I've never had to ask that question because the physicality of Boot Camp does not frighten or intimidate me.
I'm a tough broad.
I have a high pain tolerance, an unwillingness to quit (no matter what) and a gift for ignoring pain (sometimes to a harming extent). It takes more work for me to listen to my body and to slow down and do things carefully than it does for me to just plow ahead at full speed and not care about the lasting damage I am doing to my body. In the past I have pushed through incredible pain only to have it slow me down and frustrate me in the long run.
Thankfully, I am older and wiser now. With the guidance of my chiropractor and other structured programs I am working, daily, at getting myself physically ready for the day I set out to Boot Camp.
While I was in High School I was very physically fit. I was an endurance runner and could beat any boy in school in push ups. In college I could out endure anyone in a pool or even the ocean fighting waves and tides.
Getting married and having a kid and being lazy reduced me to not being able to do much without feeling winded and tired but I have always known I have what it takes to get back to the standard of physical fitness I once had. And so I have begun.
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I go to a class that was once called Boot Camp. The administration thought that the title was a bit too intimidating so they renamed it "Total Body Fitness." The change of name should not indicate a change in program, however. It is a grueling exercise program packed full of lungs, pushups, crunches, running, weight lifting, stair-running, and so much more, all set at a break-neck speed and injected with heavy cardio exercises. At the end of one hour I'm usually soaking in sweat from head to toe, panting like a dog and sucking down half gallons of water.
After outlining just one hour of class to my husband he assured me that if I keep this class up I will find Boot Camp to be physically easy.
But I don't stop there. I am, afterall, part fish. This trait was passed on to me by my lifeguard of a mother who shooed us kids to the pool as often as she could. I also took swimming in college and find the water to be as comfortable as a home as land.
After my fitness class I go for a swim and no matter how tired and sore my muscles I somehow find the endurance to do a few laps in a variety of different strokes.
Tuesdays and Thursdays are my down days filled with Yoga and a steam room. Yoga stretches and tones my often throbbing muscles and working on balance and breathing helps keep me calm, relaxed and focused. Yoga, though still an exercise, makes me feel like I've gotten a full-body massage. Of course the balance work also works the small muscles of my ankles, knees, hands, elbows and arms as well for healthy joints which helps for the next day when they all take a pounding.
Of course, spending a half hour in a steam room is just my excuse to indulge.
I like working out. I like challenging myself and finding myself do new things I couldn't do just a few classes ago. I greatly enjoy discovering my new physical strengths and testing them.
No, the physical aspect of the military does not scare or intimidate me. It will challenge me. It will push me. It will tire me. But it's nothing I haven't felt before. I look forward to it.
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