The trendiest way to work out and a bodyweight boot-camp workout

Do you know what the number-one trend in fitness is expected to be for 2015 according to fitness professionals surveyed worldwide? Bodyweight training. Yes, that’s right. Working out using nothing but your own bodyweight.

For the past nine years, the ACSM Health & Fitness Journal has conducted an official survey to see what the trends are in fitness around the globe. In 2014, bodyweight training was number two on the list, and it jumped up to number one for 2015. This is a relatively new trend, and it’s only been on the list since 2013. High-intensity interval training came in second for next year, falling from the top spot this year, and certified fitness professionals was third on the list for 2015, confirming that the market is hot for those who are skilled and trained with fitness certifications.

That being said, because bodyweight training is oh-so trendy, I’ve got some bodyweight workouts to share with you. One is for instructors to reference when creating bootcamp classes, and one is for everybody to do at your leisure. Or not, of course. 

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. This weekend, I taught my first ever outdoor bootcamp to a big group in a park. Although I’ve been teaching group fitness in the studio setting for many years, this was my first time creating my own group program and leading people through it. The stipulations were this: It needed to be an hour long and participants could not use any equipment. Okay. Easy enough. I looked around online for resources and ideas for a while, and quite frankly, there was nothing good to be found. Therefore, I started from scratch and created my very own format, which ended up working out perfectly, so I thought I’d share it in case anyone ends up my position in the future …

For instructors: One-hour bodyweight outdoor bootcamp

For those of you who are in the fitness industry and may one day teach an outdoor bootcamp, this format is shown below just to get your juices flowing. It’s fast-paced, goes by quickly and offers a total-body workout for participants utilizing strength training, cardio and even plyometric movements. I demoed the low and non-impact options, and advised those who didn’t want to run that they could powerwalk or march anytime the group was running.

It was a good time. I wasn’t quite sure if everything would play out as I planned with a big group of people with varied levels of fitness outdoors, but it was just the right amount of intensity with built-in interactive partner work and recovery. Some of the participants said the partner work was their favorite portion, and it may have helped that I instructed everyone to find a partner that they didn’t already know and introduce themselves. People seem to bond easily over hard work and sweating.

For everyone: 20-minute no-equipment bodyweight workout

And because you don’t always get to work out in a big group, I thought I’d modify the bootcamp for use at-home in your living room, or wherever you choose to work out. You don’t need anything but a small area and some motivation to complete this total-body strength and cardio killer. This is just a small serving of the bootcamp above.

* Disclaimer: Even though I’m a certified personal trainer, I’m not your certified personal trainer. So please ask your doctor before beginning a new workout program and proceed at your own risk.

These moves cover all planes of motion and all parts of the body in a flash. Bonus points if you massage out your muscles using a lacrosse ball after cooling down too.

Why did I choose to cut this workout down from one-hour to 20 minutes? Because I’ve now heard from a few mommy readers, who’ve said that 20 minutes is the perfect duration for a workout they can safely fit in while their little one is napping. Being childless, I never intended that to be a benefit of a short workout, but I’m glad it’s been helpful. And everybody likes to be efficient, so 20 minutes it is.

Now for a few exercise demo videos, which I’ve researched and vetted from across the web to explain some of the moves in the workout above, see these:

• Inchworm
• Push-up
• Lateral lunge
• Side mountain climbers
• Supermans
• Tricep crab dips
• Single-leg deadlift
• Burpees
• Skater jumps
• Single-leg side-to-side jump or hop
• Scissor jumping lunges
• Bridges

If you have any questions on any other moves, please let me know in the comments. And if you don’t want to be on-trend with bodyweight training and have some dumbbells laying around, please see these other routines or check out my Fitness page:

• Four-move total-body dumbbell workout
• Twenty-minute total-body dumbbell workout

And that’s it for today! If you’re not in the market for these workout posts, don’t worry, I’ll be back tomorrow with pictures of food and some other fun stuff this week. Have a fabulous Tuesday! 

Questions of the day

Do you like to work out outside?

Do you agree that bodyweight training is a trend for 2015?

What’s the ideal duration for your workout?