January – April 2008

Greetings all; is it to late to say… “Happy New Year?”  J  I can’t believe how time flies when you are living your legacy.   There is a new feature on my web site.  Instead of photos demonstrating the exercise of the month, there is now a video exercise of the month.  I also want to direct you all to http://www.youtube.com Paul and several CHEK practitioners are spreading the real truth about health through the Internet.  Go to youtube and type in Paul Chek or you can type in my name and view over 80 videos of Paul and several of the CHEK practitioners that have uploaded videos.
I will now attempt to get you all up to date with the last four months of my life.  Here it goes…
January was one of the most amazing months of my life to say the least.   I was in Southern California for almost the entire month at the CHEK Institute.  The first week was for the annual CHEK faculty meeting.   I am officially a CHEK faculty member.  You can check out my profile on the CHEK web site at www.chekinstitute.com under the staff heading.  I am listed right under my friend and colleague Josh Rubin.  He too is a new faculty member and we are both living out our legacies of helping others help themselves become as healthy as possible.  Regarding the faculty meeting. I found it absolutely amazing to be in the same room with such talented individuals from all around the world.  It is a true honor to be teaching with this group of practitioners.
Once the faculty meeting was over, I had several days to relax.  Since I was there for just under a month, I rented a nice condo on the beach where I could relax and spend time with myself.  I needed this down time, because I was about to embark on the highest-level CHEK class --- CHEK Level Four!
CHEK Level Four was 10 days in length.  I had 9 other students in the class with two of them being talented physiotherapists from Denmark.  It was a loving bunch of individuals; we were truly like a family.  Level four is all about helping people heal through metaphysical means as well as Chinese, Taoist and Hindu medicine techniques.  We practiced non-violent communication and Paul taught us his new, simple four-step method that he uses when treating his clients.  Here are two photos of my wonderful new family and the latest and greatest CHEK Level 4’s. 



 The biggest treat was the last two days of class, we had the honor of being present and helping Paul perform three healings on three different clients. 

I must say, it was a bit of a downer to leave my new family, Paul and the Institute, but I had to get back to many, many clients waiting for my return and yes, a bunch of bills! J
While I was in Southern California I started trying my hand with art.  Here are a couple of things that I created while in California.  Artwork is so relaxing it’s actually a form of meditation and it really helps you get out of your left brain which is your analytical side and flow into the right brain, the creative side.  I don’t claim to be Pablo Picasso, but what the heck… it was fun! 

February I spent catching up with all the clients that I could not see during the month of January.  I also began to consult for two country clubs north of Fort Lauderdale for golf fitness programs.  This has kept me very busy to this day.  I truly love working with golf clients.  They are so motivated and driven to improve their bodies to help improve their golf game.   Here is a photo of me lecturing to about 50 golfers from the country club. 

March was another busy month of getting caught up with clients.  I performed another lecture at a different country club north of Fort Lauderdale.  This lecture had approximately 40 in attendance. 

In April I had the privilege of assisting Janet Alexander in the golf biomechanics class in California.  We had twenty great students from all around the country and they all seemed to enjoy the class.  I am presently getting prepared to teach CHEK Exercise coach in New York May 7-11.  I will be back in New York teaching Exercise Coach October 15-19 and then in Miami November 6-10.  I am also assisting with golf biomechanics in Dallas August 14 -20 and again in California October 1-7. 
That is all for now.  I wish you all peace, happiness and health.

October-December 2007

Greetings everyone!  Sorry my Blog is a month late.  However, the last three months have probably been the most influential of my life.  Since I last wrote I have been to NYC twice and Chicago.  Plus I had two of my favorite people in the world at my fitness studio.  Both Paul Chek and John McMullin spent time with me in November and December.

In November I assisted in another CHEK Exercise Coach Class.  This time I taught with Mark Stone from Chicago.  Mark is one of the CHEK Institute’s most prominent instructors, traveling all over the world, easing the burden on Paul Chek himself.  Here is a photo of the class.  The class was taught in Burr Ridge, a suburb of Chicago.

I will be at the CHEK Institute starting January 16th until February 6th.  My time will be divided between the unveiling of the new exercise coach class, faculty meetings and I am taking CHEK Level IV, which is the last CHEK Practitioner level.  It seems like yesterday that I took the first CHEK class that I now teach!

In November, the CHEK Institute held their first ever cruise, out of Fort Lauderdale.  From what I hear, it was a huge success.  After the cruise Paul stayed for a couple of days and I was able to spend some time with him.  Paul, his friend Vidya and several of my colleagues from Miami came to my studio for a spiritual ceremony.  It was an event that I will never forget as long as I am on this earth.  Paul wrote about it on his Blog at www.paulchek.com/Pauls%20Blog/December2007.html Please check it out and many of Paul’s other Blog entries.  Here are some photos of the evening. 

Me with my mandala for the evening

Paul Chek and myself

Paul putting the finishing touches on Vidya’s mandala

My colleague Ximena Gonzalez 

Please check out Ximea’s web site and her new calendar; it is absolutely amazing and very informative too! www.ximenagonzalez.com/english.htm

The week after Paul left, my good friend John McMullin from Journeys of Wisdom was in Fort Lauderdale doing a 3 day work shop at my studio on relationships with self and others and family constellations.  We had over 20 participants.  John is a holistic coach and one of the most beautiful, intuitive people I have met in my life.  I have referred many clients to him and most of his consultations are done over the phone.  Please check out his web site at www.journeysofwisdom.com  

John McMullin talking with the class

John McMullin and I on a cruise in the Caribbean

In December I took a trip to Chicago for the company called Power Plate.  I will be adding a Power Plate to my studio and potentially teaching for the company.  Power Plate uses vibration to train the body.  The research is just coming out and I think it will be a huge success.  Visit Power Plates web site at www.powerplate.com

My last stop in December was New York City to meet with my fried Chris Johnson at NISMAT.  Chris is a fellow physical therapist that treats many orthopedic clients and does research using fine wire electrodes. 

Chris Johnson and myself at NISMAT

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and I wish everyone a healthy and happy new year.

Yours in health and fitness,

Dan Hellman

August/September 2007

Greetings everyone!  Sorry I have not been in contact with you all in a while.  The last time I wrote I was vacationing in beautiful Italy.  Taking over two weeks off from work made it very busy at Dan Hellman Holistic Health.  I came back to a lot of clients, mail and e-mail.  It is always wonderful to go on vacation; however, it is always nice to be back home, sleep in my own bed, eat good quality organic food and most importantly get back to the job I love!

In August I had the wonderful privilege of teaching for the CHEK Institute in Miami with Karen Redmond.  We had six great students enrolled in the class and they are all going to make great CHEK practitioners.  Below is a photo of my class in Miami at the Four Seasons.

My next teaching date is set for November 7-11 in Chicago, IL with Mark Stone. 
Mark will be teaching in Fort Lauderdale with J.P. Sears at the E.C.A. convention at the Marriott Harbor Beach Hotel.  If possible check them out, you will be inspired by their presentations.  The link to the convention is…

http://www.ecaworldfitness.com/con_florida07_1_info1.html

As a nutrition and lifestyle coach, one of the main questions I have is regarding cholesterol.  Americans have been beaten to death with the “cholesterol scare” for more than twenty years now.  The reason I put it in quotations is because I believe it is all a sham, to make the pharmaceutical companies billions and billions of dollars.  Have you noticed that each year the supposed optimal number for cholesterol keeps getting lower and lower?  Also, ask yourself… Who sets the numbers?  And who does the research?  In case you didn’t know there are very few independent researchers in the world.  The pharmaceutical companies themselves have written all of the research you read about cholesterol and the corresponding drugs.  There is a wonderful book on the market called “The Cholesterol Myths” by Uffe Ravnskov.  I am also going to give you all a link to an article by Ray Peat.  Dr. Peat has a Ph.D. in Biology and at times is difficult to understand because of his scientific background.  However his article gives sound, non-biased evidence on the importance of cholesterol in your body.  Here is the link…
http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/cholesterol-longevity.shtml

I often get asked about some of my favorite books.  I thought I would come up with a short list… Because I love books!
            1.  How to Eat Move and Be Healthy, Paul Chek
            2.  The Metabolic Typing Diet, William Wolcott
            3.  The Diet Cure, Julia Ross
            4.  Peace Is Every Step, Thich Nhat Hanh
            5.  Wherever You Go, There You Are, John Kabat-Zin
            6.  Zen 24/7, Phillip T. Sudo
            7.  Being Zen, Ezra Bayda
            8.  Buddha In The Waiting Room, Paul Brenner, M.D.

In September I had an amazing opportunity to be one of two sponsors for the biennial South Florida PGA Teaching Symposium.  This was an amazing experience for me.  I had the opportunity to lecture to 86 golf-teaching professionals for 45 minutes on the topic of health, fitness and nutrition.  This was the largest crowd I ever lectured in front of in my life.  I really thought I would be very nervous, but once again, if you lecture on a subject you are passionate about, it doesn’t matter how many people are in the crowd.    I had a very captive audience and gained many new clients from the experience.  The next day I had five teaching professionals schedule appointments for an evaluation.  My lecture focused on how I combine my physical therapy background, golf biomechanic, nutrition/lifestyle coach and neuromuscular therapy education to develop corrective and performance exercise programs for golfers.  I am going to leave you with some photos that were taken at the teaching symposium. 

The audience and a posture test I had them perform

Two flexibility tests that the teaching professional can perform

A balance and a stabilization drill using a resistance band

Question and answer session and after the lecture they came back to my station for more! J
                                   
Until next time, I hope all your health and fitness dreams come true.

Sincerely,

July 2007

Hello, everyone, or as they say in Italy “buon giorno.”  I was very fortunate to spend two beautiful weeks cruising the Adriatic and Mediterranean on vacation.  The itinerary consisted of several wonderful ports of call including Venice, Dubrovnik, Sicily, Sorrento and the Amalfi coast, Rome, Florence and Monte Carlo.  I had been to several of these areas previously, but I forgot just how incredibly beautiful the Mediterranean really is.  The highlight of my trip was going back to my favorite place on earth, the Island of Capri.  Once you get away from the mobs of tourists, this has to be one of the most peaceful, beautiful places on the planet.  Here is a picture of me in my favorite swimming place in Capri.  This picture is taken between the signature rocks of Capri and the Island itself.  Look how beautiful the water is! 

Spending time on a luxury cruise ship for twelve days is a bit rough on the old nutrition plan, especially for someone like myself who eats 100% organic food most of the time.  This brings me to a point I want to make.  Of course I am human and I do occasionally consume sugar, alcohol and other highly processed foods.  I preach the 80/20 rule, which means be good to your body 80% of the time, so you can cheat 20% of the time and have no ill affects.  However, this rule may not apply to you if you are fighting a disease.  Until the disease is under control, your eating may have to be 100% perfect.  Even on a cruise ship, you can make smart decisions.  There is no one forcing you to eat dessert after every meal and please don’t use “it’s free” as an excuse.  That is just a cop out for unhealthy behavior.  Exercise is also easy to come by on a cruise ship.  Most have excellent fitness centers and of course you can always go for a scenic walk around the ship

While on vacation I had the opportunity to meditate in some amazing places.  The energy was very powerful.  I found a beautiful garden here in Monte Carlo where I took some time away from being a tourist to recharge my batteries.

Now back to the important stuff… health and fitness! J  Since returning from my vacation in the middle of July, I have had several new clients hire me to assist them with their health and fitness programs.  One client is a professional golfer, who like the rest of the golf field is beginning to realize that to be successful requires hiring a trained professional such as myself to design a fitness and nutrition program.  If any of you golf fans watched the US Open and saw Tiger Woods wearing his bright red tight shirt, you got a glimpse for the first time just how buff Tiger actually is!

I have had many questions lately about cardiovascular exercise.  Like Paul Chek I am not a huge fan of doing prolonged cardiovascular sessions.  It is totally unnatural to the body and for the most part actually causes most people to store body fat!  There is actually a term out there that some of us in the fitness industry use, called “Chunky Aerobics Instructor Syndrome”.  Think about it… When was the last time you saw a thin aerobics instructor?  I am going to give you the link to my mentor Paul Chek’s article on aerobic workouts.

http://chekinstitute.com/articles.cfm?select=71 

The month of August is a busy one for me.  I am scheduled to teach C.H.E.K. exercise coach in Miami with Karen Redmond.  I do hope to have some pictures of this event in my next Blog.  I am also working on a lecture for the South Florida PGA.  I have the opportunity to give a thirty-minute presentation to ninety teaching professionals from Florida.  I am looking forward to spreading the word about fitness for golf. 

Until next time, may all your health and fitness dreams come true.

Dan Hellman

June 2007

This is the first entry in my personal Blog.  A lot of exciting things have been happening in my life and with Dan Hellman Holistic Health.  In the last couple of months I have traveled a great deal professionally and personally.  I started teaching for the CHEK Institute www.chekinstitute.com and will be finished by the end of the year with the apprenticeship program.  I have to assist in five classes of CHEK Exercises Coach.  In May I taught in Dallas with Karen Redmond and in June I assisted Mark Stone in New York City.  Both classes were excellent and I realize just how much I love teaching.  In August I fly to the U.K. and assist Mark Buckley and in November I am in Chicago assisting Mark Stone once again.  I am looking forward to these trips and living out my legacy to teach for the CHEK Institute.  Here is a photo of me lecturing at Whole Foods Market in Boca Raton.  I lecture for Whole Foods throughout all of South Florida. 

Dan Hellman Holistic Fitness is a proud sponsor of the South Florida PGA Junior Golf Association this year.  It is my intention to reach golfers at a young age and educate them on the importance of performing the proper exercises to improve their golf game and help protect against injuries.  It is also my goal to educate the junior golfers on proper nutrition, not only for their golf games but also for a long, healthy life.  You can check out the South Florida Junior web site and my monthly health column by going to www.sflorida.pga.com and clicking on the junior link.  Here is a picture of me working with one of my golf clients.  I don’t teach the golf swing, I analyze the body and develop exercise programs to enhance the golf game or treat the injured golfer. 

This is a picture of me doing my morning meditation after my work out.  The form of meditation I do in the morning is called Qigong.  This beautiful place where you see me is located on the rooftop of my office building.  I am surrounded by plant life, blue skies and the sun and I can hear the ocean just across the way.  Qigong is a wonderful way to build Chi force in your body, improving health and vitality.  All you need is 10-20 minutes a day and, I promise you, your quality of life will improve.

Until next time.

Yours in health and fitness,

Dan