Prepping Myself for the Battle #2

Getting up to attend an intense workout three times a week may be hard for some. I, on the other hand, have learned to embrace the Bootcamp challenge. I've also gained a deeper appreciation for sleeping in until 7:00 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays (the non-Bootcamp sunrises).

What has been challenging for me (other than resisting the urge to write a lame-but-equally-catchy army chant), is keeping up with my fellow soldiers. There are days that I really want to slack but I don't want to show weakness. They feed off of it. So, I push myself as hard as I can. I don't want to be the last one to finish laps around BMO Soccer Field, I don't want to do less push-ups than the scrawny guy next to me, and heck yes, I want to hold my plank position the longest. So the prize at the end of the Bootcamp tunnel? You remember. My pants.

Here are a few of the exercises conducted on the battlefield:

 a) Human plank hurdles: one must hold themselves in the plank position on their toes and elbows in a line of approximately ten people. The soldier at the end of the line must arise and jump over her fellow mates as they sustain this position. Once she has completed the course, she must resume the plank position for the next person to begin.

b) Tricep presses: ten soldiers must position themselves directly in front of a bench and sit right on the edge. Once Roger or Daniela, the drill sergeants, tell you to begin, you must lift yourself off the bench and lower yourself slowly to the ground while still holding onto the bench and back up again. Repeat this motion for one minute.

c) Oblique v-ups:  one must lie in a straight line on their side. While stacking their feet and crossing their arms, the soldier must squeeze both the top half and the bottom half of her body to meet in the middle. These will get rid of those dreaded love handles.

As for my dying relationship with my pants… you’ll have to tune in again next week to find out the result. Let’s just say I’m in, however, I look about as cute as that muffin (top).

(It’s almost bikini time! Get a spot for May while you still can: http://www.bestbodybootcamp.com/about.html)