nterview with Bassel El Fakih, owner of Blacksuit EMS studio and member of the Organisation Committee at Beirut Marathon Association, Lebanon.
1. Tell us about yourself, your background and how did you come across EMS fitness?
I went to a gym known as Performance First with a friend to try EMS since, his sister’s husband works there and recommended it. They had wirless systems. Having a sports background with several medical courses related to anatomy, physiotherapy, physical injuries, nutrition, etc. I realized that EMS is a great tool not only for working out, but to do rehab as well. I then decided to stick to a package in order to do EMS once a week along my gym routine and see where it takes me.
2. While doing research on the Internet about EMS fitness and its results, you will find many different cases with tangible results. What were the most interesting cases in your professional EMS trainer career?
The results that you only see online will not be as convincing as when you see them with your own eyes and start to believe more and more in EMS. Actually, the system works way better than expected, to the extent that you may start calling it your Coach, Doctor or Miracle solution for a healthy lifestyle. There are so many cases such as the following and more:
A – One lady (Yvonne L.) came for weight loss and muscle tightening. She had a problem with severe migraine. She used to have it 3 times a week with an after effect. Now she gets migraine once a week or once every 2 weeks. That’s not just one case but the third similar case we encountered.
B – Another girl was a smoker. She managed to quit smoking like five others doing EMS with both cardio and electrical mode. She reached a state tonight where she managed to do a 1,5-minute speed 12 run on a treadmill, 5 times within the 20 minutes with 80% cardio power. This helped her improve her breathing and performance. She used to get tired even after 3km distance. Now she hikes for 8 hours straight and still feeling good. EMS even helped her previous injury to heal, allowing her to squat without any problem after 2 years of suffering, without being able to go lower than 90 degrees squat. This girl had issues for over 2 years with her knee and a doctor in France told her she won’t recover. After the very first EMS session, she felt a difference and now she is fully recovered.
C – Three other cases needed surgery due to tendonitis or rotational calf issues. Now they no longer need surgery and improved their pain by 70% after only 8 to 14 sessions in some cases.
D – One girl with a diet managed to lose 17 kg within 33 sessions, twice a week of cardiovascular mode with a bit of electrical, which prevented to have her skin loose after losing this much weight.
E – Another guy dropped from 134 kg to 112 kg within 44 sessions without even dieting. This system forces your body to break down the fat whether you like it or not. The best part is that as you lose weight, you also gain shape.
3. Under your professional supervision, Justfit EMS fitness is becoming more and more popular in your country. What is your secret recipe?
When you give special offers and give clients more time than usual depending on how often they train a week, they start to see results and seeing is believing. Because of this, results are so real and so good that I can guarantee to clients that if they have no results within the first 6 sessions, then everything else is on me until they get some results.Many of them see results after the first session. You can trust Justfit system so much that it is easy to guarantee and that is what people want. Confidence and making sure you explain them in detail what this system does in terms of rehabilitation, weight loss and muscle gain. One of the issues that people don’t tend to understand is that the value of EMS comes from various points. They don’t explain EMS theory, sessions are charged at a high rate and only for 20 minutes etc. EMS session in cardio mode as well and can make one lose weight quickly and shape up the body. Lower prices, more time and people will understand it more – this is how we spread the word.
4. Many professional athletes use different EMS technologies to enhance their performance. What is your opinion on integrating full-body EMS training into athletes’ training protocol? How can an athlete benefit the most?
Athletes can benefit a lot from EMS since it improves their endurance and I have had the privilege to do this test with one lady whose personal best for a 5km race was 24 minutes. After training with EMS, she managed to improve her time by 3 minutes and not just a few seconds. It is known worldwide that even Bruce Lee and Mohamad Ali did EMS such as many other athletes, since EMS not only helps them perform better but is also injury -free.
5. As an active member of the Beirut Marathon Organisation Team tell us about the preparations for the next marathon in November this year. Who are the attendees and how do runners prepare? What new tools are you providing to get better results?
We have several excellent athletes that participate in the marathon and I have proposed the EMS system as a bonus to their preparation in order to see how amazing this system is and how much it can help them break their own personal best. I recently started to introduce Justfit EMS in the South of the country too. Such events will also make people realize how effective EMS is.
6. How do you see the future of EMS fitness? How can you involve more athletes to enjoy its benefits and reach their goals?
EMS is going to grow more and more. Similarly to the concept of a gym which people have gotten used to, EMS can be considered as a concept as well since it’s not only a training tool, but it also helps you maintain your results on the long run. It supports those who want to lose weight without surgery or steroids. It helps athletes become better and make them understand the true nature of training at high altitudes even without having to train at high altitudes. No matter what I say, the system is more than one can ever imagine.