Boot Camp helps women get fit

By Laurie A. Ovens Patey
NH Mirror Contributor

They start with drills, running forward and back, stepping through rings, the rungs of rope ladders, jogging and hopping sideways.

Personal trainer Vanessa Underwood, far left, leads a Boot Camp for Women class in Bow. (NH Mirror/Laurie A. Ovens Patey)

But these cadets aren’t in military training.

This is Boot Camp for Women.

Boot Camp is a course similar to personal training, but it takes place in small groups with around 8 to 12 participants.

They meet every Wednesday night in Bow, led by personal trainer Vanessa Underwood.

“This is something I have been doing for a long time,” Underwood said. “It is really important to have fun and work your body from every angle.”

Once the ladies get their hearts pumping, it’s on to the circuit stations. There are about 12 to 15 exercises in this complex routine that include balance balls, jump ropes, weights for strength training and medicine balls.

“We do a lot of core and functional body work and an intense timed circuit for an hour a week,” she said. “I design the program to use your own body weight with minimal equipment."

The Plaistow resident has a training studio in her home where she offers a variety of fitness services, including youth, adult and senior fitness, personal and performance training, and cancer exercise and recovery program.

The Boot Camp in Bow takes place at one of Underwood’s sister’s houses. (Underwood also has Boot Camp classes in Plaistow two evenings per week.) She said both of her sisters live in the Bow area and always wanted her to do a Boot Camp class there.

Underwood agreed this summer, and with the assistance of her two daughters, said they have a really good group.

The women are all working hard, sweating and having a good time. They speak encouragingly to one another. Some wear military green tank tops that read “Boot Camp – Where Training Gets Personal.”

Think you’re not cut out for Boot Camp? Think again.

Underwood is the survivor of two kidney transplants and cancer. She is also a motivational speaker and a contributing writer for a number of publications on her passionate belief in healthy living and the benefits of fitness while sharing her positive, inspiring and motivational story.

“I want to stress that anybody can do it. There is no doubt about it,” Underwood said. “You just do what you can.”

For more information, www.underwoodsportsandfitness.com or call 382-7460.