that.
What women do have, is the potential to be much stronger, just like men.
It's not your fault you aren't aware of the many benefits of strength training that can NOT be achieved with other forms of exercise.
If you are interested, here's my recommendation-
Get in touch with me to set up a consult/first training session. GET IN TOUCH HERE
Or check out my page for the only Women's Strength Club in the area here.
I will explain how strength training will benefit you in more ways than any other form of exercise.
You will learn how to safely perform the most important strength training exercises with correct form.