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What Is Superhero School?

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

http://www.vimeo.com/9501369

Incase you didn’t watch the video (I highly recommend you do because…well, just because) here’s a quick snapshot of what I’m so dang excited about.

I’m excited about the inaugural launch of “Superhero School”…

…”Superhero School” is the latest program to pop out of my mushy thing I call a brain and it was born for a couple reasons.

1.  I wanted to be able to reach out to more people, but in a different way.

There are so many people in this city who don’t like to workout in front of others, don’t know what to do, are confused as h-e-double-hockey-sticks, or who can’t afford a personal trainer or boot camp and I understand that.

Plus there’s so much more to be taught than just exercise and workout information, but I’m limited in the amount of time I can teach it in a training session, in a boot camp or here on my blog.

2.  I have been receiving A LOT more questions over the past year about diet, exercise, workouts and health in general that I saw a need and a want for this type of program.

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So what the heck is “Superhero School?”

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It’s a 6-week diet, fitness and healthy lifestyle program done from a classroom setting.

I didn’t call it a weight loss program because it’s so much more than just a weight loss program.  However, if you need to lose weight, you will lose weight with Superhero School…it’s just not THE primary goal – it’s about living a healthy, vibrant and happy lifestyle.

It’s going to be a classroom setting which means that a small group of people (10-15) will meet with me at my training studio once a week for 6 weeks for around an hour (sometimes more, sometimes a little less).

In those 6 weekly classes, we will cover a range of topics that include diet, exercise, general health, supplements (good and bad), myths, lies and misconceptions and everything in between.

These classes will be interactive, which is why I am capping the number of enrollees at 10-15 – I want interaction. I want questions, I want conversation.  If the number is too large, no one will talk and it’ll be ungodly boring.

Then, at the end of each class you will receive a 2-part assignment.

You’ll receive a nutrition assignment and a workout assignment for the week.

The nutrition assignment will change every week and will include 1-3 items I want you to put all your emphasis on.

For example, I may give you an assignment of “Eating 5 fruits per day, cutting out liquid calories and not eating after 7pm.”

I want you to put all your energy into those 3 things for one week.

Then, the next week you’ll get a new assignment.

Make sense?

The workouts will also change every week and they will rock your socks.

They will be completely unique (I design all my own workout programs…unlike some other folks) and they will all be filmed and uploaded to a private website that will be password protected and can only be accessed by Superhero School attendees.

The videos will not be short – they will be filmed “follow-along” style so you can see the flow of the workout, tempo of the exercises and answer any questions you may have about the workout itself.  I’ll also give you tips and pointers so it’s just like having me in the room teaching you.

The workouts will not require gym memberships or expensive home gyms.

They will all be done from the comfort of home with limited equipment.

All I’ll require are dumbbells, resistance tubing and a stability ball – all of which are very inexpensive.

Oh yeah, on the first day of Superhero School, you’ll receive a binder preloaded with reports on exercise, diet and foods.  You’ll also receive a bunch of eBooks with sample meal plans, healthy desserts, smoothie recipes and additional workouts.

Your assignments will also be 3-hole punched so that at the end of the 6 weeks you’ll have a binder FULL of information that you can always rely on.

To say that I’m excited about this is an understatement.  I’m so unbelievably stoked about it and I hope it shows!

And I want you to be a part of my inaugural class in Superhero School!

To sign up all you have to do is either call me at 304-7858 or shoot me an email at trainer@elswellness.com and put “Superhero School” in the subject line.

The first class is set to start Tuesday, March 2, 2010 at 5:15pm (or 5:30pm).

Will you join me?

Life is full of “isms.”

Conservatism.

Liberalism.

I actually Googled the term “ism” and found a site that listed over 200 different “Philosophical Isms.”  And let me tell ya…some of them were a bit cooky!

But any list of “isms” just wouldn’t be complete without the best ism of all isms…

…The Ed’ism.

She has mastered the "Keep It In And Tight" Edism

Yes, there are plenty of Edisms and if you’ve been coming to boot camp you know a few of them.

Way back in the day I had a client who said she could write a book of nothing but Edisms and I told her she should.

She never did, but this is also the same person who called me a “son of a (you fill in the blank)” on more than one occasion.

One of my favorite Edisms is “Keep it in and tight.”

Before you let your mind wander, let me tell you that I’m talking about your stomach.

Whenever you exercise, I want you to always be mindful of keeping your stomach in and tight.

Our stomachs are all out of whack – and I’m not just talking about the blubbery goo that sits on top, I’m talking about the muscle tone and strength.

We sit too much and don’t move enough and that combination wreaks havoc on your midsection and if you’ve had kids…it’s a whole lot worse and can be messed up for years if you’re not mindful of the way you hold your stomach.

I’m not exaggerating when I say that when you master the “keep it in and tight” Edism, you can literally take a couple inches off your waistline.

But what does “keep your stomach in and tight” mean?

The easiest thing to describe it is to think “posture.”  Standing up straight and tall – without letting your stomach “hang” – and remember I’m not talking about fat, I’m talking about the muscle.

It means that whenever you do anything, and I mean anything, I want you to focus on tightening your stomach muscles and pull them in.

I’m NOT talking about the kind of tightening where you can’t breathe because you’re sucking in and flexing your abs so hard.  It’s more of a “brace” than a flex.

Think of the way your stomach feels when doing a Plank.  It’s tight, right?

That’s what I mean when I say “keep it tight.”

Now the “keep it in” part is jus as important because if you keep your abs tight, but push them out, your abs will begin to become comfortable with that position (if you do it long enough).

You don’t want your stomach to be “out” do you?

I didn’t think so.

You want to tighten your stomach like when you’re doing a plank, then focus on “pulling” your stomach in a bit.

I want you to picture something for me…

…I’m sure you’ve seen pictures (or maybe you’re guilty of this yourself) of ladies and guys in their bathing suit with their stomachs sucked in and their chests puffed out.   It looks goofy, doesn’t it?

If the picture were a video, you’d see their faces turning bright red because they’re holding their breath and when the picture is done, they exhale and let their stomachs hang out again.

That’s not what I’m talking about when I say “Keep it in and tight.”

Remember, it’s a “bracing” more than a flexing thing.

Once you master this Edism you will notice an immediate difference in the way your stomach looks, how you walk and sit and even how you feel.

That’s a strong statement, but it’s a true statement…and you won’t have to worry about sucking it in to fit into your favorite pair of pants!

So remember to “Keep it in and tight!

Have an awesome day!

And remember…

Be a superhero today!

Ed Scow, aka “The Fit Dad”

owner, ELS Boot Camps for Ladies Only
author, Fat Loss To Go
author, Get Fit. Get Sexy. Get Your Superhero Body!
contributor, Men’s Health Magazine
contributor, Women’s Health Magazine
contributor, Big Book of Exercises

A couple months ago I made a bunch of quick workout videos for you…

…But I’m a big slacker and didn’t give them to you!

How bad is that?

Mr. Boot Camp Trainer Man promises a bunch of free boot camp workouts for you and he doesn’t deliver.

Damn Mr. Boot Camp Trainer Man!

Anyway, enough with the self-destructive sayings and on with the goodies!

You’ll see 3 boot camp workout videos below.   1 is a “Metabolic” mini-circuit.  1 is an “Abs” mini-circuit and the other is a “Legs” mini-circuit.

That’s kind of the way I’ve been formatting boot camps lately.  I’ll take the entire workout and split it up into mini-circuits.  Sometimes the mini-circuit is done for 5 minutes.  Sometimes it’s done for a prescribed number of reps and sets and sometimes I just hold the time until every lady in attendance is groaning and cussing me out!

So now it’s your turn to do it from home.

Take these 3 boot camp mini-circuits, put ‘em together and do a workout.

You can do them in any order you’d like.  Actually if you’re going to do them multiple times per week, which I highly recommend, mix up the order.

For instance on Day 1 do the Metabolic one first.  Then on day 2, do the Abs one first and on day 3 do the Legs one first.  I wasn’t a math major so I have no idea how many different combinations you can do when it comes to the order of the workouts and mixing up the way they’re done…but it’s a lot.

Have fun with it…as much fun as you can have with a workout, that is!

Anyway…on with the show!!!

Here’s the videos.

Here’s the Boot Camp Metabolic Mini-Circuit:

http://www.vimeo.com/7990295

Now here’s the Boot Camp Abs Mini-Circuit:

http://www.vimeo.com/7989260

And finally, here’s the Boot Camp Legs Mini-Circuit:

http://www.vimeo.com/7990288

Hope you enjoy the workout(s)!

As usual, if you have any questions just let me know.

I’m here to help!

Have an awesome day!

And remember…

…Be A Superhero Today!

The Fit Dad

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Categories : Boot Camp

January 2010 L Magazine Article

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Here’s the article I ran in the January 2010 issue of L Magazine…

What’s the old saying?  Rules are made to be broken?  I like that wise old adage.  In fact, I can remember breaking many a rule many years ago (and I’m sure you can too!).

Weight loss has some “rules” as well.  I don’t like some of these rules and I’m sure you don’t either so let’s break a few.  Scratch that, let’s smash these rules into teeny tiny bits so they’re never allowed to return and mess with your head.

By the way this list is for ladies only.  Sorry fellas.

The first rule to be smashed is that you need to weigh yourself…ever.

I hate scales.   All they do is make you depressed.  Some days it doesn’t budge, others it moves down a couple pounds and still others it jumps a couple pounds.

But the reason I included this rule is because it really misses the mark in determining whether or not you’re succeeding with your program.

What do you really want?  For instance, if I told you your waist would shrink by 4 inches but the scale wouldn’t budge would you care?

Absolutely not!  All you care about is what you look like, and more specifically what you look like naked while standing in front of a full-length mirror.

The second rule that should be smashed to smithereens is cardio is the best way to lose weight and get in shape.

It’s not.

The way most ladies do cardio takes too long and is incredibly boring plus your body gets used to it quickly and stops making progress.

If burning calories is the way you mark a good workout, you should know that you can burn just as many calories with a good resistance training workout as you can with cardio.  If it’s an awesome resistance training workout, you’ll burn a ton of calories during the workout AND for hours after you’ve completed the workout.

The catch is that you have to have the right program and you have to work the workout.  You can’t go through the motions and expect to see results.

Please don’t misunderstand.  Cardio can work and if you’d like to run for over an hour a day, be my guest.  But I’d rather give you a way to burn just as much, if not more fat in a fraction of the time and save your joints in the process.

The final rule to smash is resting.  I’m not a big fan of resting if your goal is weight loss.

This rule has always seemed a bit silly to me.  Do an exercise, then rest.  Do it again, then rest, etc.

Boring!

Let’s say I give you 3 exercises – Push-ups, Lunges and Burpees.  Do them one after the other for 5-7 minutes.  Then pick another group of 3 “big” exercises and repeat.

You’ve worked your entire body, you’re sweating and breathing heavy (just like cardio) and you’ll feel awesome.

It’s not as boring and you’ll be done much quicker.

See, it’s okay to break some rules of weight loss.  As a matter of fact, I highly encourage it!

If you have any questions or comments, let me know!

Talk to you soon,

Ed

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Categories : Boot Camp