We Smashed It This Summer. How?

It’s George here. Founder at Camp Kaizen. We’ve just wrapped up our summer 2026 training camp season.

Here are some of my thoughts on why it went so well, and how we’ve created something special.

*This photo of me was taken at the end of the site build in August. 30 days of training camps lay ahead.*

KEY STATS

10 training camps & 2 mountain races delivered
243 total athletes on camp
Average feedback rating 9.4/10
1.35 million views on Instagram in 6 months
Block 2 sold out 35 days before the camps restarted
93% of athletes intend to return in 2027

These stats are wild.

They tell me that what we are building at Camp Kaizen is both special and unique. It’s something that the UK fitness community has needed for a long time, and is now delivering.

Once you experience a training camp with us, you will understand why.

*The Buttermere Loop is always a highlight.*

UNPACKING THE ATHLETE EXPERIENCE

I am physically present at every training camp, so I am pretty well positioned to understand why our athletes fall in love with the experience and inevitably the memories they make with us.

The training

On our Hybrid Training Camps, we run up to 4 training sessions per day. These sessions include HIIT sessions in our beautiful outdoor gym, road and trail runs through some of the most beautiful scenery in the country, breath-taking team hikes, sauna sessions by the lake, incredible breathwork sessions, and strength work (have you ever bench pressed at the bottom of Scaffel Pike?).

Our training schedule is brutal, and we are without a doubt the hardest training camp in the country.

This is exactly what people come for - this hard and unique training experience. Add in the beauty of the surroundings, and it really is a winning formula.

THE PEOPLE

Everyone you meet on the training camp is likeminded. You come into the training camp having never met before, and leave with bonds forged for life. These bonds are galvanised over hours of hard training. When you depart Camp Kaizen, there's a sense of unique collective identity. I don't believe there's another programme available anywhere where legitimate relationships can be formed in such a short space of time.

The Kaizen staff are also epic. As the founder, I have never put out a job ad. All of our team are people who I know, trust and who represent the brand that is Kaizen. Good people who you enjoy spending time with.

All of this adds to the experience for the group.

It’s been cool to hear of camp attendees teaming up for Hyroxes and other events off the back of meeting on the training camps.

Hopefully we will see more of this in the future.

the other stuff

There are also the "in-between" moments. Moments that you can only gain access to on a farm training camp in a beautiful, serene valley, nestled in the heart of the Lake District National Park.

This may sound trivial, but the following moment really stuck with me; One morning, on the walk back from our waterfall cold plunge, we saw the farmer herding his sheep with his sheepdog. This is a traditional skill and most people have never witnessed it before. It was pretty magical experienced this old practice as the first sunlight of the day spilled into the valley.

If you could bottle up an old, archetypal Lake District farming scene and present it in 5 minutes, this would have been close to perfection.

People started taking photos and videos, and I asked the group whether this was what “it” was all about.

The answer was a resounding yes.

NO WORRIES

This may sound unusual, but whilst you are on a training camp with us, there is simply no room for worries.

On camp, we take care of absolutely everything - from the food, to the accommodation, safety, and schedule.

All you need to focus on is your training and optimising the training experience as best as you can. This often involves lots of food, caffeine, and physically and mentally committing to the programme. Sounds like a good deal to me!

Lots of the feedback we’ve had from over 70 athletes who filled out our feedback forms this summer is that they felt “mentally light”, unburdened by the stresses of their everyday lives, and able to feel totally disconnected from it all.

On Camp Kaizen, the training, landscape, and connecting to it all takes centre stage. Just how it should be!

*The sun starting to creep over the valley on our first Hybrid Camp. Great memories.*

TRUE CONNECTION

WE’RE BUILDING A BRAND WHICH PEOPLE FEEL CONNECTED TO.

At the end of every training camp, we have a team presentation.

At this presentation, each athlete who completes the training camp gets presented with a unique Kaizen bag patch and is invited to sign the flag.

This bag patch has to be earned - it is not given out cheaply.

You have to put yourself through over 10 hard training sessions and commit to the experience with all that you’ve got.

Upon signing the flag, after 3 days of experiences that few others are fortunate to get, you become physically connected to the brand that is Camp Kaizen, and this is the start of your true journey with us.

*There’s always time for a group photo after the presentation.*

Ultimately, this is why people come back, and this is why Camp Kaizen will continue to grow at the astounding rate is it is.

Want to experience this in 2027?

You can secure you place on a Hybrid Camp now.

George,

Founder

Camp Kaizen