I can sit here and give you a list of things to make early-morning winter workouts less painful, but I’d be lying. Six weeks into my Women’s Health #WHGetsFit winter fitness challenge and I still haven’t figured out a way to make getting up in single-digit degrees at 5:30 for my 6am Adventure Boot Camp outdoors class bearable for a non-morning person. No amount of socks, jackets or beanies have helped me. Except this: An elevated heart rate.
READ MORE: “I Tried Adventure Boot Camp For A Month – Here’s How It Changed My Body”
It’s Getting Hot Out Here…
From the moment we start camp, straight through to the cool-down, our trainer ensures we’re warm by keeping our heart rate up. We usually start off with a 100m run and immediately move into various warm-up exercises (by Week 3 you would confuse these with an actual circuit). This goes on for five to 10 minutes and ends with another run. By now all the excess layers you covered yourself in at home are lying scattered somewhere near your mat. And you totes used that minute shedding your clothes to rest a bit. (Like those times your shoelaces come “undone”… Wink.)
READ MORE: Here’s the truth about what goes down at Adventure Bootcamp
Winter Workout Cold Busters
Adventure Boot Camp trainer faves include skipping, mountain climbers and everyone’s BEF (best exercise forever) – burpees. Because of their high intensity, these are great for burning the body fat that we will defs not need to keep us warm in the summer. And they keep you toasty! These are integrated with strength training exercises, depending on what body part we’re working on that day. In the winter, cool-down time is also cut shorter to avoid cooling down too fast and catching a cold.
By now you have forgotten and forgiven yourself for choosing to get up from your very warm bed to do this. And that extra cup of coffee you claim “wakes you up” is something of the past. Week 6 and it’s still as difficult as Week 1, but not one of those classes has not been worth it – be it for enhancing your mood, your muscles or your morning.
Ready To Transform Your Body – And Your Life?
Join women of all ages and fitness levels across SA as they take on the Adventure Boot Camp 12-Week #MYJOURNEYTOSUMMER programme. It’s cheap, flexible, includes access to a dietician for nutritional advice, and much more. Also, it starts on 24 September! Keen to give it a bash? Check out the Adventure Boot Camp website for details and to sign up – and let them know you heard about them from Women’s Health. You’re welcome.
