Your First Boot Camp

So you’ve made the jump! 

Signed up for your first boot camp session, and now you wait. How are you feeling? Everyone responds to change in different ways, but if you’re transitioning into a boot camp style fitness program or embarking on your outdoor fitness journey, odds are you’re a bit wary as to what to expect. That’s the upside to traditional fitness methods, we’ve been using those programs and methods for years now and we’re not entirely out of the loop when it comes to knowing what to expect from a few miles on a treadmill or an hour of pumping iron.

For many of us though, boot camps and outdoor fitness is uncharted territory. But fret not, we’ve got you covered with a few simple things you can expect from your first boot camp fitness program.

Expect it to go quick!

               Ever anticipated something for so long, then when it finally happens it kind of just passes by like a quick blur? You may very well find a similar phenomenon at work when you jump into your first boot camp program. This is for a number of reasons:

               First, your adrenaline is going to be pumping! Everything will be new and, hopefully, exciting. You’ll be too busy soaking in all the newness and trying to keep up that you won’t have time to tune into the minutes passing by. This brings us to the second reason you’ll find it going quick. Bootcamp programs are often condensed! Most programs like to utilize a healthy amount of HIIT style features that feature high exertion for short amounts of time followed by quick breaks. The result is tons calories burned, plenty of endorphins, and a workout that rarely exceeds 45 minutes long.

Expect to fail!

               Another thing to expect from boot camp and outdoor fitness is failure. This is a hard pill to swallow for those of us used to exceeding and dominating our traditional programs, but remember failure in fitness is often the element that pushes us to new heights and better results. Boot camps often feature movements, pace, and various other elements that are new and difficult. There will be a learning curve, failure is bound to happen, but you’ll come out better for it on the other end!

Expect to have fun!

               Amidst the new adjustment to high-intensity workouts, your muscles fatiguing and failing in ways that you haven’t experienced beforehand, and the whirlwind that comes with a new approach to fitness, you may be surprised to find that boot camp and outdoor style fitness is, above all else, incredibly fun! We all know that euphoric feeling of rushing endorphins that accompanies hitting a new PR on bench, or finishing an early morning 5K. Outdoor and boot camp fitness programs not only intensify that feeling, but throw you into a community that’s getting after it together, and the only thing better than that “Oh my god, I can’t believe I did that and survived” feeling, is to experience in a community of fitness.

               There’s no need to beat around the bush, outdoor and boot camp fitness can be an adjustment, and with all new adjustments comes an assortment of growing pains. Keep the above points in mind as you wonder what your own adjustment will be like, and above all cling to the last one! Working out should be fun, and boot camp fitness can be one more step in assuring just that!