GET FIT:Fitness fanatics are deserting gyms in favour of the great outdoors. Tag rugby leagues and military-style boot camps are springing up all over the country in response to demand, writes
SARAH FREEMAN
IF THE NOVELTY of the gym has worn off and the most exercise you're getting is flicking the TV remote control from the comfort of your sofa, fear not. Help is at hand in the form of exercise regimes that have taken the country by storm - boot camps and tag rugby. Because they are group activities, motivation is not an issue and taking place, as they do, in rain, hail or shine, excuses prove redundant.
As popular as gyms have been in the past, times are changing, and people are opting to exercise in the great outdoors rather than in the sterile confines of a state-of-the-art but nevertheless air-conditioned interior.
One might be forgiven for assuming that only the hardiest of exercise fans would want to train in the rain, but with approximately 20,000 registered players on the Irish Tag Rugby Association's books, it seems as though Ireland's fields and parks are becoming the preferred location for trimming the physique.
Lorraine Ho is the mastermind behind Bootcamp Ireland, which she set up more than four years ago. She was inspired by time spent in both California and Australia, and wondered if the outdoors exercise lifestyle could work back in less than sunny Ireland. "I went to the gym here, but couldn't get into it," she said. "I felt like a hamster on a treadmill."
Ho devised a class modelled on soldiers' exercise drills and approached those with personal experience to teach the routines. The nine instructors are either Army- or Air Corps-trained, so when they say: "Drop and give me 20", they mean it, as I witnessed when some participants in a class cut corners on the warm-up jog.
Word of the novelty class spread quickly, and its popularity grew. Venues where classes are held now include Phoenix Park, Herbert Park, Bushy Park, Marley Park and Fairview Park, amongst others.
To determine whether it really is as tough as they say, I pitched up to Herbert Park a few weeks ago ready to prove that I was more Full Metal Jacket than Private Benjamin. How wrong I was. Approximately 30 people turned up for the class, which began with a warm-up which was exhausting enough to cause concern for what was to come. My fear was realised when circuits began with 10 repetitions of press-ups, squats, lunges, sit-ups, crunches and other strange contortions, the names of which I never want to know.
A quick sprint back to the starting line and it began all over again, this time with nine of each exercise. Our instructor wore a whistle around his neck and didn't hesitate to use it. Although they have adapted the soldiers' routines to suit civilians, it was the most gruelling, and rewarding, exercise class I have ever done.
Brian Lacey is convinced of its efficacy. The 31-year-old has participated in 20 boot camp classes and has seen an improvement in his weekly soccer game. "It has improved my speed and reaction, and my fitness has increased," he said, adding that he was surprised at how tough the classes were. "As a regular gym goer, I expected to be able for it."
Others in the class appreciate the "no wimps allowed" attitude, with classes going ahead no matter what the weather. "My first class took place in the snow," Jean Whitty said. "I love being outdoors, even in the rain. I was in the gym for years, but got much fitter when I started this. It's good that the instructors shout at you, you need to be pushed."
Another sports enthusiast, Kirsteen Maclane, who plays tag rugby, runs and sails, noticed a huge difference in her stamina. "It's almost like having a personal trainer. You push yourself to your own limit."
The atmosphere was very welcoming and the social aspect of Bootcamp appears to be one of its main draws. The group has gone away on a number of holidays, including a skiing trip, a surfing holiday in Portugal and a weekend in Kerry to learn kite surfing.
An eight-week session costs €150. That includes two classes a week and a free bonus class every Saturday for bootcampers who wish to get in an extra workout or else catch up on a class they may have missed. If you were determined to get the most out of the package, you could tot up a total of 24 classes in just eight weeks, and having experienced the muscle ache after just one, I can only imagine the results that 24 sessions might garner.
For those who like their exercise to come with with a little less spit and polish, there's tag rugby. Even people with little interest in sport will have heard of this non-contact form of rugby, that has become phenomenally successful across Ireland.
It was introduces to Ireland eight years ago from the Antipodes by Simon Bewley and combines team sport camaraderie with an in-built social scene. Bewley is now one of the directors of the association he pioneered, and the Irish Tag Rugby Association has approximately 20,000 registered players on its books, 9,308 of them women.
With a spring, summer and recently-launched autumn league, and venues all over the country including Dublin, Waterford, Cork, Galway, Clare, Sligo, Limerick, Athlone and Kildare, this is a game that has taken root.
Each team comprises seven members, and must include at least three girls. Instead of the traditional tackle, players grab the coloured tags that are velcroed onto shorts, and the scrum has been replaced by rolling the ball to a team mate behind you. To encourage all those former schools rugby titans to pass the ball to the girls on the team, a girl try is awarded three points and a guy try just one.
As someone whose experience of team sports was hiding behind the school pavilion to avoid playing hockey, I signed up reluctantly, but recently completed my first tag season, and without major injury, too, unless a bruised ego counts. Although my team assured me that all neophytes make errors, my howlers included scoring a touchdown instead of a try, forgetting which direction to roll the ball and being off-side so often that it merited an official rebuke from the referee.
The ITRA website, www.tagrugby.ie, has a link where one can find a team/find a player. It costs €630 to enter a team into a league. With the recommended squad of 12 players and a summer league that lasts nine weeks, it works out at €6 per player per game.