Imagine fitness in the future. You strap on a full body suit – a cross between motocross and scuba gear — equipped with electronic stimulation pads that pulsate and zap your muscles while you workout. Standing in one of 6 spotlights in a darkened room, you watch a screen with exercises to follow, as house music throbs, and a master trainer wirelessly controls how much electrical stimulation is given to each body part. In 30 minutes, a full body workout is delivered in what would have taken been 3 1/2 hours in the gym. Imagine fitness in the future is now.
Shock Therapy Fitness is the first workout to incorporate EMS training – or Electronic Muscle Stimulation – into a group fitness class. Those who have had physical therapy will be familiar with the “Stim” machine as part of their rehab, and EMS training has been popular in gyms throughout Europe for years. It was a company in Germany, Miha Bodytec, that first developed a full body EMS suit. Shock Therapy Fitness has created their own custom Powersuit™ that safely distributes electrical impulses simultaneously to all the major muscle groups throughout the workout for continuous full body training no matter which exercise is being performed. Over 300 muscle groups are activated in one 30-minute class, with 8 to 10 times more contractions than without EMS.
Two classes are offered at Shock Therapy Fitness, Strength and Metabolism. Both are 30 minutes and limited to just 6 people for the benefit of small group training in a class setting. It is essential you arrive 15 minutes before class where the staff is on hand to get you cinched into the suit. In a short 30-minute workout there is no time to waste. The studio itself looks like a futuristic movie set (remember Gattaca?) with class participants all dressed in stealth black EMS suits and a black base layer underneath that must be worn with the suit. Each student gets their own spot lit space on the floor. It’s sci-fi fitness!
Strengthis a full-body toning workout of traditional upper and lower body moves like squats, lunges, crunches, and curls that are intensified by deep electrical impulses that cause your muscles to continuously contract and release. Metabolism is a fast paced HIIT (High Intensity Interval training) class proven 20% more effective with the addition of EMS. The electronic stim is delivered at a faster frequency and on a more of a surface level than Strength to boost circulation and metabolism, for a calorie burn that promises to last as long as 3 days after the workout. By combining EMS with classic training methods, both classes deliver a total body workout that produces maximum results in a minimum amount of time.
Shock Therapy Fitness was founded by Esra Cavusoglu, Ph.D., an internationally respected psychologist and addiction counselor. Born in Turkey into a family prominent in politics, banking, media, and philanthropy, she does not profess to be a fitness expert, but passionate enthusiast of the technology. She herself found it to deliver such incredible results that she funded and opened Shock Therapy Fitness to share her passion with her fellow New Yorkers. With one studio on the Upper East Side, there are plans to open another in Soho or Flatiron, and hopefully LA after that, financed in a fundraising round.
With so much competition on the boutique fitness scene, Shock Therapy Fitness has found a new way to stand out by delivering an experiential workout with proven results in just 30 minutes. With numerous focus groups, the results of which are available on the website, students have seen a marked reduction of body fat, improved muscle tone, and mood elevation. Clients swear by it, especially those who don’t really like to workout. For those who do, it’s a fun class to add to the rotation. Whether it’s a passing fitness trend or here to stay, Shock Therapy Fitness is definitely a new way to get a super-charged workout!
