by Samira Rizvi,
published February 11, 2010 7:34 am
By CYNTHIA
BELLOMY- HOUSTON CHRONICLE CORRESPONDENT
Wherever you live in Katy, you're only minutes from a fitness
boot camp. That may be good or bad news depending on your need
for an extreme 60-minute cardio and strength building workout
up to five times a week.
"People say boot camp' and
they immediately think that we're yelling and screaming like crazy,"
said Casey Castro, owner of FitnessBootCamp4U which conducts camps
in six Katy area locations. "But we're yelling with love."
That love means a different workout
every day for 12 days a month and no quitting.
"The point of a boot camp is to meet your fitness goals outside
of the gym," said Castro.
"In a gym you have no one to hold you accountable and no
support. But in a boot camp you are accountable to the instructor
and to your fellow campers."
Castro said that this motivation
to "be part of the team, part of the family" is a major
reason that so few people quit the arduous workouts. "It's
not easy. It's definitely a challenge. We move you to an uncomfortable
zone. But it's very rare for someone to call it quits."
Angela Jones, 40, calls herself
a Castro boot camp "lifer" although it didn't start
that way.
"After my first class, I could hardly steer my car. My arms
were weak and shaking. By lunch I could hardly move. I thought
rigor mortis had set in. And, the second day was even worse."
But Jones not only persevered - but she also thrived.
"I couldn't lose the weight
after my second baby," said Jones. "My goal was to lose
that last 10 or 15 pounds. At the end of two weeks I had lost
10 pounds." Now, a year and 20 pounds lighter, Jones loves
the three times a week workout at the Falcon Point Community Center.
The five a.m. start time is perfect for the mother of two toddlers
because her husband is still home while she's working out. Jones
has also embraced Castro's diet and nutrition plans and said that
following the diet as well as the exercise routine was essential
to losing and keeping the weight off.
Castro said that he is "strong
on diet." He offers customized diet and nutrition guidelines
and takes before and after body mass measurements. "The diet
is also very challenging," explained Jones. "For some
people the diet might be harder than the exercise."
Most boot camps average about 15
to 20 participants, mostly women, although Jones said that there
are two regular men at her Falcon Point session and each has lost
weight and they never miss a class.
BOOT CAMPS
Call or go online for more information. Prices, locations and
times vary.
FitnessBootCamp4U: www.FITNESSBOOTCAMP4U.COM,
832-212-9061
