Military-style fitness programs have been around for years, but a recent surge in popularity has made them impossible to ignore. If you're looking for a tough, total body workout designed to improve your strength-to-weight ratio, boot camps may be the ticket.
This week, I'll provide a few tips for developing your own boot camp-style workout and will introduce an exercise that fits right in.
The hallmark of boot camp training is the lack of equipment required. The short, intense workouts are typically peppered with body weight exercises, running and brief rest periods.
The origin of this training is, obviously, actual boot camp training in the military, so the workouts tend to be designed to build endurance as opposed to strength. If this sounds like something you might be interested in, read on.
Designing your own boot camp workout is fairly simple. I like to start by choosing seven or eight exercises or activities to perform at varied time intervals sandwiched between rest periods.
Some great examples of boot camp exercises are pushups, pullups, running, mountain climbers, hill climbing, dips, jump-rope and abdominal planks. You can put these in almost any order and get a great workout, but the key is timing.
Timing is critical, because it will determine your work-to-rest ratio. I'd start with a 1:1 work-rest ratio and progress toward a ratio of 2:1 as your fitness improves.
Here's an example of a 30-minute boot camp program:
4.0 jogging (level 4 on a treadmill or 15 mph) -- 60 seconds
Rest -- 30 seconds
Pushups -- 60 seconds
Rest -- 30 seconds
Jump-rope -- 60 seconds
Rest -- 30 seconds
Pullups -- 60 seconds
Rest -- 30 seconds
Bench dips -- 60 seconds
Rest -- 30 seconds
Abdominal planks -- 60 seconds
(Perform entire sequence three times)
My favorite aspect of this training style is that you're on a schedule. Rather than counting repetitions or calculating how much weight to lift, start your chronometer and go. Working for time adds a layer of urgency to your training mindset that reduces inefficiency. For busy professionals on the go, a military style workout is a time-saving option.
This week's exercise would be a perfect addition to a more elaborate boot camp style program, simply because it requires no equipment and can be performed anywhere by people of various fitness levels. The Broad Jump Burpee will really challenge your total body and keep your heart rate elevated.
1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Squat and place both hands on the floor about shoulder-width apart.
3. Jump both feet back simultaneously, which will put you in the "up" phase of a pushup.
4. Do a pushup, then jump both feet underneath you.
5. Quickly perform a broad jump by jumping forward as far as you can.
6. After you land, go right back down into another burpee and repeat for your designated boot camp work period.
If you've got knee problems, skip the jumping portion of the exercise or shorten the distance you jump to reduce overall knee impact.
Either way, the Broad Jump Burpee is a fun way to keep the heart rate up while rocking those boot camps. Enjoy!
Matt Parrott has a doctorate in education (sport studies) and a master's in kinesiology and is certified by the American College of Sports Medicine.
vballtop@aol.com
ActiveStyle on 05/19/2014