A LOOK BACK AT 2010...FROM A BOOTCAMP POV!

2010 was a great year for all of our bootcamps. It brought the growth of extra morning camps, new locations, and the launch of Bootcamp: Bulletproof as an entry-level program. It was exciting to see all the new faces that came through in the past year and watching their progress both physically and mentally as their way of thinking about health, nutrition, and the various aspects of training took hold to where it became not just an idea but a way of life.


1st Annual Bootcamp Breakfast - Protein Pancakes with Strawberries!
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GU_PbZzv_0)

The growth and energy that came out of those camps began to also catch the interest of the media, as our approach to metabolic training, flexibility and self-massage techniques began to be featured on KARK-4 as fitness segments to educate others on what true fitness really is. Typically, our segments focused on people who desired to improve their health but were frustrated over past attempts to do so. I tried to envision someone who was motivated to physically be better but lacked the knowledge as to how to get started. I received so many positive emails about our segments, many from individuals who had never even attended our camps but were intrigued by the idea of 4:00 workouts, functional training, and that improving their fitness could be done even from the comfort of their own home. All of our demonstrations were designed to be home-based, equipment-free exercises that were formatted for all fitness levels. The message was that you didn't need a gym membership or fancy equipment to change your body...you just need the direction to get started.

One of the biggest changes in the past year in terms of how workouts were structured came in our workout format by creating bootcamp programs that were completely automated. Through the use of the fitness music & media production company Workout Muse our bootcamp workouts took on a whole new life. With an eclectic mix of musical genres, rhythmic accompaniments and audio arrangements, it allowed for a distraction-free arena that gave me the opportunity to correct technique and facilitate an environment to maximize results for every workout without being prisoner to a stopwatch. I became so convinced of the results of utilizing interval music within my workouts that I became an affiliate of the company:

http://JeffMcDaniel.workoutmuse.com

This allowed my clients to take their training to a new level. It provided me with the ability to produce custom interval music soundtracks to drive the most intense, results-producing workouts they had ever experienced and to inspire their best effort each and every workout. Being an affiliate also benefitted my campers by offering free mp3's that they could easily download and utilize in their own workouts:

http://www.jeffmcdaniel.workoutmuse.com/mp3/2010_Ultimate_Tabatas/2010HipHop5Min.mp3.zip


A funny and interesting moment of the past year came during a not so normal workout. Each summer when the temperature reaches near triple digits I like to do a bootcamp-in-the-pool workout. Cross-training, and especially hydro-training workouts are excellent for changing up workouts and using muscle fibers that might not be activated during regular exercises. This past summer we did two of these hydro-workouts. The interesting thing happened not in the actual workout but in the video that was posted about it. Normally we'll have several hundred views of our videos we do which range from moves-of-the-week to flexibility or nutrition tips. But our video entitled '50-10 Hydro Training' would do much more than that. At one point after it's posting it was averaging nearly 300 hits per day. To this date it has had 16,000 views in just 5 months, many of which seem to be from Europe!?! Crazy!





Another first for us came during Halloween weekend. One of the many thousands of ideas that I have (and struggle to get to all of them in!) was to one day do a Charity Bootcamp. Offer up a free bootcamp workout to the masses and select a charity to raise proceeds for. I settled on the Make-A-Wish foundation after reading so many inspiring stories for the kids they impact. Once that was established it was just a matter of time and place. The Arkansas Community Arts Cooperative (ACAC) kindly allowed us to set up a Pumpkin Circuit Halloween-themed Bootcamp. Free to public, with the only cost being you had to come in costume, and you had to have a great workout! We took donations and had a great time! Thanks to .Chad McGriff at ACAC for helping with the space and Nicole Boddington - hardcore fitness model-to-be for putting me in contact with them.


With the growth and interest though over the past year also brought additional challenges. We soon outgrew many of our evening locations. At some time we almost felt like traveling nomads. I would like to thank Abby Youngbauer from Calais Apartments, Edward Drangel from Ageless Health & Fitness for allowing us to use their facilities. They were kind to provide shelter from the scorching summer heat and icy winter days we faced during last year. Also, the board at Walnut Valley Park provided a wonderful place to train at during those awesome spring and fall afternoons when the weather was perfect and the scenery in the park was magnificent.

So with that, here's a look back at just a few of the many great moments we had during bootcamp in 2010:




Jeff McDaniel
FastFit Training & Fitness
http://bootcampbulletproof.com