Is Fitness Boot Camp For You?

If you're looking to jumpstart your exercise routine, fitness boot camps are a great way to get in shape and improve your cardiovascular health.

    If you're having a hard time motivating yourself to exercise but want to start burning serious calories fast, a fitness boot camp may be the right place to start.

A fitness boot camp is a type of group exercise program that focuses on boosting stamina, endurance, fitness, and weight loss over a period of several weeks. It's called a “boot camp” because of the team training environment, and because participants are pushed and challenged beyond what they think they can do. Teams of exercisers train together regularly during the classes, which may be run by a fitness instructor at a health club, a personal trainer, or even a former military instructor.

Fitness Boot Camp: Team Support 

    The team environment offers supportive benefits for fitness boot camp participants. "You're with a number of people who have similar fitness goals," says Pete McCall, an exercise physiologist and certified personal trainer with the American Council on Exercise who has studied and taught fitness boot camps. "Fitness boot camps will group people according to skill level, working with people with similar size bodies and similar experience, and it becomes very supportive."

Fitness Boot Camp: Exercise Benefits and Risks 

There are many benefits of a fitness boot camp, but that doesn't mean you should run out and sign up for the first one you find.

• Check out the instructor. As with any exercise class or fitness program, you want to make sure you're working with an accredited professional. Ask about their certification status and check with the organization that certified them to ensure they are in good standing.
• Get ready for a real workout. "It's extremely dynamic, aerobic-based and muscle-based exercise. You're getting all three components of a workout at the same time: cardio, flexibility, and strength training," says McCall. The American Council on Exercise did research on boot camps, and found that in a fitness boot camp class, a participant can burn up to 600 calories an hour — 10 calories a minute, he says.
• Check with your doctor. Tell your doctor that you're joining a fitness boot camp class, and consider getting a checkup. The best candidates? "Any apparently healthy adult, without any major issues or injuries; anybody who really wants to exercise and push themselves a little bit harder than they're used to," says McCall.
• Don’t overdo it. Even for avid exercisers who are fit, fitness boot camp classes should typically be taken once a week and definitely not more than twice a week, with at least two days in between, according to McCall. "Boot camp class can be extremely stressful, so if somebody is doing that two times a week and their body is not used to that stress, they can have a negative reaction to it and get that overstressed effect."
• Consider your condition. McCall also says that anyone with musculoskeletal issues or severe health issues such as heart problems should not try a fitness boot camp, because of the level of intensity and the exercises performed. But people with a well-managed chronic condition, even diabetes or asthma, can participate, provided they tell their instructor about the condition, he says.
• Fit the camp to your level. It's also important to find a boot camp suited for your level of fitness. "If you're brand new to exercise, I would recommend against it," says McCall. The exception is a fitness boot camp class designed for exercise beginners: "If somebody is brand new, they should look for a class that breaks up the groups into different skill levels. A good instructor will divide up the boot camp into various levels." The same cautions apply if you’re overweight: Look for a fitness boot camp geared toward beginners who want to get in shape and lose weight.
• Enjoy the variety. Boot camp classes are also good for regular exercisers as a way to mix up their workout routine. "It's great if they've been working out for at least a year, but are looking for a way to challenge themselves, and maybe increase the intensity a little bit. If you have been exercising about a year, it's an excellent way to kick-start a program because it can be extremely intense," says McCall.

    If you're up to the challenge of a tough workout that gets you in great shape fast, head to your local gym to find out what types of fitness boot camp classes they offer. Meet the instructors and find out the specifics of the classes, and make sure it's a good fit for you.