The Results Show

I know some of you have been curious to know how Boot Camp ended up, so I thought I should probably come clean with the results.

First off, I have to say that it was an absolutely amazing experience. For the first time in my life, there were instances where I actually found myself looking forward to exercising. After the first week, I was exhausted and sore, but extremely optimistic. I even started to think about continuing and signing up for the next Boot Camp. However, by the third week, it started to get really rough. I felt frustrated and unmotivated because things didn’t seem to be getting any easier.

But by the last week, I was back on point. I pushed myself harder than I ever have before, and I could finally start to feel myself getting stronger and faster. And on Friday morning, we had our final timed assessments. One of my main goals had been to drastically improve my timed mile. So as we headed to the starting line, I felt completely mentally and physically prepared to push myself to the absolute limits. I definitely did just that – by the end, I felt like I was having a full-blown asthma attack, but I managed to improve my mile time by 1:49! My trainer, who had said a 30 second improvement would be more than acceptable, was very impressed. In addition, I almost doubled the amount of pushups I can do in a minute, and drastically improved my plank hold time. Yesssssssssssssssss.

The most shocking part of the morning came at the end of our final class, when the trainer announced that I was “Boot Camper of the Week.” I was completely baffled, but apparently she had really noticed how much I had improved, even out of the 50 other women in the class. I was also one of only five people who completed Boot Camp with perfect attendance. Go big or go home.

On Saturday morning, I headed to the gym to have my final measurements taken. To sum up, I lost inches in my: triceps, hips, thighs, arms, shoulders, chest, waist and thighs. However, my weight stayed exactly the same, which I found very interesting. But most importantly, my body composition percentage went down by 2.03%! My trainer says this is absolutely unheard of. When she works with someone one-on-one for four weeks, she generally only expects a 1% decrease, but I was able to more than double that number in a group fitness situation. For me, this was a major accomplishment, and it explained why I did not lose any weight – I converted fat into muscle!

At the bottom of my evaluation sheet from our first meeting, it says that my goals for Boot Camp were “tone, increase endurance, and motivation.” Without a doubt, I think I have reached those goals, so I would call Boot Camp and incredible success. I’m still nowhere near an athlete, but I’m improving, slowly but surely. And I think I have the motivation to continue on my own.

On Monday I did a leg and cardio workout at my gym, all by myself. Tuesday, my sister and I met at Discovery Park at 6am to run the loop trail. And this morning, I attended my first 5:45am Spin class. I’ve found that I’m completely addicted to the feeling of having my workout over and done with for the day. Early morning is the way to go, and my body seems to have acclimated to getting up at the crack of dawn. We’ll see how long I can keep it up. Tonight I’m attending a Boot Camp class at my gym, and tomorrow morning I have an early morning Green Lake jog scheduled with my sister. We’ll see if I make it to Spin class on Saturday morning… I’m already feeling pretty sore!

So there you have it. Maybe all the pain was just weakness leaving my body after all...