Bootcamp: Frogs Are A Lot Stronger Than They Look

Editor's Note: Bootcamp is a column I'm writing based on my experiences at Burnsville's Beyond Personal Training. On April 4, I took advantage of a Groupon offering unlimited bootcamp sessions for a month. These are my stories.

It is 3 p.m. on Friday afternoon and I've been stranded in my basement writing articles all day because my legs simply will not allow me to perform the simple task of ascending a staircase. 

After Wednesday's legs workout with Jeff Culhane, the class met up with personal trainer Jason Camerlic on Thursday morning. 

Jason is a bulldog of a man: shaved head, tattooed and built like a floor safe. 

He is the kind of trainer that seems to have an unlimited amount of energy and, due to the imposing figure he cuts, you kill yourself to not disappoint him. 

Incidentally, Jason was the first instructor I had in my bootcamp series and he actually had to stop the training to ask me if I was going to faint. Such was the sad shape I was in just two weeks ago. 

Fortunately for those of us lucky enough to attend Thursday morning's class, Jason had been certified in kettlebell training the day before.

For those unfamiliar with a kettlebell, it resembles a cannonball with a handle. They come in all weights and sizes and they promise hours of muscle-tearing-lactic-acid-building-cannot-get-out-of-bed-the-next-morning fun.

After hearing more than once about how difficult his certification course was, Jason seemed to think we were jealous and wanted to partake. So, like the generous trainer he is, he incorporated kettlebells into our circuit training for the day.

As I said, I've been stranded downstairs for a day and a half thanks to those God-forsaken kettlebells. 

After kettlebell training it was time for hill sprints. For those who don't remember, it was a lovely, crisp 38 degrees on Thursday morning.

The sprints felt good but legs began showing signs of fatigue when all of us struggled to keep from running straight into the small pond at the bottom of the hill.

A good few rounds of hill sprints behind us and it was time for frog jumps. Imagine the broad jump in elementary school. Classmates cheering you on as you stand focused at the front of the mat trying your hardest to take flight for as far and long as you could.

Well frog jumps are nothing like that.

They are a series of broad jumps, one after the other, for the entire length of the BPT gym. No cheering classmates. No beams of pride after passing the day's record jump. No gold stars from the teacher. Just Jason.

"Keep it up," he shouts. "Keep pushing," he encourages. "One more," he instructs.

After the ever-so enlightening kettlebell experiment followed closely by hill sprints, I have learned that I hate frog jumps like poison.

Jason Camerlic's Training Tip: "Nutrition after your workout is crucial. Protein powder is the best option. It can be whey, soy, rice or egg protein but it is important to have it within 45 minutes after your workout ends, otherwise you lose up to half of the benefit of the workout."