Get In Shape, Football-Coach Style

I want to lower my cholesterol, decrease the size of my spare-tire mid-section, have more energy and…

I want this guy training me!

Jim Massaro—one of Nyack High School's football coaches who also runs Advanced Body Personal & Athletic Training Center at 174 Main Street—is gearing up for Nyack's first fall boot camp.

He also has a message for you: start moving!

Okay, forgive the exclamations points—Massaro isn't a yeller like those boot camp coaches on television ("There's no screaming," he promises). As a matter of fact, he's offering his first weight loss Autumn Boot Camp where the focus is "to get the group moving together," minus the theatrics. The program commences Sept. 13.

Your job? Just do it.

"There's a desire not to do it," Massaro said, explaining the overwhelming discomfort we feel when dragging ourselves out of bed at dawn for a workout. "[But] you have to do it."

The typical regimen at Advanced Body Personal & Athletic Training Center? The Warrior Workout. There's a ten minute treadmill walk or run to pre-fatigue the body, and then controlled fatigue strength training where all the body parts are used (it taps into the reserve fat energy). All in all, it's ten exercises to really get you healthy.     

Massaro is no neophyte. He's been in business in Nyack since 1996—and regardless age, size and ability, if you've got a pulse, he can help you. Massaro is currently the head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Nyack High School football and girls lacrosse teams, but he shares his knowledge and technique with all students.

But there's more. And to avoid any unsightly run-on sentences, I think I'll communicate the rest of his accolades in list form:

• Widely published fitness author and public speaker
• Featured in training DVDs
• Certified as a specialist in sports conditioning
• Pilates instructor
• World-power lifting champion
• Trained professional football quarterbacks like the New York Giants Eli Manning
• Currently training six college athletes

Phew. Okay, what hasn't he done? Well, this Autumn Boot Camp is a new program (and, he hopes, ongoing program). Created for athletes of all ages and ability, attendees will lose weight and simultaneously build endurance. Massaro intends it to become a community staple.

So come along for the ride—but be prepared to gallop some.     

"We'll start out with the basics to build a foundation," Massaro said. "Then you can move on to the advanced camp."

Overall, the method is one focusing on body movements and slow progression. There's even reinforcement when leaving the building.

"I give [clients] something to do when not here, something at home that is more movement than muscular," Massaro said.

Massaro is quick to point out that those exercising will be grueling at first.

"The first week you will be sore, the second week, tired," he said. "By the third week, you'll be feeling great."

It's a known and proven fact that exercise helps dissolve stress, helps fight disease like osteoporosis and gives you energy, he added. You'll feel and look better.

The Autumn Boot Camp is $225 for unlimited classes, and there is a 20 percent discount if you register by Sept. 13. T45-minute classes will be held at 6:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. There is a 10-person limit for the initial boot camp; first come, first serve.

Massaro says to first contact your physician before enrolling. For more information, call (845) 358-5187, or e-mail at jim@coachjimmassaro.com.