Boot camp is tough, but agony is worth it

By Lisa Ryckman, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published January 5, 2009 at 6 p.m.

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Photo by Marie Griffin / The Rocky

Super(wo)man, part 1

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Super(wo)man, part 2

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Bicycles, part 1

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Bicycles, part 2

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Reclining rope climb, part 1

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Reclining rope climb, part 2

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Reverse push-ups, part 1

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Reverse push-ups, part 2

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Plank, part 1

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Plank, part 2

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Ab clock, part 1

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Ab clock, part 2

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Ab clock, part 3

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Lunge chop

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Reverse crunch, part 1

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Reverse crunch, part 2

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Pike n' push, part 1

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Pike n' push, part 2

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Pike n' push, part 3

Photo by Marie Griffin / The Rocky

Squat (jump)

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Butt-kicking takes many forms, and one of the most popular involves a boot.

As in camp.

For a decade, boot camp workouts featuring military-style calisthenics (think gym class, circa 1968) and lung-busting bursts of cardio have been a health club staple. Until just recently, though, nobody had actually checked to see if they were effective or merely another exercise in exercise masochism.

Enter the American Council on Exercise and the good people at the La Crosse Exercise and Health Program at the University of Wisconsin, from whence springeth a veritable fount of fitness fun facts.

With backing from ACE, Dr. John Porcari and graduate student Kristen Hendrickson recruited six men and six women ages 19 to 29 to work out to the DVD The Method: Cardio Boot Camp with Tracey Mallett while researchers measured their oxygen consumption, heart rate, perceived exertion and calories burned.

The results provided reassurance to every able-bodied boot camper that their suffering has not been in vain. Boot camp workouts can burn as many as 10 calories a minute, a level comparable to spinning, cardio-kickbox and aerobic dance.

"It's much more of a total-body workout than just going out for a run or bicycle ride," Porcari says.

Its appeal also springs from its back-to-basics approach. No fancy-schmancy equipment or choreography here: just good old-fashioned intervals of cardio and simple strength moves designed to bust a gut and kick a butt.

The moves I've put together here should take 10 minutes. For maximum results in minimum time, do the circuit two or three times, either all at once or in 10-minutes segments throughout the day.

If it leaves you gasping for air and/or collapsed in a heap, you know you're doing it right.

Lisa Ryckman is an ACE-certified personal trainer, fitness instructor and weight management consultant.

1. One minute: Jog (or march) in place.

2. 30 seconds: REVERSE PUSH-UPS

* Works: Chest, shoulders, arms, core

* How to: Lie on the floor on your stomach, with your hands under your shoulders, palms to the floor. Push yourself up into a plank position, then slowly lower yourself back to the floor.

3. 30 seconds: PLANK

* Works: Core

* How to: Assume a push-up position, then rest your forearms on the ground and hold.

4. One minute: Jump an air rope (or a real one), both feet leaving the ground at the same time.

5. 30 seconds: SQUAT (JUMP)

* Works: Glutes, quads, hamstrings

* How to: Stand with feet a little more than hip distance apart. Bend your knees and lower your body as if you're about to sit in a chair. Keep head and chest lifted and your weight in your heels (you should be able to lift your toes while in the squat). Don't let your rear sink lower than your knees.

6. 30 seconds: BICYCLES

* Works: Abdominals

* How to: Lie on your back, hands resting just behind your ears. Your legs should be above your hips and bent at the knees into a 90-degree angle. Extend one leg and bring the other knee toward your chest. At the same time, bring the opposite elbow toward the knee. Alternate sides.

7. One minute: Speed-skate, arms behind back, jumping side-to-side from one foot to the other.

8. 30 seconds: LUNGE CHOP

* Works: Glutes, quads, hamstrings

* How to: Stand with feet hip distance apart and arms extended overhead. Step forward with the right leg. At the same time, bring both arms down to the outside of the right leg. Push back to the start position. Alternate legs.

9. 30 seconds: REVERSE CRUNCH

* Works: Abs

* How to: Lie on your back, legs extended above hips and bent at a 90-degree angle. Cross your arms over your chest. Keep your head and shoulders on the ground as you lift your hips off the ground. Lower and repeat.

10. One minute: Downhill ski by jumping back and forth across an imaginary line (or use a jump rope on the floor as your guide). Move forward for four jumps, then back for four jumps.

11. 30 seconds: SUPER(WO)MAN

* Works: Back, glutes, core

* How to: Lie facedown with your arms extended above your head. Lift your arms, chest and legs off the floor and hold that position as you move your arms to your sides, then back to the starting position. Lower yourself to the floor.

12. 30 seconds: RECLINING ROPE CLIMB

* Works: abs, obliques

* How to: Lie on your back with your legs extended above your hips and crossed at the ankles. Raise your head and shoulders off the ground and reach your hands toward your feet with a hand-over-hand motion, as if you're climbing a rope. Continue for a count of 4, then lower.

13. One minute: Jumping jacks. Make it harder by making every other jack an air jack (jump off the ground as you do the jack). Make it ultra-tough by doing all air jacks.

14. 30 seconds: PIKE N' PUSH

* Works: Chest, shoulders, triceps, core

* How to: Stand with your feet together, arms at your sides. Bend over with knees soft and place your hands on the floor. Walk your hands forward until you're in a plank position, then do a push-up. Keep your hands on the floor, and walk your feet toward your hands until they're as close as you can get them.

15. 30 seconds: AB CLOCK

* Works: Abs, obliques

* How to: Lie on your back, knees bent and feet on the floor. Extend both arms behind your head. Engage your abs as you lift your head and shoulders off the ground, with your chin about a fist's distance away from your chest. Hold that position as you bring both hands to 2 o'clock, then one on either side of your thighs (12 o'clock), then both to 10 o'clock, back to 12 and roll down.

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