Now Drop and Give Me 20

I like to pillage my town pennysaver every week in search of car wash and pizza coupons. The Canton Suburban Shopper also posts quirky AP wires to entice people (like me) to read 20 pages of ads. Given the demographics of the town, it's not surprising that the vast majority of ads are for landscaping and salon services. Local gyms will also advertise classes and enrollment specials to drive membership, and boot camp seems to be all the rage. Call it the new aerobics if you will.

40 years after America ended the draft, 4 (I repeat, FOUR) different gyms plastered ads in this week's pennysaver daring us to be all we can be. For a $300 six week session, a "drill instructor" will yell, motivate, and push you to your outer limits at the charming hour of 0600. Dare to miss a class and your instructor may very well call to check up. The ads do not mention whether or not going AWOL at your gym class will result in court martial.

I am obviously all for personal fitness but I am truly shocked and awed by the popularity of boot camp programs. Hiring the occasional personal trainer so you don't kill yourself using the equipment is one thing but have Americans really become so lazy that they need this type of in-your-face motivation to get off the couch? Are we so micro-managed in the workplace that as grown adults we need aggressive forms of reinforcement for fear of tuning out?

While the search for the perfect gym continues, rest assured that this civilian puke will not enter boot camp for anything less than 3 square meals and free ride to college. If it's 6am and I'm not on an obstacle course, don't bother to chew me out. I'm simply sleeping away the morning through the power of self motivation.