Better than boot camp: We test out Vancouver’s hip new workout-meets-diet program, The Tight Life
Have you ever invested in a gym membership only to use it but once a month? Made a promise to stop eating sugar and carbs only to give in the moment a dessert plate is offered? Our western editor Joy Pecknold can certainly relate, which is why she jumped at the chance to try Vancouver’s newest (and probably the hippest) three-in-one healthy lifestyle program, The Tight Life.
A holy trinity of trainer, nutritionist and chef, are behind The Tight Life. Three Vancouverites—Keighty Gallagher, Carley Mendes and Christina Culver—dreamt it up to solve a common dilemma: when you cleanse, you have no energy to exercise, whereas if you do a boot camp it, it’s common to binge on bad food posthaste. The solution is so simple, it hurts: “A combination of healthy diet and regular exercise.” D’oh! Actually doing it is the tricky part, so they facilitate. I took their three-week Glory Zone package, which includes two hour-long group workouts a week with Gallagher, weekly nutrition guidance by Mendes and two post-workout salads a week made by Culver.
Week 1
To kick-off, participants meet at Tight Life headquarters for the 411, this includes an in-depth nutrition session with an 11-page dossier to take home. We learn about green foods (the greatest), yellow foods (potentially troublesome) and red foods (the devil’s spawn).
The first two weeks will require nun-like sacrifice. No to all the PMS food groups: bread, cheese, chocolate, wine and processed. While I audibly groan, I’m cocky on the inside, thinking “Hey, no biggie, I eat pretty healthy.” My bravado is obliterated the first afternoon when I want chips, and must choose raw almonds instead. There are low-energy moments in the beginning, since I’m not subsisting on sugar highs, but nothing compared to a cleanse crash. I think of caving often—eating über healthy is much more effort—but by day four, I’m pleasantly surprised to find that my appetite has altered and I’m turning down bread baskets and desserts, left, right and centre. With wine, I wasn’t quite so steadfast.
The first two workouts are challenging but fun, and not so hellish that I’d feel compelled to give up my firstborn to make it stop. Gallagher knows her audience, motivating our pack of young woman to dig deeper into our squats, with “pretend you’re grinding on Ryan Gosling.” Done!
Week 2
In the first week, I was motivated to eat well by the newness of it all. But in the second week, the sparkle wears off. The upside is, I’m feeling the benefits of eating well, chiefly more energy. And the readymade salads really help—that’s two meals a week I don’t have to worry about. Conversely, the second week of workouts feels a little easier with my strength and stamina building. Also, Gallagher keeps the fun coming, working Twerking into our Wednesday session (here’s a Vine video to prove it).
Week 3
Those troublesome foods, such as wheat and dairy, reappear in moderation as a test to see how we feel. The first bread and brie I inhale gives my gut a punch. I guess my system really dug the holiday from harder-to-digest items. While I don’t intend on giving them up entirely, I take note. Apparently, a sprinkle of goat feta on salad is more my stomach’s steeze—I’d never thought to ask it. I’m happy to welcome back some of my old friends in the food department, but I’ve also made some new ones that I plan to hang out with more.
Because of catching a summer cold, I miss the most epic workout, entitled “Beers, Babes and Burpees.” For the last half of a session, they head to Parallel 49 Brewing Company and do drills, hauling bags of grain and beer kegs for cold ones (which looks like this). But my final Friday workout is my best. I can hold that plank a little longer, and squat a lot deeper. Somebody notify Gosling.
Results
I don’t own a scale, so I have no idea if I lost weight (in the modified words of Aaliyah, “Weight ain’t nothing but a number”), but I feel lighter, trimmer and stronger. I especially see it in my abs, which are flatter and more defined. That’s that killer combination of diet and exercise: there’s no bread to bloat over what the sit-ups chiseled. I’ve also got momentum. Having broken a few bad habits and gained some endurance, I’m motivated to stay on the path. I’ll still take a few sinfully delicious detours, of course, but not quite so many, quite so often. The beauty of this program is it checks two boxes, food and fitness, and offers the structure and support for success. Verdict: I’d do it again.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://fashionmagazine.com/wellness/health/fitness-diary-the-tight-life-vancouver/&title=Better than boot camp: We test out Vancouver’s hip new workout-meets-diet program, The Tight Life&picture=https://fashionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Tight-Life-Vancouver-03-600x437.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_144336" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Photography courtesy Tight Life[/caption]
Have you ever invested in a gym membership only to use it but once a month? Made a promise to stop eating sugar and carbs only to give in the moment a dessert plate is offered? Our western editor Joy Pecknold can certainly relate, which is why she jumped at the chance to try Vancouver's newest (and probably the hippest) three-in-one healthy lifestyle program, The Tight Life.
A holy trinity of trainer, nutritionist and chef, are behind The Tight Life. Three Vancouverites—Keighty Gallagher, Carley Mendes and Christina Culver—dreamt it up to solve a common dilemma: when you cleanse, you have no energy to exercise, whereas if you do a boot camp it, it's common to binge on bad food posthaste. The solution is so simple, it hurts: “A combination of healthy diet and regular exercise.” D’oh! Actually doing it is the tricky part, so they facilitate. I took their three-week Glory Zone package, which includes two hour-long group workouts a week with Gallagher, weekly nutrition guidance by Mendes and two post-workout salads a week made by Culver.
[caption id="attachment_144338" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Photography courtesy Tight Life[/caption]
Week 1
To kick-off, participants meet at Tight Life headquarters for the 411, this includes an in-depth nutrition session with an 11-page dossier to take home. We learn about green foods (the greatest), yellow foods (potentially troublesome) and red foods (the devil’s spawn).
The first two weeks will require nun-like sacrifice. No to all the PMS food groups: bread, cheese, chocolate, wine and processed. While I audibly groan, I’m cocky on the inside, thinking “Hey, no biggie, I eat pretty healthy.” My bravado is obliterated the first afternoon when I want chips, and must choose raw almonds instead. There are low-energy moments in the beginning, since I’m not subsisting on sugar highs, but nothing compared to a cleanse crash. I think of caving often—eating über healthy is much more effort—but by day four, I’m pleasantly surprised to find that my appetite has altered and I’m turning down bread baskets and desserts, left, right and centre. With wine, I wasn’t quite so steadfast.
The first two workouts are challenging but fun, and not so hellish that I’d feel compelled to give up my firstborn to make it stop. Gallagher knows her audience, motivating our pack of young woman to dig deeper into our squats, with “pretend you’re grinding on Ryan Gosling.” Done!
Week 2
In the first week, I was motivated to eat well by the newness of it all. But in the second week, the sparkle wears off. The upside is, I’m feeling the benefits of eating well, chiefly more energy. And the readymade salads really help—that’s two meals a week I don’t have to worry about. Conversely, the second week of workouts feels a little easier with my strength and stamina building. Also, Gallagher keeps the fun coming, working Twerking into our Wednesday session (here's a Vine video to prove it).
[caption id="attachment_144337" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Photography courtesy Tight Life[/caption]
Week 3
Those troublesome foods, such as wheat and dairy, reappear in moderation as a test to see how we feel. The first bread and brie I inhale gives my gut a punch. I guess my system really dug the holiday from harder-to-digest items. While I don’t intend on giving them up entirely, I take note. Apparently, a sprinkle of goat feta on salad is more my stomach’s steeze—I’d never thought to ask it. I’m happy to welcome back some of my old friends in the food department, but I’ve also made some new ones that I plan to hang out with more.
Because of catching a summer cold, I miss the most epic workout, entitled "Beers, Babes and Burpees." For the last half of a session, they head to Parallel 49 Brewing Company and do drills, hauling bags of grain and beer kegs for cold ones (which looks like this). But my final Friday workout is my best. I can hold that plank a little longer, and squat a lot deeper. Somebody notify Gosling.
Results
I don’t own a scale, so I have no idea if I lost weight (in the modified words of Aaliyah, “Weight ain’t nothing but a number”), but I feel lighter, trimmer and stronger. I especially see it in my abs, which are flatter and more defined. That’s that killer combination of diet and exercise: there’s no bread to bloat over what the sit-ups chiseled. I’ve also got momentum. Having broken a few bad habits and gained some endurance, I’m motivated to stay on the path. I’ll still take a few sinfully delicious detours, of course, but not quite so many, quite so often. The beauty of this program is it checks two boxes, food and fitness, and offers the structure and support for success. Verdict: I’d do it again.){kind=link}