Boot camp isn’t just for newly-minted army recruits anymore. In the past, the very mention of a “boot camp” brought to mind thoughts of young men in military fatigues running through obstacle courses, practicing shooting, and eating gruel in the canteen, but nowadays boot camp is something very different: A rigorous form of training meant for civilians, not soldiers, who want to get in shape quick.

boot camp canada bay

Not all boot camps in Canada Bay are the same, but the basic concept is similar for them all. Groups of people (usually a total of fifteen to thirty) meet several times a week, often early in the morning, and go through a high-energy workout regimen intended to rapidly improve their strength and conditioning.

Personal trainers take the place of drill sergeants, and friends and neighbors take the place of fellow soldiers. It may not be run by the army, but people who have completed fitness boot camps around Canada Bay say the transformation they experienced was just as dramatic as anything a GI goes through.

Teamwork for Success

The underlying principle of fitness boot camps is simple, and it will be familiar to anyone who’s gone through the army’s basic training: People work harder when they are put together in teams. In a fitness boot camp, the participants are, in essence, a team. They attend every session together, they do all the same exercises, they experience the same fatigue and aches, and they see each other get stronger and more fit at the same time. Fitness boot camps are tough, and the experience encourages the participants to develop a type of camaraderie.

When people complete a Canada Bay bootcamp, they’re doing more than working out alongside other people in a group. The challenge of boot camp (and the hours spent together) encourages the participants to get to know each other. In turn, they start to care about each other’s performance, and the encouragement and accountability that comes with being around other people pushes all the participants to work harder.

Research shows that people work more and better when they know that other people are watching. That’s the basic logic of a boot camp. It forces the participants to share in each other’s success, and that’s why boot camps are so successful at getting people in shape, and why they have become so popular.

Boot Camp Basics

But what, exactly, do people do in boot camp? The specifics vary from instructor to instructor, but many of them do choose to pattern their boot camps on those that actual army recruits endure. In some Canada Bay boot camps, participants do sit-ups and pushups, relay races, barbell and dumbbell work, kickboxing, and sprint drills, many of which are similar to exercises done in the army. Some trainers who run boot camps even have military backgrounds, and they draw on their experiences in the army when planning the drills their students do.

Regardless of the specific exercises, every boot camp organizer makes sure that their boot camp is rigorous, and that it challenges the participants physically as well as mentally. The rationale is that only when the group is challenged will the participants start to pull together, and then get the full benefit of working out in a group.

The other major benefit of a fitness boot camp in Canada Bay, besides the camaraderie, is the speed with which it can get people in shape. Boot camp sessions rarely last more than one hour, mainly because few people could keep up a workout of such intensity for more than a full hour. During the boot camp’s exercises, participants burn several hundred calories, and when they repeat that several times each week, the resulting weight loss can be fast and totally transformational.

But there’s more than just weight loss. Participants in boot camps report feeling stronger, faster, and having greater endurance when they play sports or simply complete physical tasks in their day-to-day lives. And along with that comes improved overall health, from better cardiovascular conditioning to greater concentration and stronger joints.

Intensity and Camaraderie

Could these results be replicated by working out without a group? Maybe. Some people will prefer working out alone, or have the discipline to get up and put themselves through a rigorous workout several times a week. But for the great majority of people, working out is something they dread, and won’t do unless they absolutely have to.

This is especially true when the workouts are demanding and totally fatiguing, both mentally and physically, like the workouts in fitness boot camps are. Most people, if they try to undertake such a regimen on their own, will quit after a few days. They may not mean to quit, but they gradually work out less and less, or have more trouble finding time to go through an entire workout.

That’s the beauty of the fitness boot camp model. Canada Bay’s bootcamps marry a very challenging workout—the type that produces results, and fast—with an intimate support group intended to keep participants engaged, excited, and motivated to keep working out at their maximum capacity. Few other fitness programs have both of these components.

Many fitness gurus recommend that solo exercisers keep their workout programs easy, so they won’t be discouraged from working out day after day after day. On the other hand, most forms of group exercise, like basketball or football, don’t provide the high intensity workout that boot camps do, nor do they target muscle group all over a participants body. But fitness boot camps have both: The intensity, and the support group needed to help participants see the program through to its end.

People who have had trouble succeeding with other forms of exercise should undoubtedly try a fitness boot camp. The changes they can see in the course of just one boot camp—usually four to six weeks—are enormous.

Though participants often have trouble even finishing the first work out, by the last one they are in far better shape and more confident in their physical abilities. And what’s best of all, they get to share their achievements with a group of newfound friends.

Dangerously Fit Boot Camp
2046 Canada Bay, Sydney

P.S If you have any questions or would like to book a free trial to our Canada Bay boot camp, click the “Register now” button below.

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