Cooler Boot Camp Mornings /  by Stephen Cooper

Sunnier boot camp mornings

Sunnier boot camp mornings

If you splurged over the weekend, it's time to get back on track.  A good morning ritual is to drink a greens or vegetable drink.  I go for convenience, and the one I use you can get from Whole Foods, or online at Amazon.  Garden of Life Super Foods

 Today's Boot Camp Workout

Equipment needed: Kettlebell or dumbbell, timer

Warm up  ( 1 min )

1.  4 point prone shoulder thread through

2.  Easy jumping jacks

3.  High knee skips (in place or moving) 

4.  Inchworm walk out

5.  Reverse lunge

Work  ( 1min 30 sec )

6.  Alternate, 12x push ups with 8x renegade KB row,  Advanced= elevated push up 

7.  Squat hold shoulder press 15x with 8x standing KB row

8.  KB front squat 20x with 20 sec. plank hold

9.  KB deadlift 10x with 5, 10 second sprints

10.  Split jumps 8x with 12x push ups

11.  Pull up max with 12x squat jumps

12.  10x push ups with 10x reverse lunge

Switch to 30 sec each exercise, rest as little as possible between sets, complete 3 full sets

13.  Jumping jacks

14.  KB swings

15.  Bird dog push ups

------------------------------------- 

Still 30 sec

16.  Side shuffle

17.  Plank hold 30 sec

18.  KB pullover

------------------------------------- 

19.  KB swings

20.  RKC plank

21.  Bicycle crunch

Rest and stretch as necessary

 

Calendar of Events

New Camp begins Nov 1. 

Personalized Support For Active Boot Campers /  by Stephen Cooper

Know that I am here for your success.

The more specific you can be with your goal, the better I can help.

One of the best ways that I've found that can really make a difference is if you email me pictures of your meals. It's quite simple.  Snap a pic of your food, let me know what it is, or snap a pic of the food/meal label.  (Make sure that I can read the serving size and the label with protein, carbs, and fats.

Both of us will quickly see if you are on track, or if you may need some modifications.

Once a day email me how many hours you slept, and if you did any outside exercise (other than boot camp).  If you need suggestions for workouts on your off days, please let me know.

I can only let you know that I am here and available for you, but only you can follow through.  Do it if you want results.

P.S.  Note, if you aren't an active boot camp client, but would like to have this type of coaching and support available to you, let me know and we can arrange something.

 

 

New October Camp Begins Tonight /  by Stephen Cooper

"I Have Lost 28-29 Pounds! Woo hoo! Since July 13 When I Started Boot Camp."

This client testimonial (from this morning) comes from a very hard working and determined client...and yes it's true.

Commitment to eating well, training hard, yet smart, and getting sufficient sleep and recovery works. Shortcuts, pills, fads, and procrastinating don't.

If you'd like to join our group who are committed to creating these type of life long habits and results, then your chance begins tonight.

Our new Tuesday and Thursday group begins tonight and has 10 classes.  The price is $157.  

Tues and Thur class meets @ 6pm - 6:45pm

The Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes begin tomorrow and there are 13 classes in October. The price is $177.

MWF classes meet either @ 5:45am-6:30am, or in the evening @6pm-6:45pm

Decide, and do something for your better health today.

Running Group Forming to Prepare for the Christmas Run /  by Stephen Cooper

One of our awesome boot camp clients Zendi, is organizing and leading a running group in order to prepare the the 5k or 10K Christmas run which is held December 7 in Santa Monica.

Training runs will meet MWF after boot camp 6:45 pm, and will begin September 23.

Details about the run and registration information can be found at http://christmasrun.com/

Email me if you have any questions.

Something special for those who make it to camp. /  by Stephen Cooper

I've been thinking of a way to reward those who show up and make it to camp.

Many things come up as a reason to miss a class, I understand...but quite often clients miss because of less important reasons.

For those who do make it, I'm going to start sending out a little special note (via email, hopefully by noon) whereby I'll include a recipe, a workout tip, maybe a discount on something, and some of my more personal thoughts on exercise and the fitness industry.  I really want to reward those who wake up, get out of bed, set their clothes aside, and block out the time to make it to class.

For those who miss a class, no hard feelings.

 

Ellen /  by Stephen Cooper

ES Front After Paleo Challenge.jpg

Hi Coop,

The Paleo challenge was great for me personally overall. It was difficult at times, but isn't life? I think there were two main cravings I had: salami and soy-marinated meats. I managed to stay away from salami but the meats I just had to have. Honestly it wasn't even as good as I remembered so it was kind of a pain because I felt like the cheat wasn't even worth it at times. Other than that, baked goods didn't bother me too much. I think sometimes my problem is not being able to just eat one bite of a cake. But if I don't even eat it to begin with - no problems there.  

One major challenge for me was how people responded to me not being able to try something they were eating, or what they wanted to eat. That was probably the most frustrating part. I hate cooking rice for my boyfriend and not even taking a bite. I also hated it when he would order my favorite pasta while I chomped on salad right next to it. I eventually figured out that if I just made yummy foods, he would eat it without knowing what it is.  Now he wants coconut flour pancakes every weekend. I also hated my coworker that would say "JUST EAT IT" when I told her I didn't want to try what she made. My friends were annoyed at how boring some of the restaurants I picked out and they just decided to not eat out with me at all.  But eventually with that frustration, it actually made me stick to the diet even more. Instead of eating out, I'd offer to make them dinner. Plus I felt and looked great..and I know I didn't get there by eating french fries all day.  I did lean on a few people that loved health and fitness as much as I do and they both really supported me through encouragement. I will try to keep up the diet with a couple of modifications and cheat day once a week after this challenge. As far as others are concerned, I think I will just blame it on allergies instead of explaining why I'm being healthy.

Diet and exercise was easy to track and I did really well overall. I managed to only miss 1 day of any exercise because I was sick. Since I have puppies, even on the non-gym days I would at least walk them for 45 minutes.  The hardest part was sleep. I did really for the first 4 weeks and was consistently 15-30 minutes late for work.  After that I started going back to 6-7 hours just to get to work on time and I could tell I wanted to work out less because I was still tired. The last week was the worst, hardly any sleep and I'm cranky and tired all the time.  Sleep is important and for someone like me that always have things going on in the evening or weekends, I need to make a solid effort to get to bed since I have to be up so early. 

Overall I lost about 6 pounds. Number-wise it isn't very much and I would be lying to say that it isn't frustrating...but I'm trying really hard to not focus on it because I look and feel great. I just know that someone with more weight to lose will probably smoke me in that area.  My goal was to have a 2 pack, and right now it is looking pretty good (with proper lighting).  I know what my problem areas are and will continue to work on it through continuing my own version of the challenge. I did not take measurements but I know for sure my clothes are fitting better.

This challenge was an amazing experience and I can't wait to incorporate it with the rest of my life. I believe in that this is what works for me.  I can eat healthy things, ingredients I can pronounce and I don't have to worry too much about calories counting and portion control. If I'm hungry I just snack away on natural foods.  I even picked up a couple books on Paleo.  Mainly to understand it more but also to have a better response when people ask, "why can't you have beans?"

Thank you for this wonderful experience...and I'll be up for it the next time around, too!

Ellen Sue

No Classes on Labor Day, But Here's a Boot Camp Workout For You /  by Stephen Cooper

Warm up (60 sec.)
toe touches
shallow jumping jacks (meaning in a squat like position)
squats
cross taps (standing, right elbow crosses and touches left knee, and opp sides)
high knees, jog in place
Work (60 sec.)
walking lunges with KB if available
side lunge with KB
carioca jog
push up, then jump legs open/close, then push up
squat jump, then two "bounces" on the balls of your feet
rest
straight leg crunch
jumping jack
on your back, crunch up like you are climbing a rope...grab up 1, 2,3...each time reaching higher up the rope
hold plank
rest
backwards jog, heels to butt
bunny hops
flutter kicks (on back, straight legs, small kicks)
still on back, straight legs, small circles to the right one min, then left one min
crunches, up quick, down slow to the count of 5
stretches and cool down as necessary
Let me know if you have any questions.

 

Hot Summer Boot Camp Begins July 1 /  by Stephen Cooper

Just a quick reminder to let you know that our next boot camp class starts on July 1 for the Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes and July 2 for the Tu Thur classes.

Prices are $187 for all 14 classes in July, or $127 for 8 classes.

Times are 5:45a - 6:30a MWF, 6-6:45p MWF evenings, and 6-6:45 Tu and Thur evenings.

 

More About Habits /  by Stephen Cooper

A client asked more about the Lift app and how I use it...so here is a quick response.

What I like to do is "move" the habits in an order that makes sense to me.

On my personal list I list them according to how I will probably check them off during the day...like....
  • Sleep 8hrs
  • Floss
  • Eat 2 fruit
Make sense?
My Lift App ListThe nice thing is that you can easily see which have been done, and which need completeing.
You can easily see how you did for the week or month, or more...for each of your habits.

 

As Seth Godin says about habits,

"Habits are great when they help us get what we want. Bad habits, on the other hand, are bad because the shortcut that satisfies us in the moment gets in the way of our long term goals."

Here's a link to an audio interview with Lift Co-founder Tony Stubblebine.

Can You Transform Your Body in Four Weeks? /  by Stephen Cooper

I recently received this text from a client.  "How do you think I can transform my body in 4 weeks?"

Transform, I'm not so sure...but I will give you my best suggestions to make the biggest improvement that you possibly can in 4 weeks.

 

  1. Get enough sleep.  Make sleep a priority.  For most this will mean 7-9 hours.  Use a habit tracker to monitor your hours slept.
  2. Don't drink any alcohol.  
  3. No sugar, and very limited fruit.  I would avoid all fruit for 4 weeks, but your second best option might be to have a little fruit right after your workout.
  4. Eat protein at every meal.
  5. Eat as many vegetables as you like.
  6. Stay away from any simple carbs.  This includes any junk food, chips, fast food, bread, etc..
  7. Train first thing in the morning before eating.  Have some coffee or tea, then do some wind sprints, or hill climbs.
  8. Do some type of strength workout during the day.  Use heavy weights and good form.

 

I may add some more tips if they come to me.

How about you?  Do you have any tips to add?

Updated:

9.  Drink plenty of water.

 

Join Me on Lift For Starting and Maintaining Healthy Habits /  by Stephen Cooper

This week I’ve partnered with the habit-building app Lift, which is available as an iPhone app and also on the Internet (if you join the Boot Camp Pasadena Group), to help you get started and maintain healthy habits.

I've been using this app for quite awhile and it is definitely one of my favorites on the iPhone.  

Keeping track makes it much easier to stick to your goals.

I’ve created a special Boot Camp Pasadena group of habits on the Lift app for those looking for my top habit suggestions.

I hope that you join me on Lift, as it’s a great way for building a healthy lifestyle. 

Let me know how it goes, and if you have any questions.

See you there.

*Update

Here are the 7 habits that I have added so far.

Sleep at Least 7-8 Hours Each Night

Boot Camp or Other Exercise

No Added Sugar

No Wheat

Paleo/Foodist Diet 90% of The Time

Rest, Stretch, Recovery

Measure Weight, Body Fat, and Total Inches 1x a Week

New Session Begins The First Week of June /  by Stephen Cooper

See Boot Camp Can Even Be FunUnlike regular gyms that could care less and would actually probably prefer that you don't show up, I do want you to make it to each and every class.  For this upcoming boot camp, I'm giving you even more incentive to show up and make every class...$$.

Details on these discounts are available to my email subscribers only.  To subscribe, click here.

As a reminder, the classes meet:

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5:45 am - 6:30 am, or 6 pm - 6:45

or

Tuesday and Thursday only in the evening from 6 pm - 6:45 pm.

If you need to you can mix and match the days and times.

Cost for the June Camp: $165 for 3x a week (12 classes)

                                     $120 for 2x a week (8 classes)

See if that seems like a deal to you, and if it will work with your schedule.  If so, drop me an email so I can save you a spot.

Be The Best You /  by Stephen Cooper

Yesterday I spent some of my day watching the live awards broadcast of The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants.  I find it fascinating and very inspiring to see how the best of the best do what they do.

Their passion for perfecting and refining their food and service is something that I can never get enough of.

So how does this relate to my training, and your fat loss?  Well, my passion is helping you reach your goals.  I'm not successful unless I get you to your goal.

I'm constantly reading and learning what works and what is pure garbage.  Ideas from the past, plus new studies blend together to provide you with an excellent blueprint on how to lose fat...but, you've got to get in to action.

We put off taking care of ourselves till it is too late.  We gain another 10 pounds which makes us even more depressed and unlikely to get on track.  Don't do this to yourself.  Take action today.

I'd love to help if I can.

My current options are my boot camp classes, which begin May 1, and May 2, plus I offer online coaching via email.  If you'd like more information, have questions, or would like to sign up for either program please email me, stephen@bootcamppasadena.com

Be the best you can be.  For yourself, and your family.

Chocolate Chili /  by Stephen Cooper

Chocolate Chili (Recipe from Well Fed)

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 medium onions, diced (about 2 cups)
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced (about 4 tsp)
  • 2 pounds ground beef
  • 1 tsp dried oregano leaves
  • 2 Tbsp chili powder
  • 2 Tbsp ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
  • 1 can (14.5 ounces) fire-roasted, chopped tomatoes
  • 1 can (14.5 ounces) beef broth
  • 1 cup water

Prepare

  1. Heat a large deep pot over medium-high heat, then add the coconut oil. When the oil is melted, add onions, stir with a wooden spoon and cook until they’re translucent, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and as soon as it’s fragrant, about 30 seconds, crumble the ground meat into the pan with your hands, mixing with a wooden spoon to combine. Continue to cook the meat, stirring often, until it’s no longer pink.
  2. In a small bowl, crush the oregano between your palms to release its flavor, then add the chili powder, cumin, cocoa, allspice, and salt. Combine with a fork, then add to the pot, stirring like you mean it. Add tomato paste and stir until combined, about 2 minutes.
  3. Add the tomatoes with their juice, beef broth and water to the pot. Stir well. bring to a boil then reduce the heat so the chili enjoys a gentle simmer. Simmer uncovered for at least 2 hours. Do not skimp on the simmer.

I ate this last night, really yummy.

What Meal Plan Should I Follow While Attending Boot Camp? /  by Stephen Cooper

In case you missed me dancing...Probably one of the most often asked questions is "What meal plan should I follow while attending boot camp?" 

I just received the question last night via email, so I'll share my response here. 

A long time ago body builders really nailed what it takes to get lean.  Whole foods, paying particular attention to proteins, vegetables, a tiny amount of fruit (some people can tolerate more than others), and some healthy fats like olive oil.  

Stay away from sugars, simple carbs, and of course junk food. 

I could really complicate things and go on an on, but what I've said is what works without any fluff. 

I used to believe in the theory of eating 5 small meals per day, but I don't believe that is a must.  If you feel OK go ahead and have some coffee, maybe a little bit of protein before your workout...and then plan on eating between 1-8 PM.  Plan on a high quality meal for dinner...or for lunch and dinner.

Eat the highest quality food that you can afford, such as grass fed beef, and organic produce when possible. 

Include a cheat meal once a week just to stay happy, and to also wake up your metabolism.

Simple, but not always easy.

Three Top Tips To Getting The Most From Boot Camp /  by Stephen Cooper

Morning Exercise HabitEach and every boot camp I try to improve my coaching and teaching.  I am always looking for ways increase or speed up ways for you to reach your goals.

Do you want to know my top three tips to getting the best results from your boot camp experience?  Here they are:

1.  Throw out the junk food

Enjoy one last splurge or cheat meal this weekend, and then get rid of the junk food. Get it out of the house. Trust me...if it's in the house, you'll eat it.  Please don't give me the excuse that it's there for your spouse or kids, they don't need it either.

Once the junk food is out of the house, get to the store and buy healthy staple foods. Lean proteins, fish, vegetables, fruit, and some healthy oils like olive oil.  There is no space on this list for sugars, bread, candy, soda, chips, or most of the other junk you can think of.

2.  Put you in your schedule

Dedicating 45 minutes to your health 2-3 times a week with boot camp is the minimum.  Mark these days and times in your calendar, and don't let anyone or anything bump you.  As your trainer, I only have limited face to face time with you, so please don't skip a workout.

I encourage you to stick to your workout days and times.  Many studies have shown that if you stick to a certain day/time your results will be way better than haphazardly trying to fit in exercise time.

If you do have to miss a class, please email me and I can give you an "at home" workout to do.  You are not off the hook.

3. Create new habits

There are various ideas on which is better, some say master one habit before moving on, others say to jump in and work on a few at a time.

The habits that I am going to ask you to master are.

 

  1. Get at least 8 hours of sleep a night.  Create a cool and dark setting, in which to sleep.  Power down from the electronics, and make sleep a priority.  Getting good quality sleep is critical to fat loss and recovery.  If you don't pay attention to this, I can guarantee that you will suffer, and your training will too.  Do not take this lightly.
  2. Eat whole foods.  Things like protein, vegetables, a little fruit, and some healthy fats, every day.  Don't stress on the specific calorie count, just make it a habit to stick to the basics.  The farther you stray from these...the longer and harder it will be for you to lose fat.
  3. Train.  Yep, show up to work out.  Come to class prepared to give it your 100%.  Clear your mind of work and other responsibilities...this is your time, so make it count.

 

Conclusion

I know that there are a million other things to think about when it comes to losing fat, but don't get distracted. Don't be like the dog chasing it's tail around and around in circles.

Master these basics.  Think of professional athletes.  Their focus and repetition of the fundamentals is what makes them the best in the world.

For those of you who have been in my boot camps, do you have any other "top tips" to help your fellow boot campers?