Spotlight on Bootcamper!

You have made it through four weeks of boot camp and we can't wait to hear about your results. We know a lot of you have pretty impressive improvements this month, so make sure you post them to the blog.

Speaking of results, it is time for another spotlight on a boot camper who has achieved great results, and if these results don’t make your friends want to join, we are not sure anything will!

Read her inspiring story below:

Prior to boot camp, fitness was never a priority in my life…I was missing the “fitness gene” and I was cool with that. I had never been a small person and I had come to accept that I never would be.

I occasionally went to the gym but I never really liked it. I even had a personal trainer once who said he’d help toward my secret goal of running the Boulder Bolder Race one of these days, but mostly he was just someone to chat with while I worked out. I conveniently tricked myself into believing that clearly God (or maybe it was Little Debbie) made my body a certain size and shape for a reason and that was fine by me.

In the summer of 2008, a good friend told me about her husband’s experience in a Rialto Wellness boot camp. It sounded like a lot of hard work but he actually loved it and had a lot of fun. I had heard of boot camp before, had been invited, and even watched my boss at work achieve some great results from boot camp. But quite frankly, it sounded like torture from most people so I never seriously considered signing up.

Then it occurred to me that maybe the reason I never liked exercising before was because all the exercise programs I had tried were missing the element of FUN. I decided to try boot camp out and if I didn’t like it – no biggie, a little hard work wouldn’t kill me and I didn’t really care about fitness anyway, right?

Shocking as it was to my family and friends, I signed up for a Rialto Wellness boot camp in July, 2008. Those first few weeks were TOUGH! Getting up at 5:15 am was a challenge in itself! I distinctly remember apologizing to the instructors during the run on the 1st day because I couldn’t run 1/4 mile without walking! And push-ups?? FORGET IT! But I stuck with it and as the month went on, and I became less sore, it actually did become fun! Of course there were days when I HATED jumping rope or burpees or running up that hill on the way home, but all in all I couldn’t believe how much laughing I was doing before 7am and I had been sleeping through it for so long!!

Before I knew it, the first month was over and I had cleaned out most of the “poison” from my fridge, traded in my daily pop-tart for healthier options, lost an inch off my waist, lost 6 lbs and taken 1:48 off my run. Pretty cool….but what struck me most of all was how encouraging all the instructors and other campers were and how much fun we were all having…I WAS HOOKED.

I kept coming back for the fun, but I continued to see real, measurable results which surprised me. In September, I was challenged to try the Maximize Your Metabolism Meal Plan for 7 days as my nutritional goal for the month. It actually took me more like 14 days to figure out the whole method of measuring my food, but it has now become a lifestyle for me. I can’t say I’m 100% all the time, but you’ll much more likely find me eating a healthy meal or snack than not these days.

Seven months in, I’m having even more fun than ever before! I have a ton more energy and confidence and have found an exercise program that I truly LOVE, which I never thought would happen. So far I’ve lost 37 lbs., 7 inches off my waist and gone from pants size 14 to 8. I even ran two 5k races over the last couple of months. And knowing I’ve achieved these results with good old fashioned hard work, determination AND FUN makes it so much sweeter!

But stay tuned – there’s more to come. My current goals are to continue to improve my push-up form and I still want to get in a pull-up. And maybe…just maybe I’ll even work up to running the Boulder Bolder Race this year!

Special thanks to all the Rialto Wellness Instructors and Campers who have given me so much wise advice, encouragement and entertainment! Seriously – you have completely changed the way I think about exercise and eating forever.

I HEART RIALTO WELLNESS!

We heart you too! So glad to have you in the Rialto family. Congratulations on your tremendous results, you look fantastic!!

Have you and your friends signed up for boot camp next month? If your friends are still hesitant to sign up, tell them to read today's blog. If her results don't convince them to join, then we don't think anything will!