Oprah's boot camp; is it for you?

Oprah Winfrey wants to help you lose weight. Certainly she know what it takes to lose weight. After years of fighting obesity, Oprah has reached the best figure she probably has had in her life. Oprah has a plan for us to lose weight: A weight loss boot camp. In O The Oprah magazine, the main article is about the details of Oprah’s boot camp to lose weight. (Related article: Lose weight, have fun)

The boot camp was Oprah’s take on the fitness program that she embraced about three years ago to become skinnier and healthier. The program was originally designed by the now star fitness trainer Bob Greene. The program was described in the magazine and it is also available on Oprah’s website.

Oprah is not kidding when she calls her program a boot camp. It really is one. A quick overview of the program is as follows:

• 12 weeks of about 1 to 2 hours of daily workouts
• A strict diet consisting of two weeks of proteins and veggies
• Second phase of proteins, veggies, and healthy carbohydrates
• The diet prohibits simple carbohydrates, or anything white, for example, rice, sugar, flour, potatoes etc., and alcohol.

Anybody will lose weight with such a program. That is, if you can follow it. It is tempting to get into a promising program that has already shown amazing results on Oprah herself. Here is what it takes to follow this program:

Iron willpower: Mental conviction that you can do it and you are going to do it. The first thing Oprah asks you to do is to sign a contract with yourself. This type of program is brutal and such a strong workout routine can be very, very tough on most people, especially if you are not only overweight, but also obese. The diet is a no-nonsense, low-carb diet. The first two weeks are very difficult especially if you are “addicted” to sweet foods. So this is not for the faint of heart.

Good physical condition: The workout program and diet require you to have good health. The workout program may need modifications if you, let’s say, have weak knees or similar health conditions. If you are not in perfect health, you can do it, but you may need some help.

The diet is very strict. Oprah is totally against consuming alcohol and eating anything white. She even said on her television program that she did not even try the delicious cake for her 50th birthday last year (the cake was considered as a work of art by many). Frankly to us (and we are health freaks), that is overdoing it. An occasional glass of wine or even a 4 ounces glass a few times a week is not going to spoil your diet and an occasional piece of cake, let’s say once a week, is not going to kill your diet either. There is no need for such strong requirements.

Our take on it is that if you are ready for an extremely tough program and have the time, this will be an excellent way to start a healthier life. You will lose weight, probably feel wonderful, and at the end, you will feel a great sense of accomplishment.

But if you are like the vast majority of people, this program only puts mental barriers to start to lose weight. It requires time that most people do not have, and imposes unnecessary rules that most people cannot follow.

If you do not have the time, the physical condition or the will power to take this program, but you still like some of the elements, most of the advice is part of Bob Greene’s books. These books have good advice and you can implement it as a whole or parts of it.

If you have been physically inactive for many years, then start little by little on your fitness routine. You will avoid both injury and disillusion. We have seen people who started walking fast for 5 minutes and ran out of breath. They continued working out and after one week did 7 minutes, and as time progressed, they became athletic and healthy. Yes, you can, even if the boot camp is to too hard for you.

We love Oprah, but we think the boot camp is not for most people.

Related article: Diets for losing weight