Day 44 ! British Military Fitness

For some people, the softly softly approach might work in life. (I don’t for whom, actually). But for fitness, I doubt this approach will work for most - you probably need a push to run a bit faster, lift a heavier weight or stretch one more centimetre. For some, a gentle push suffices and for others, high pressure and being yelled is the only thing that will get them going.

Compared to previous outdoor bootcamps (Day 31 Sweaty Betty Bootcamp and Day 40 Fit-For-A-PrincessBootcamp), you would be forgiven for thinking that a bootcamp run by ex-military would be a high pressure, order-yelling kind of environment. Because it is. But, to be fair, the yelling comes from the instructor physically needing to yell for everyone to hear him/her and the pressure comes from mini races / competitions throughout the session. More importantly, it should be noted that people were smiling (or grimacing) and laughing from the beginning to the end.

Perhaps the most well known of all outdoor bootcamps, British Military Fitness holds more than 400 classes a week across the nation. If you’ve been in a park recently and saw a bright group of numbered blue, red or green-bibbed people squatting away around a combat-trouser wearing instructor, it’s BMF. Bibs are sorted by fitness levels and are a good for a few reasons - good for instructors to spot anyone who tries to break free and run away, good for instructors to single out slackers (“Number 9! You went ahead of my Go command!”) and pretty good advertising too! But regardless, this is an intense bootcamp.

Once everyone is split into their groups, each group jogs off to a separate part of the park for training. It being a not-wonderfully sunny morning, I managed to drag a few of us to the 10.30am Sunday session, which had, in our group alone, 35 cadets (don’t people like Sunday lie-ins anymore?)! Instructor Sotiris did say afterwards that most sessions have between 15-20 people so today was an unusually large group.

The main difference between BMF and the other outdoor bootcamps is the group workout style. Broken down, the exercises involved the usual star-jumps, squats, burpees (Instructor Sotoris was a big fan of the burpee), push-ups (off your knees!), quick sprints and sit-ups but almost every drill involved being in a pair or small group. And usually not the same partner – everyone changed partners a few times, which created a very friendly atmosphere and meant that you would get to know a few people in the group.

Some exercises had competitive element – racing which couple could get to 100 press-ups first, with one partner sprinting to a tree while the other did the press-ups (and switching), or the primary school favourite of creating a chain crawling through between your partners’ legs. Some exercises had a group vibe – everyone in a circle doing squats or press-ups while someone ran round the circle (until everyone has run round the circle). And some exercises were just couple exercises where you could share in the pain with a stranger – linking ankles and doing sit-ups, holding arms and squatting together, pulling the arms of your partner behind them to hold them back as they try and run ahead.

Written down, it’s unlikely you can get the full gist of a session. There was laughter, there were some almost-tears and there were plenty of tender muscles by the end. Above all, there was a sense of we’re-all-in-this-together and coming in at joint 3^rd in the calories burnt/minute category, it was a very solid workout.

 The Need To Know:

- Where: BMF Hyde Park (www.britmilfit.com)

- Nearest Station: Lancaster Gate (8mins), High Street Kensington (15 mins)

- When: Classes everyday bar Tuesday (At Hyde Park)

- How Much: Free trial class, around £35-50 per month depending if you want one- or unlimited- classes per week. Drop-in sessions available at some locations through www.payasugym.com

- Special Note: If you join as a member, you can attend any of the venues nationwide.

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who prefer an outdoor rough ‘n’ ready workout.

- Sweat Scale: 7/10. More if indoors!

- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Cardio and toning.

- Complexity: 5/10. Follow the instructions!

- Fun Factor: 8/10.

- Changing Facilites: Nada – it’s in a park!

- Teacher Inspiration: 7/10. Military motivation!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 57mins

- Calories Burnt: A very solid 370

- Average Heart Rate: 133bpm
- Max Heart Rate: 166bpm

Everyone Say "Burpees!"

Short, Fast, Intense Intervals!