Boot Camp

A boot camp in the area of fitness is a type of physical training program usually conducted by a personal trainer or other such fitness expert; however, it is usually not held within a traditional fitness center, gymnasium, or other physical fitness area but instead generally outdoors and oftentimes in a militaristic environment. The concept of fitness boot camp is based on the military's basic training, which is commonly called “boot camp.” It generally involves a mixture of traditional calisthenics and body-weight exercises, along with interval training, strength training, and other exercise training routines.

The purpose of fitness boot camps is one or more of the following: to become physically fit, participate in a regular exercise routine or program, burn calories to lose weight, increase muscular strength, or improve cardiovascular efficiency. Many fitness boot camps also offer advice and information in nutrition. They are often provided for people who are not motivated with working by themselves or using routines, programs, and exercise equipment offered at fitness centers and gymnasiums and need the camaraderie that comes with group participation but also need to be forced to do such workouts. As such, they provide social support for those participants, and during the classes, members may becomes friends with each other as they exercise. They learn to regularly exercise and to attend each class because the team benefits from their participation.

In addition, the main point of fitness boot camps is that they are based in part on the physical fitness training offered in military boot camps, and the basic training (sometimes also called recruit training) that soldiers go through when first being inducted into the U.S. military. People who are not motivated to exercise often need such discipline offered by such regimented workout programs. Such workouts are very efficient because participants work the entire body by going from one exercise to another with little or no rest in between.

Fitness boot camps began to develop in the last quarter of the twentieth century. In 1998, the American Council on Exercise (ACE) reported that fitness boot camps were becoming more popular across the United States.

Fitness boot camps are conducted by personal trainers or other such fitness experts who are called trainers or drill instructors. They vary in style, but most consist of various types of exercises such as running, weight training, and interval training. Most classes last from four to eight weeks. The training usually involves a group of people and it is usually conducted outdoors, such as in parks, in any types of weather. Although not a requirement, it may be similar to a military basic training course. The exercises found within fitness boot camps are centered around squats, pushups, pullups, lunges, and other calisthenics and exercises that only use the weight of the body, along with suspension training, plyometrics, kick-boxing, burpees, jogging, sprinting, running, hiking, interval training, obstacle courses, and competitive games.

The first day of boot camp is reserved for evaluating the participants with regard to their fitness levels. The classes promote teamwork, while emphasizing that individuals work at their own pace for the overall goal of the group. Often people work in pairs, or small groups of three or four. Sometimes teams compete against each other. At the end of each class, individual members are retested for their fitness levels.

The basic style of fitness boot camps offers many of the following features:

Many fitness boot camps are offered across the United States. For instance, the SWAT Fitness, located in Arizona, provides a four-week outdoor fitness program that offers fitness instruction, motivational training, and nutritional counseling. The company states that its boot camp, lead by fitness experts Ron and Jan Holland and their team of personal trainers, will help people reach their fitness goals while having fun doing energizing activities. Its website ( http://www.swatfitness.com/

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