Mars just joined our 6am bootcamp this month and she has quickly become one of our morning favorites! She is often heard mumbling obscenities under her breath which provide us with essential comic relief in the darkness of dawn.

Thursday night’s crew gets a head start on Saturday morning’s workout.

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Power Wheel Hip Bridge

Human Wheelbarrow

Weighted Leg Raise

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Gordon is a busy architect who has faced the evening commute from Palo Alto three times per week to train at the Ice Chamber since July 2005. Many will say his claim to fame is his incredible weight loss story, but for someone who had never exercised a day in his life, “Gordino” is also known for having great perseverance and a positive attitude. On his first day at the IC, Gordon couldn’t complete half of his workout. A similar scenario continued for weeks (the bucket was introduced many times), but he kept coming back for more. Today, Gordon can rep multiple pull-ups, perform perfect squats, and lift free weights with impeccable technique. Also worth noting is that Gordon beat his personal bar dip record on Monday!

We are so lucky to have Gordino on the Ice Chamber team. He is another great inspiration to us all.

*Clasp your hands together in the prayer position like Eric if you want optimal results.

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Here are Doug’s shocking before and after photos! …20lbs. later, those shorts would fall off him today and instead of a gut, he now has the abs (and buns) of steel he always dreamed of, but never thought were possible. We can’t help but wonder though, where did that old chin go?

Click here to read about his incredible journey toward better health.

Keep up the great work Dougie-Doug!

Since before & after photos are so compelling, we decided to visit the Ice Chamber photo archives to peruse some of your amazing transformations.

We’re kicking off this next series of extreme makeover highlights with Sara “Bear-Bear” Nelson for two reasons. When we last checked in on her, she was the female record holder at the IC for the 500 meter row, but she has since become the female record holder in three rowing events: the 200, 500, and 1000 meter race! Bear has also lost an additional 10lbs. since our last post (now close to 30lbs. total).

This photo of Sara was taken in May 2005.

Below is a photo taken of Sara on December 2, 2006.

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Truly inspiring!

The comical Alex Patanjo, a special effects designer at Industrial Light & Magic, pulls the disappearing act in Morning Bootcamp to commence work on the next installment of Pirates of the Caribbean (laboring 80 hours per week!).

However, his wonderful wife Susie picks up his slack by doubling her attendance at the Ice Chamber. She even demos proper lunge mechanics (no camera tricks or effects needed) for Alex so he can practice good form when working out at the ILM gym.

Kat Brown is another Flex Access superstar at the Ice Chamber. Her transformation has been amazing to witness (she once weighed close to 200lbs.). In addition to losing another 20lbs. in recent months, her athletic performance has skyrocketed as a result of her dedication. In fact, she beat her personal pull-up record this morning.

Read her incredible story for more inspiration to keep you motivated toward reaching your fitness goals in 2007!

Every once in awhile it is necessary to visit the dark side of physical training.

Whatever you thought you knew about yourself gets tested as your integrity and mental stamina are pushed well beyond your physical capacity.

Tough love isn’t always pretty in the moment, but we aren’t apologizing for demanding the best out of each one of you.

Everyone was pushed to the limit on Thursday.
We knew you were capable of reaching that next level.

Did you know Mohammed Bilal completed our January Bootcamp series in order to jump start a solid fitness regimen for himself in his local area? It’s still hard to believe he made it to the IC by 6am all the way from Novato! In his words, “I love the Ice Chamber… actually, I’ve been telling everyone about it… your bootcamp has helped to reignite my fitness bug. Thank you so much.”

For those of you who don’t know Mohammed, he is a former MTV Real World guy (Season 3 San Francisco), diversity consultant, musician/poet, and dreamer. Check out MoSpeaks to learn more about his multitude of talents.

It’s an honor to have so many great parents, artists, entrepreneurs, and community folks commute to the IC from other Bay Area counties!