Cj's BootyCamp

Last week I took part in “Cj’s Bootycamp” a week long event taking place every morning from 6:45am – 8am to kick me into shape. Bootycamp was set up by Carly; a Level 3 qualified Fitness instructor and busy mum dedicated to promoting health and fitness. Carly’s main fitness passion is Muay Thai Kick Boxing but believes that we need to challenge ourselves with different kinds of activities to see a real improvement in our fitness. Bootycamp came about as Carly believes that women should support and motivate each other and uses high impact, explosive exercise focusing on core strength and conditioning as the main ethos. And it works.

When I first signed up to the Bootycamp in December Carly sent me through a welcome pack with advice on exercises to complete in preparation for the Bootycamp week and guidance on healthy eating and nutrition with recipes from Miss Fighting Fit. This was fantastic as it made it clear that Carly is willing to be fantastic resource and support throughout your fitness journey and this holistic approach is key as it is educating on how fitness and nutrition really do go hand in hand.

So what did Bootycamp involve? Each morning you went to Bootycamp not knowing what to expect; this surprise element really went in its favour as it made you excited to try new activities but also took away the potential dread or boredom that an come with doing the same activity everyday; Carly mixed up the sessions as well often by taking us outside for half the session and then inviting guest instructors in to teach us all something new. Unfortunately I was unable to make it to the Monday session but below details what we covered for the rest of the week;

Tuesday

On Tuesday we had the pleasure of Ian Davies; Head Coach at So8 Gym in Falmouth. Ian got us doing straightforward jabs to work our arms, overhead boxing to work our shoulders, leg raises to work our abs and wall sits to get our legs burning. All of these activities were timed and what really impressed me about Ian’s technique was how much he emphasised the power of the mind; how our mind will give up before our body will and we need to get ourselves into a zone, distract ourselves and push through. I have no doubt that training with Ian on a regular basis would push me out of my comfort zone into a whole new level of fitness. Afterwards Carly took us outside to some hill sprints (on Tuesday this was more of a slope but each day the hill sprints got steeper!) and then got us working in pairs to do different kind of ab exercises where we would hopefully not even realise we were working as she uses tools to distract you.

Wednesday

Wednesday we started off outside running around the centre of Truro; sprinting through the subway and up steps, doing press-ups and tricep dips on the benches in the piazza and then jogging back to TR1 fitness to complete circuit training. This for me was a real eye opener into my fitness as it really tested my strength and endurance. Stations included box jumps (which I have always had an irrational fear about), step ups, planks, squats, shoulder press, speed ball and boxing. I really felt the effects of this session and must admit felt absolutely shattered at the end. However I think my tiredness may have also been attributed by the fact that I didn’t take in enough calories the day before; it’s amazing the difference that it makes. Circuit training is definitely going to be added to my work out routine following this session.

                                                         Thursday

On Thursday Carly spent the first half of the session giving us a spin class. Now I love spin; it has been a long time since I did a class and I loved getting back into it. It makes your legs burn and gets your heart rate up; I can’t help but smile all the way through, although I’m not sure if that is more of a grin and bear it type smile! The one thing I would say is that if you are going to a spin class make sure you take plenty of water and a towel because you will sweat. A  lot. Following the spin we did Bootycamp’s version of leg day by doing sprints, lunges, bunny hops and duck walks in the car park. Ouch.

Friday

Friday again was doing an activity that I absolutely love; Kettle bells. I really need to do this more often. Again we had a guest instructor in as this was something that Carly had actually never done before herself and it was brilliant. Set up in a circuit we had different movements to complete at each station as well as a few bodyweight exercises thrown in. Using kettle bells really gets your heart rate up; it is a great example of where lifting weights can also be a cardiovascular exercise aswell and they can be used to target every section of your body. If you’re not into lifting weights on the whole I would suggest you give kettle bells a go.

Saturday

The last day of Bootycamp, Carly had us sprinting up the steepest hill yet, running around the town with a weighted bar above our heads and lunging, squatting, shoulder pressing and doing stand up rows on the piazza. Getting outside and exercising really does make it more fun and exercising it groups gives you that little bit of peer pressure to ensure you keep going when you otherwise might want to stop. When we got back to the studio it was time to take another leaf from the Muay Thai and handbook with kicks. Watching Carly do it; she made it look powerful and easy. Not so much for me! When I was in Thailand last year i did this twice a day, every day for a week and thought I would still be quite good at it; not the case at all. We started off with 1 kick, then 2, then 3, then 4, then 5 and back down again and then moved onto the next leg. It really made me realise how much your strength and fitness diminishes if you don’t use it! My kicks were not at all powerful and if I’m honest it was the hardest cardio I did all week and have done in a long time. Afterwards I felt brilliant but know this is something I really need to get back into.

My overall view of the Bootycamp is that it is a fantastic introduction to different forms of exercise; Carly makes it fun and varied and pushes you without making you feel under pressure or unhappy about it; it was an enjoyable environment and I would definitely recommend it. So many women don’t exercise because they feel self conscious or lack motivation; this environment takes those worries away as Carly is a great motivator and the female only environment promotes camaraderie and as everyone is at different levels you don’t feel self conscious if there are some activities you can’t do as well. For me personally, I learnt that I need to do more High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and circuits to boost my fitness and two main areas of strength that need working on are my core and my upper body. I would absolutely book onto Cj’s Bootycamp again as no matter what level of fitness you are; a solid week of completing all different activities pushes you out of your comfort zone and challenges you; which is something we should never stop doing.

All photos courtesy of Cj's Bootycamp