You decide!

*Our friend Stanley was kind enough to take this photo of a billboard in the HEV (train station) while in Budapest.

Jen moved to the Bay Area from NYC 16 years ago and has never looked back.  As an accomplished photographer, Jen rarely gets to see herself in the spotlight, but today we are showcasing her fitness with some rockin’ action shots.  After losing 10+ pounds and earning 20+ push-ups (off the knees) at the IC in the past year, she now celebrates her athletic potential with the 10am (and now 9am) cocktail crew.

Even though Jen hates burpees, she is a “fly girl” nonetheless!

Sarah MAC and the Saturday Kettlebell Sport Team are ready to handle any situation at any time.

Eric L. and Ingrid F. rock Core class this evening with little words and lots of action.

“…Hanging over the gym’s only clock in the center of the kettlebell room directly across from four wooden platforms is a banner printed on an old roll of computer paper.  In faded Russian red letters, it reads: I Am Champion.  Fedor pointed to it right away and then brought his index finger to his forehead with more to say about it.  “This is not about arrogance,” Valery began to translate, “This is about using your mind and believing in yourself.  You must be the one to think you are a champion in order to become one,” Fedor wisely advised…” READ MORE

Peter Richards has been steadily losing 2 pounds per week for the past 52 weeks.  That’s over 100 lbs in the last year!  Congratulations Pete!

Fortunately for us, Pete has been kind enough to share his formula for success:

100 lbs. ago

My brother Thom motivated me to join the Ice Chamber. However, it was my brother Mike that may have given me the most motivation. When I signed up for the Ice Chamber in June of 2009 at 319lbs my initial primary goal was to lose weight. When I tried to tell Mike about joining the Ice Chamber he said, “You always get excited about a new way of getting in shape but don’t follow through. Don’t talk to me about it until you have done it for a year.” He was right. I decided to switch my primary goal from losing weight to attending three bootcamp classes a week for a year. Focusing on this goal over an entire year helped me make sure that every change I made was small enough to be sustainable. Those small sustainable changes have added up to 102 lbs lost, a reduction in body fat from 37% to 22% and most importantly the ability to do a pull-up for the first time in my life.

The following are some of the changes I’ve made:

The mind:
I read a book by Judith S. Beck called “The Beck Diet Solution”. The book walks you through a six-week plan that is not based on any specific diet but rather focused on the mental side of weight maintenance. In the end I used many but not all of her cognitive therapy techniques and found them very helpful with just about every aspect of transitioning to a healthier lifestyle.

The calories:
I found a free app for the iphone called Loseit. It helps you log your calories, track your weight and set weight loss goals. You enter your age/sex/height/current weight. You then set a target weight goal and the rate at which you want to lose weight (.5lb increments up to 2 lbs/week). The program tells you how many calories you need to eat to reach that goal. To make the task seem less daunting I set my first goal for 315lbs.After I reached that goal I reset it for 310 and continued at 5lb increments. For me these smaller weight goals provided more motivation and focus because they seemed more conceivable and achievable. In the past year I’ve never gained weight when I’ve accurately logged my calories.

The food:
I’ve radically altered what I eat in the past in an attempt to lose weight. Every time I’m able to keep it up for a period of weeks or even months, but I eventually get burned out and revert to my preferred types and quantities of food. This time, however, having a yearlong goal meant I couldn’t make radical changes in what I was eating. I instead focused on balancing how much of what I prefer to eat (aka portion control) with the number of calories I needed to maintain my weight. For me, eating less quantity of food I truly want to eat is more sustainable than making major changes to what I eat. That being said I’ve made many small healthier choices in my diet.

The exercise:
The Ice Chamber has been key to me balancing my health. By committing to three days a week (m,w,f) I’ve created anchors that hold my week in place physically and mentally. The intensity, variety and team focus of the bootcamp workouts make you think about your health before, during and after the workout. It especially helps with refocusing after the weekend or when you feel like you aren’t making progress. Seeing your body getting stronger is also an incredible motivator.

Today, Pete is flexible, strong, and light on his feet.

As I come to the end of my first year at the Ice Chamber, I’m thankful to Mike and Thom for the motivation. I’m also thankful for the positive environment the Ice Chamber provides. I’m excited about continuing my progress and can’t wait to see what another year will bring.

-Pete

Especially tomorrow.  Come with sunscreen, sunglasses, and a sunhat.  You know what’s in store.

Sandbag “get-ups”  to wall sit.

The Black Sea

“Today, as Surya and I boarded our flight from San Francisco to Amsterdam on our way to the Ukraine for the WKC’s Summer Sport Camp, I felt caught in the middle of a neighbor compatibility test.  Nothing triggers the judgmental nature of humans more than airplanes. We all try to make the experience less painful by compulsively scouring every travel site available for the best possible rates, but then inevitably it’s the seating arrangement, preferably an isle or a window and of course some extra leg room, that either makes or breaks the deal. In Economy, you always pray your neighbor will be skinnier, shorter, and quieter than you…”  READ MORE

Maya and Surya with 15x World Champion Fedor Fuglev

The ladies are back from the World Kettlebell Club’s Ukrainian Sport Camp hosted at the historic training facility of 15x World Champion, Fedor Fuglev (who is 48 years of age by the way, but wait till you see the stuff he does).  With more than 24 hours of travel time and 4 flights to get home, they are a bit jet lagged, but full of immense gratitude for their incredible experience.  Maya and Surya promise to chronicle their most amazing excursion to date on the ICKB site very soon.  Until then, here is a video of their once in a lifetime adventure to the Black Sea.

Best,

Steven