Ben Dearman

Welcome to BenDearman.com

December 13th, 2007 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

PBA

October 7th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

Here’s a change

Ice Day! Wow…pretty crazy out there. Closed 3-07-11.

March 7th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

vreeland-kdr-heart-lecture-2-24-111

Click on the link above to read about the upcoming lecture with The Vreeland Clinic.  Super exciting!

February 15th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Lectures |

I love the equipment we have in our gym…love it!  We have all we need to get the best results of any other gym in the Upper Valley.  However, we can also more and better toys.

Hence my wish list!

This isn’t really a true wish list, as in “I wish I had five more facilities” (which I do).

Wait.  That isn’t a good example because I WILL have five more facilities eventually. 

So…another example, I wish I had a cold plunge (basically a tub that you fill with cold water and use to help decrease and eliminate soreness.).  That is a total wish.

The wish list below is more of a Want List…which I call a wish list because it just sounds better then a want list.

Go figure.

Wish List

Bench http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=391&pid=3232 red pad black frame x 2

How can you not want more benches?  This is the same bench we have now, just two more.

Jacobs ladder - http://www.jacobsladderexercise.com/index.html x 1

How can you not instantly fall in love with this piece of equipment!  I was introduced to this piece of equipment when I was with the Rangers.  This thing will blast your heart rate up to 90% of your max within 20 seconds of getting on it.  And the great thing is that it used no electricity!  The Jacobs ladder is such an amazing piece of equipment for intervals and specifically for decreasing the force on your joints.

Aerodyne bike - http://www.performbetter.com/detail.aspx_Q_ID_E_4939_A_CategoryID_E_414 x 2

The aerodyne bike is the most utilized piece of interval equipment in our business.  Low impact, full body and there is a fan on it!  And did I mention you don’t have to plug it in?  Yep…self powered.

Free Motion Dual Cable Cross - http://www.performbetter.com/detail.aspx_Q_ID_E_5207_A_CategoryID_E_467 x 2

I love using the bands the way that we do.  However, nothing beats being able to adjust your weight and see the increases in poundage. 

Versa Climber - http://www.versaclimber.com/VC_SM.htm

Guess what….self powered!  And again a great piece of full body interval machine.  This thing is awesome for anyone that does any kind of rock climbing.  And when I have access to it, this is my go to piece of equipment for people that have back issues due to the limit amount of spinal flexion and load.

My wish list…read it and enjoy!

January 25th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Rants |

Snow Day

We will be closing at noon today. Snow day!

January 18th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

Snow Day…kind of

Tommorrow we will be closed in the AM but will possibly open in the PM.  Check back for more info…or just cruise the site and read as much as you can.

Soak it all in….yes…that’s nice.  You like that…read….learn….love and live.

January 11th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

Why should you do the Tough Mudder?

Have you seen this?
http://toughmudder.com/events/new-england/
or
http://toughmudder.com/events/new-england/mount-snow-course-map-2011/

Why on earth would anyone want to do this?

This is from their website:
The Tough Mudder series was created because there is not an event in America that tests toughness, fitness, strength, stamina and mental grit all in one place and all in one day. Sure, there are a few that will test these things – for thousands of dollars and a week of your life. But in one day in one location? We don’t think so. Other mud runs like the Muddy Buddy series? Forget it – unless you want to run alongside your 60-year-old grandmother (NOTE FROM BEN: THERE ARE ACTUALLY 60 YEAR OLD GRANDMOTHERS THAT DO THIS RACE.  NOT A LOT, BUT SOME.) Tough Mudder is a truly exceptional event for truly exceptional people. Fair weather runners should stay at home.

FACT – Marathon running is simply boring. And the only thing more boring than doing a marathon is watching a marathon. Road-running may give you a healthy set of lungs, but will leave you with as much upper body strength as Keira Knightley. At Tough Mudder, we want to test your all-around mettle, not just your ability to run in a straight line, on your own, for hours on end, getting bored out of your mind.
Tough Mudder is also about experiencing a true sense of camaraderie that, sadly, is rarely seen outside of the military these days. To get over some of our obstacles you will need the help of others – they are simply too much for one man to tackle alone. Tough Mudders, unlike some other types of endurance runners, are team players; they help out other Tough Mudders. We want everyone to compete, but being a Tough Mudder is also about making sure no man is left behind, not worrying about your finish time.
 
We think it is important that all Tough Mudders uphold the ideals and philosophy behind Tough Mudder and share a common attitude to teamwork and camaraderie. For this reason, we make all participants recite it together when they are on the start line. This is something very important to us, so if you want be a Mudder you have to accept the principles of the Mudder.

The Pledge:
As a Tough Mudder I pledge that…
* I understand that Tough Mudder is not a race but a challenge.
* I put teamwork and camaraderie before my course time.
* I do not whine – kids whine.
* I help my fellow Mudders complete the course.
* I overcome all fears.

HOW BADASS IS THAT SHIT! 

The first line of the pledge says it all.
It is a challenge.  A challenge that lasts for approximately 3 hours. 

Poop, that’s a hell of a challenge.

You know what else is a challenge?  Weight loss. 
Long term weight loss is harder then any challenge you could ever compete in because it is for life.  Weight loss isn’t an event, it is a battle you will face for the rest of your life.
If you can compete for 3 hours of hell on a wonderful mountain surrounded by people that just want to see you succed then you should have no problem saying no to that second serving of carrot cake.

Put simply, you should do this event because it will help you lose weight by giving you something to train for.  Along with the ability to say…yeah I did something that very few people have ever done…
I pushed myself, questioned my abilities and proved that I can do anything I put my mind too.

What seems like it would be more enjoyable:

January 6th, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Uncategorized |

The gym as a place of change.

The gym as a place of change.

Change your mind, change your body.

A lot of people view the gym as a “place” where they go to either lose weight, gain muscle or fix an ailment.

The gym is all of that and more.

The toughest aspect of getting results with anyone is changing their mind.  That means changing their beliefs, attitudes, habits and overall mentality.  Before any meaningful results are attained change must happen.

The gym is not a “place” that you go to work out any more than a church is a place you go to worship.  People go to church to be around like minded individuals who all believe in a common theme and to attempt to illicit a change in their attitudes, i.e. be better than who they are right now.

The gym is a place that you go to change what needs to change in order for you to reach the results you want to attain.  The gym is a place you go to in order to better yourself.  You should strive to lift more weight and/or to do more work in the same amount or less time than your last work out.  You should always try and push yourself in the gym. 

Because quite simply, if you cannot push yourself in the gym and you cannot use the gym or view the gym as a catalyst for change then you will never be able to push yourself away from the dinner table, or push that extra serving of garlic french fries away or force yourself to drink a little bit more water because you know that ice cold water raises metabolism by 24% after you drink it.

If you do not embrace the gym as a place for change, you will never embrace change in your body and welcome it into your soul. 

Remember:

The discomfort of exercise releases the discomfort of stress.

The intensity of exercise releases the intensity of stress.

The focus required for proper nutrition choices helps to reinforce the focus needed to maintain your results.

Results are a culmination of intensity in the gym and focus on your diet. 

And that intensity and focus require you to CHANGE your BELIEFS.

January 3rd, 2011 Posted by bendearman | Rants |

Pulls my ears

Pulls my ears

NOTE: I hate my ears pulled.  I have had cauliflower ear multiple times and it just really sucks.  It sucks to have it and it sucks to get it drained.

Something that really pulls my ears is when people come in and tell me their nutrition is fine because “I took nutrition in college.” 

Really.

So you took one class or maybe even a semester of nutrition classes and you dub yourself as knowing enough about nutrition that you don’t need someone else to go over it with you.

Hmmm…you can get a doctorate in nutrition which is approximately 8 years of school.  There is enough information to learn about food and nutrition to warrant 8 years of schooling and you’re going to tell me that you got it all down with your “Intro to Nutrition 101” class.

It is an insult to anyone that seriously looks at how the body works as it relates to nutrition for someone outside that field to say “I took some classes in school so I am good on my diet.”  You might know what protein is (Did you know that protein is one of the most metabolically active nutrients and that your body will typically not store excess protein as fat or that protein is a high acidic food and that it raises PH levels in the body which have to be buffered down by way of extra veggies?) or that it has 4 calories per gram.

 You might know what fat is (Did you know that fat is an essential nutrient for proper brain development as well as proper hormone production?  Did you also know that a high fat diet has a higher success rate then a high carb diet?) and that it contains 9 calories per gram.

I am sure you went over what a carb is (did you know that carbs are the only nutrient that we do not need to get externally in our diet and that our body will make carbs from protein and fat?  Did you also know that processed carbs cause your body to retain water and increase the inflammatory enzymes in your body?) and that it contains 4 calories per gram.

How about alcohol? (7 calories per gram, your body treats it like a poison and therefore increases your metabolism when small amounts of alcohol are present.)

What about what a “pro” and “anti” inflammatory diet is?

Do you know what ORAC is? (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity, i.e. the degree that a food helps fight oxidization)

Do you know what antioxidants are and what they do in the body or why they are important?

No.  You probably don’t, so you should probably shut up about the whole “I took a nutrition class in college”.  I took a class FOR MY MAJOR OF EXERCISE SCIENCE.  Actually I took three classes, nutrition and sports, intro to nutrition and aging and nutrition.  I didn’t take a nutrition class to fill an elective.  I took it because I had too.

December 9th, 2010 Posted by bendearman | Nutrition |