Seahawk Kam Chancellor is making the ladies sweat at his women’s bootcamp class
Jun 21, 2016, 5:47 PM | Updated: Jun 22, 2016, 6:12 am
Kam Chancellor works out, and demonstrates an exercise with other trainers, at one of his bootcamp classes. (Photo courtesy of Form By Force)
(Photo courtesy of Form By Force)
Monday night, at the Eastside Basketball Club in Kirkland, dozens of women suited up in spandex and sports bras to train with Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor.
It’s called Kam’s Women’s Ultimate Fitness Bootcamp, with live spinning by the Seahawks former DJ Toby Fresh. The website clearly states: WOMEN ONLY !!!! LEAVE YOUR KIDS & HUSBANDS AT HOME!
“I expect it’s going to be hard,” Bothell’s Carrie Orrino says before class started. “I expect I’m going to die!”
Chancellor says he started teaching women’s bootcamp classes last year, at home in Virginia.
“A lot of people out here were asking for it,” he said. “They wanted to try what we had going on with the new workout regimen. So we brought it back out here to Seattle. First class was like 150 people so we just kept going. We seen that people wanted it, they needed it, so we kept doing it.”
Chancellor is very tall, and obviously very fit with super muscular arms and a diamond stud in each ear. He was approachable and humble and treated the women he sees week after week like his buddies.
“We’re pretty much his friends,” says Kiayla Lucas, who has taken about eight of Chancellor’s classes. “If we see him somewhere, he’ll say ‘hi’ to us. He knows us, he knows our names.”
The class started with a yoga warmup. There were eight trainers leading the large group of women, including Chancellor’s longtime personal trainer, Kevin Allen, who he’s worked with to develop the bootcamp classes.
“He comes up with the majority of it,” Chancellor says. “My part is the Bam Bam Abs. I like to sculpt the abs and the abdominal section.”
He says, however, the workout is designed differently than the one he does with the Seahawks.
“I wouldn’t say that a woman can’t do what a man can do, but it’s definitely different,” he said. “It’s still the same — getting the heart rate up and getting them moving, getting them active. Circuit training is kind of the same — keep the speed going, get a good sweat and work different muscles, different motions.”
Lucas came to class with Bothell’s Brittany McKinney, and the pair have traveled to Chancellor’s classes all over the Puget Sound region, from the Eastside to Tacoma.
“They keep encouraging us and they keep pushing us even when we feel like we’re going to give up. They’re right there to pick us up, sometimes literally. They’ve picked me up multiple times!” Lucas said.
“It’s the energy — the energy is amazing,” McKinney said. “Everyone is cheering everyone on and it’s crazy.”
“We actually met each other here and now we work together — we do everything together!” Lucas said about McKinney. “The other thing is, you form really good relationships here with other women who have common goals.”
The fitness family spirit was a part of Chancellor’s plan. I asked him why he’s focusing on training women.
“I feel like they need my help,” he said. “Men, we constantly break down women — I’ve been saying it all my life. I feel like this is my chance to repay them with a health and fitness lifestyle.”
“A lot of people are afraid to join these kinds of classes because of the word ‘bootcamp,'” Chancellor said. “They’re insecure about how they look, or they can’t keep up or [they’re afraid they’re going to] pass out. I just want to tell everyone that everybody can make it through this. We modify things and we preach family. Everyone wants to finish together, push through together, with lots of fun and lots of encouragement.”
At 62 years old, Candy Johns was out there on the gym floor, doing the circuit training and rolling huge, semi-truck tires.
“He is really intense,” Johns said. “There’s no fooling around but the motivation is there. He’s right there with you, every step of the way.”
This week was Carrie Orrino’s first class.
“I just feel like he wants to empower woman and I really appreciate that because I need to be empowered,” Orrino said. “It’s amazing that he does this, it’s awesome and I really appreciate it.”
Next week Chancellor is launching an eight-week outdoor yoga class in Bellevue.
