The idea of the perfect body is no longer an obsession for summer-the goal is to have the ‘perfect’ physique throughout the year. As such there is a new focus on Health and Fitness and even those persons who thought that strenuous physical activity was definitely not for them have become strict fitness freaks. Our Lifestyles ladies are no different and so they Kicked Butt at the Dynamic Lifestyle BootCamp.
You know how they say you can’t bear the name and not play the game? Well, the ladies of Lifestyle decided to kick some boot camp butt when they teamed up with The Dynamic Lifestyle’s Patrice White. Each member shares their personal experience on the day’s workout activity, and the responses will surprise you! See their comments on the journey below.
Nashauna Lalah
I knew a few members of the team were scared silly at the prospect of boot camp with Patrice White. I expected at least a couple persons to chicken out at some point. But, I had Patrice’s word that she would go easy on them, and I’m proud to say that everyone rose to the challenge. After all, as the Lifestyle team, we had to do it the Dynamic Lifestyle way — and that means no backing down.
I myself was excited. I’m no stranger to the gym, and have had my share of twisted ankles, bumps, bruises, scrapes and aches. But hey, no pain, no gain. This was an opportunity to see how far I could push myself outside the confines of a gym.
So there we were at Patrice’s fortress of fortitude in St Andrew. We started our warm-up, which was easy enough. However, the gigantic tractor tyres sitting ominously nearby were hard to ignore. I had flipped tyres before and was not looking forward to doing it again.
I’m happy to report that it actually wasn’t as bad as I remembered. Those tyre-flips, added to push-ups, burpee, etc, got the sweat glands working overtime. Somehow, by the time I got to the high knee I could still manage a smile. Hurdles were fun and the resistance ball was my favourite.
Randy was the most inexperienced, earning her some extra attention from Patrice. Now, this might have worked in everyone else’s favour, if Patrice did not have eyes in the back of her head.
Here are two things to remember when working out under her watch: 1. Never use the word can’t 2. Do not stand with hands on your hips (that’s my comfort stance). Breaking these rules earns you a few burpees. You’re welcome.
The crunches got to me. Throw in a car tyre and that’s just pure evil. I could feel the burn. In fact, it was more like an inferno. Patrice pushed the team really hard. Kimberly was impressive; Krysta had a ball; Jody-Anne goes to the top of the class. Randy, well, she might need a do-over.
NB: Patrice, Randy still has about 20 burpees outstanding for you.
Krysta Anderson
To say I was nervous yet excited to work out with Patrice White of Dynamic Lifestyle was truly an understatement. After a minor wardrobe malfunction, I set off on this whirlwind journey.
I’m no stranger to working out, but on that particular day, I was sporting a sprained toe and osteoarthritic knees. I was, however, determined to fight to the very end. Warm-up was good enough. Little did we know that the ‘best’ was yet to come.
The hip scotch and my knock knees proved to be a bit difficult but I jumped at the task anyway. By high knees, sprints and push-ups, I was spent! But Patrice was right there with me, so I most certainly couldn’t show it. Being at the very back, where the circuit was concerned, I tried to play catch-up with the tyre flips, but that backfired, and I was asked to move on up to flipping the tractor tyre. That was the most challenging workout to date!
I executed the moderate version of burpees, whipped those ropes into shape, and was off to bang the hell out of that resistance ball!
Sounds tiring yet? There’s more. We did our hurdle jumping and I stood beside second in command Randy Bowman, who soared to new heights in comparison to my hop and skip. By the abdominal workouts, however, I was in my element and right at home. Despite having muscle contractions at the start, I pushed through, playing hokey-pokey with the planks, lunges and squats. All in all, I came out standing, and it was one of the best workout sessions I have ever had!
Randy Bowman
When it comes to exercising, I am the laziest person ever! So it was no surprise to my team that I was not the happiest after being invited to do a not just a workout session but a boot camp with White. Slowly but surely I warmed up to the idea, and not only did I jog a few days before, but even cleaned up my diet that week, well ‘kinda’.
As I walked on to the premises and noticed all the equipment, I could feel an increase in my heart rate. Did I really sign up for this? What have I got myself into? But it was too late to turn back.
During warm-up, I gave them all the excuses I could find for them to go easy on me. ‘Oooh Lord, help them go easy,’ I whispered as I stretched.
Then I found myself going through the routines with little to no difficulty. Wait. Should it be this easy? Am I doing it properly? Something must be wrong. Mark you, I felt my muscles being worked, but I wasn’t dying. I was actually enjoying the ‘burn’.
Wooohoooo! This feels good! With the exception of planking, I had all the exercises down pat. Who’s the boss? Me! I kicked butt at boot camp and I will do it again in a heartbeat.
Jody-Anne Lawrence
It was a sunny afternoon when we set out for boot camp, and that meant my prayers for rain had not been answered. For the last couple days our editor, Nashauna Lalah, had been overly excited to do Patrice White’s boot camp. While I do want to lose a few pounds, the idea of flipping tyres, push-ups and all that comes with this territory seemed exhausting and downright frightening.
However, I must admit White was a lot less frightening than anticipated. Tough but not scary. I started pretty good — running up and down the sloped driveway was an easy warm-up until you had to run up with white almost strapped to your back.
It got tougher, and then before my body cracked, my lungs did with a mini asthma attack. My inhaler always on hand, I rested then volunteered to continue. But then my lunch decided that I was working so hard it would help me out by exiting my body.
Ironically, it still was not a bad experience. It showed me how unfit I was, and maybe I should take my health more seriously. I will not be flipping anything anytime soon, but I definitely will not say I will never do this again. At least for now, I have this checked off my bucket list.
Kimberly Goodall
This was an experience like no other. I have always liked being active, but since I have gained some weight, I was happy to be a part of my team’s experience with the Dynamic Lifestyle boot camp. I must say, though, that I was not prepared for what was going to be handed to us.
It seemed like a day of sweat, blood and tears. I was doing great in the beginning — I mean, I was bursting tyres, slaying burpees and whopping those ropes. But when it was time to work those abs, it was time out and man down for me! Patrice is certainly a force to be reckoned with. She is hard-core and tough, but tough enough to have you achieve your goals. She got me to push my limits and fight until my stomach and head gave up on me.
Boot camp showed me the work I need to put in to get healthy and get my body back on the right track. The fun part of the boot camp for me was seeing my co-workers work their butts off and sharing our experiences among each other afterwards. I would definitely do it again.
[SOURCE:-The Gleaner]
