Now, That's What I'm Saying!

In the New Year, it appears even home care magazines are jumping into the motivational health arena. Like this little article I found in the January issue of Better Homes and Gardens, entitled: Healthy You.

Shoring up the basic elements of smart weight loss, the article states reasons for maintaining a healthy weight, while also sighting studies and research that support the importance of daily food logging and regular weigh-in's as tools for dropping pesky extra pounds. Two elements we use in our sessions at SWLB.

Why this article stands out (tucked into the back of the mag on page 109) is the direct relation of accountability to one's success with longterm weight loss goals. For many of us, goal setting is something we either keep in the foreground (think happy Post-It reminders on the bathroom mirror) or lose sight of altogether (do you remember your New Year's resolution from last year?).

The Healthy You article mentions that a recently released study that tracked 1,685 middle-aged men and women for six months compared those who kept a food diary to those who did not. Those who wrote down what they ate every day lost TWICE AS MUCH WEIGHT as those who didn't.

Understanding that weight loss success is related to tracking daily food intake, our program incorporates a mindful approach to food logging that quickly locates trouble spots and presents habitual patterns clearly to each individual. When this honest process is coupled with the accountability of a weekly weigh-in, long term changes in weight and health can truly begin.

I've seen how powerful these two weekly habits can be. A commitment to take the time, and to set aside one's ego (goodness knows it's hard to get on the scale to face the truth about our health), is all it takes to put these tools to work for yourself in 2009.

Hope to see you in the play...

Kimae :)

Not For Girls?

Being at the helm of a fit conscious community of women is a pretty great job. I regularly meet the most amazing people this city has to offer, many of whom report back to us at Camp with interesting tidbits from their continuing life adventures. Like my new favorite bit of absurdity delivered straight into my chocolate lovin' hands by E.

A regular Bootcamper from March through September, E's count-challenged participation in class ("uh...what number are we on?") was a source of more than a few rounds of morning laughs for those of us lucky to have known her during her work related stay in Seattle. Glad to have her back in the city on a term break from Oxford, a couple of us Bootcampers got together last week to enjoy each other's company sans push-ups. First order of business: chocolate! Straight from Lady England, E pulled 3 bars out of her bag. We were pysched!

Oh. But wait, 'cause..."it's not for girls"...

Wha...? Since when is chocolate not for girls?

The myths of our society perpetuate that chocolate is intended for girls: PMS, break-ups, bad hair days. There have been entire candy campaigns built on these myths. And if chocolate is not for girls, then, um...who's it for...boys? That just seems un...well...un-Manly.

Are the men of England unable to score chocolate from the shops if it is not clearly marked like a public toilet? Or is this a passive aggressive ploy to play on the fears of women: yes, indeed, your arse does look fat in those jeans.

Those of you who know me well are aware of the phrase I'd like to interject here, and yet will not, for decency :)

And so, assured by E that the offending chocolate bar "isn't even THAT good", the four of us moved on to the second order of business: The New Year! Where chocolate in America is still deliciously gender unspecific...

Kimae :)

It May Be Cool and Rainy Out, But This Hour Long Workout Will Heat you Up Fast!

This is a map of the hills of lovely Phinney Ridge between Greenwood Avenue North and Fremont Avenue North. I first used this route back in the 90's when I lived on the Ridge. It was summer time and all the English style gardens were in bloom, Beautiful! Make this route a habit the next few months and you'll be rewarded not just with a strong backside and killer abs, but with a sigh worthy workout view of lush greenery come Spring.

If you haven't checked out the hills of Phinney, they are STEEP and make for a super lower body targeted, neighborhood workout. My favorite way to work these hills is to climb up, then down, then travel the length of each block along Fremont Avenue North. On the map above, you'll notice the inked-in path crosses each street at the top of the hill, and follows the length of each block at the bottom. Below is how it's done, complete with tips for beginning exerciser's:

1) START at the bottom of the hills on the corner of 71st Street North and Fremont Avenue North, on the SOUTH SIDE of the street, and head up to Greenwood Avenue. Pull your navel into your spine as you climb. Empower your core! Be mindful of pace and breath.

2) At the top of Greenwood Ave, walk across the street to the NORTH side of 71st and head back down the hill, using your core for control while you power up the quads on the descent. Your body may give you the signal to slow down as you descend. Listen to this! These hills are steep; controlling your speed by using your core power will protect your knee's, especially for those new to exercise.

3) Now at the bottom of 71st, turn left down Fremont Ave (heading NORTH) and SPRINT THE LENGTH OF THE BLOCK (Alternately, for beginning exercisers or those new to running, you can walk this portion or alternate a walk with a light jog. Let your quadriceps muscles be your guide as you progress during the hour. This is a great workout for beginning exercisers, as the climb can be adjusted to advancing fitness levels).

4) At the corner of 72nd and Fremont, remain on the SOUTH side of the street and again, CLIMB up hill to Greenwood Ave where you will cross the street to the North side, again heading DOWN hill. Continue traversing the ridge in this way, climbing and descending the hill to SPRINT (walk or jog) the length of the block along Fremont Ave.

End at the corner of 79Th and Fremont. Use the return distance back to 71st as a cool down, or power it up with an 8 block run!

ALTERNATE: Wanna go HARDCORE?? (recommended only for advanced exerciser's)
Run the up hill climb! Even at a snails pace, this will jack up your cardio and strength power. Be sure to ease down these steep hills, mindful of foot falls and strength sapping quad tension. Continue to Sprint the block along Fremont Avenue North.

A similar workout path can be made along any of the traversing hillsides found in Seattle. Another favorite, for those off Madison in the Capitol Hill neighborhood, runs the distance of 27th, heading NORTH away from the Madison shopping district.

Exercise Of The Week

Oh yeah, this is a goodie! The Spiderman is a full body exercise working the shoulders, arms, back, core, glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves- you get it all. It looks intense, and after 20-40 reps, it is! At Camp, The Spiderman is a mid week 2 exercise. It comes after learning proper form for Push-ups and after creating more intensive shoulder and core strength by practicing Plank Position. Some returning members at Camp do up to 40 repetitions, most often we keep the reps low, 5-20, and increase the intensity by adding a set of complimentary plyometric exercises, or a "jumper".

Spiderman #1, top. Spiderman #2, bottom

Demonstrating here is "J", a longtime member of SWL Bootycamp, she knows her way around perfect form, especially when core power is required.

To start: As in pic #1, begin in a perfect Plank Position, pressing up out of the ground into the shoulder blades (no sinking into the shoulders!), neck aligned with the spine, core held tight, glutes gently squeezed.

As in pic#2, draw the knee up toward the elbow OUTSIDE the line of the body(notice how J's toe strikes outside the line of her mat) and touch the toe down, more than a tap, a slight hold would be perfect. As you bring the knee forward into position, be sure your body has remained still, no moving of the hips, arms or overextending the leg forward as if to stretch. Isolate the leg as it moves.

Return the leg to the start position and alternate sides. Each time a leg comes forward is one count.

You will feel this one all over, most where you are weakest. If you are new to this type of exercise, keep your reps low, start with 10 and work up. If you've been working the various Plank Positions in yoga classes or your own fitness practice, lock it down and go for 20+. Top it off with a set of 5-15 spring jumps from the quads. Mmmm, feel the burn!!

Many Thanks to Lady J for modeling this week's exercise. Nothing like a 6 a.m. photo shoot under the stars at Camp :)

Hope to see you in the Play!

Kimae

What's Your Reason?

Today, during a conversation with a fellow Bootcamper who hadn't been to class in a while, I was reminded of the many reason's women come to Camp, and I've heard a wide variety. From the young girl last spring who wanted a bigger booty ("Is that possible in just 4 weeks? Should I keep my bottom clenched at all times?"), to the future conscious women who come to shape-up in anticipation of a healthy pregnancy, there are a zillion reasons in between.

Speaking today with "T", she told me about her short term Bootcamp goal for the holiday season: to beat the boys in her family at a push-up contest come Christmas.

Now let me tell you, T's push-ups rock the Camp. She is a full-on champ of the powerhouse toe push-up, but after 4 weeks away from class, she was challenged out of the blue last weekend to a push-up contest by the guys in her family. She did good, they were impressed, SHE was impressed! Yet, T knows she can bring more, More , MORE (clenching fists in excitement). The rematch is coming up in a few weeks, scheduled around family carols and hot cider. Oh yeah, don't be fooled by the lovely lady nibbling a Christmas cookie by the fire- those boys better watch out!

And so, we discover that T comes to Camp in order to open up a can of surprise whoop a** on those pesky (God love 'em) older brother's. A real life goal worth playing for!

What would be your reason, your motivation, your INSPIRATION for joining us in the play?

Whatever your reason, whatever your goal, we hope to see you here :)

Kimae

Fitness Changes Seasons

Another incredible Summer season of Hooping It Out by the lake came to an end last week with end of session FitTesting!


For me, end of session testing is a morning of unsuppressed giddiness, and it's true, I've been known to get an excited case of the girlish squeals while conducting testing. A little out of line with the Bootcamp persona, but you gotta agree with me here, watching a woman nail down a 3+ minute Plank hold, outside, before 6am, is definitely squeal worthy! (big shout out to J&B and the "N" sisters for hitting an all time high!!).



At Camp, testing is not a competitive process- just a few minutes of specific, timed exercises performed as a group every 4 weeks. Like each day in our program, FitTesting is all about the personal challenge, the chance for each woman to build on yesterday's workout, raising the experience to a new level today.



My favorite part of testing is what comes after the fact: me in the office, blown away yet again as I calculate improved per minute averages for each member- amazing proof of the power of commitment and of the bodies quick response to effective exercise. Sharing this information during one-on-one consultations is the best part of my job! I hear "Wow!" during every conversation I have. These women know they have been working hard, can feel and see the changes in their bodies. The numbers simply affirm the experience!



It is such an honor to have so many of these strong, athletic women back at Camp in the returning member Drop-In Program, where they will focus on new goals for the next 4 weeks, just in time to test again.



Between now and then, I will try to contain the squealing, but I'm not promising anything :)



Hope to see you in the play!


Kimae

We Finished Our First 5k!

Team SWL Bootycamp completed it's first 5k on Sunday, September 28th! The Alki Beach Run benefited Northwest Hope and Healing, a local organization providing social services to women in our community being treated for breast cancer. In 2007, Northwest Hope and Healing aided 240 women and their families with basic services ranging from child care to transportation to and from medical treatment. We are excited to have raised $700.00(and counting...) for this charitable event and we want to thank our families, friends and fellow Bootcampers for all their support, both financial and emotional- for some of us this was our first 5k run! Looking ahead, our team has big plans for the upcoming Pineapple Classic in November; another excellent fundraising 5k- with the added bonus of an obstacle course! Check it out at http://www.winterpineappleclassic.com/.

What's A Little Weather Among Friends?
This time of year, as the Bootcamp Summer season winds down, longtime Bootycampers begin to reminisce about days of yore, of misty Fall mornings and...mud! It's true, Bootcamp is held outside rain or shine, and while Seattle days like today(sunny and deliriously beautiful) make us feel as though it will never rain on our bun kickin' workouts, eventually...I mean, this is Seattle! For all the Duck and Cover we perform on rainy days, dashing to and from our front doors with heads hunkered under junk mail pulled fresh from the box, our Northwest weather is embraced at Bootcamp as that place where our Inner Child sends our Outer Grown-Up straight to time-out. Last winter, during one of those sideways rain December days that flooded the homes of many of our neighbors, the women at Camp, already soaked and smudged, took it upon themselves to "decorate" each other's shirts with big ol' muddy hand prints. I don't recall how it started, but for a brief moment between Push-Up's and Plank, it was a class right out of kindergarten. It really is true, what's a little weather among friends?

Hope to see you in the play!


Kimae