Boot Camp style workouts are becoming more and more popular. Why?

Here are just a few reasons:

Workouts can be done with minimal equipment, In or outdoors, Routines can vary greatly, Exercises can be modified to accomodate everyones fitness level, They burn a ton of calories!

Most people will push themselves a little harder doing these group workouts. This has dramatic and positive effects on fitness levels, blasting through plateaus!

Weight Loss 101

Two key factors for healthy weight loss are diet and exercise. If you have ever tried to lose weight by dieting alone, cutting back on caloric intake, you probably ran into at least two roadblocks. In order to lose one pound per week, you would have to cut back by 3500 calories per week. That's 500 calories a day! If you are currently eating 2500 calories per day, that's a 20% cutback. The percentage goes up if you are actually eating less than that. Two things are bound to happen.

 You can lose weight solely cutting back calories, but another factor to consider is the type of weight loss occurring. Studies have shown that weight lost using this method is comprised of 78% fat. That's good, right? ....Wrong! The remaining 22% of the weight lost is lean mass. As you may have guessed, lean mass is comprised of muscle. But did you know that it also includes bone? While women have typically been more concerned with bone loss, men should be concerned as well. Men also lose bone mass as they age; it is just at a lower rate. Considering these factors, restricting calories to lose weight is not in itself the best method for healthy weight loss.

So what about exercise? Well, to lose that one pound per week while maintaining your caloric intake, you will need to burn an extra 500 calories per day. For the average person that means walking or running 5 miles or doing some very intense circuit training...daily...seven days a week. Several problems come to mind:

Additionally, exercising without rest days will lead to mental and physical fatigue, burnout, and injuries, more likely sooner than later.

So what is the best option? Combine caloric cutbacks with exercise. It is much easier to cut back 250 calories per day. Most individuals can cut out 250 calories a day by simply eating whole foods instead of processed ones. Whole foods are more filling than processed foods because they contain more bulk (fiber). So while you are consuming the same or more in volume, you are actually taking in fewer calories.

Only one percent of the population has ever run a marathon (26.2 miles). Many have considered it, some have even started marathon training programs, but motivation to stick through to completion can be difficult to come by. I recommend starting with a shorter goal, the 5k (3.1 miles).

On December 21, 2009, I will be starting a 16 week training program for the Carlsbad 5000. This will be my fourth running of this race, and hopefully my fourth Personal Record on this course. 

2007 - 20 minutes, 2008 - 19 minutes 2 seconds, 2009 - 18 minutes 15 seconds, 2010 - 17:30 Goal

If you are not already planning on doing this event, why not register now. Whether you are just getting off the couch or you are a seasoned athlete, I can help you with a training program that will result in setting Personal Records.

Carlsbad 5000

The race started out very cold, 29 degrees, and finished much the same, 38 degrees. From mid-point to the finish we faced 15+ mph headwinds, making the race even more difficult. I typically warm up after about two miles at a steady pace, but my legs felt stiff and heavy the entire 26 miles 385 yards.

While I did not meet all of my goals (sub 3 hour race, win Clydesdale division), in all it was a good day. I did run a Boston qualifying time of 03:07:20 (gun time) and placed 3rd in Clydesdales division.

This was my last scheduled race as a Clydesdale (I weighed in at 211.5) as I am planning on dropping down to about 180# to gain more speed. 

My next scheduled race is the Carlsbad 5000 in April 2010.