So here's the thing about living in NY.  We NY'ers tend to stay within a ten block radium of where we live.  I know it would seem that we would be using this great city of ours all the time. Shopping the cool stores in NoLiTa, eating out in the Meatpacking District, seeing shows on Braodway.  And we do. But the truth is, most of us don't venture all that far out of our neighborhood. 

We're missing out.

If you come to NY, chances are you'll cover a lot of ground.  And chances are, unless you take a bus tour, you're not going to include Harlem on you family trip.  You should. I mean, it's OK to take one of those Bus Tours of Harlem, but how about just going there and seeing what's going on instead? How about hanging with the Bartendaz?

That's what I did yesterday.  I went up to Harlem to check out The Bartendaz.  These guys do things on a pull up bar you've never seen before.  The strength is amazing, the camaraderie infectious, the feats: totally unbelievable.  The Bartnedaz are a group of the buffest, toughest looking guys you'll ever see...who also happen to be all about self-empowerment, using health as a means to feeling good about oneself, and of spreading the word that a healthy, drug free, focused life is the best life around.

Check out this video

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These guys are not kidding around.  But it isn't about being buff.  It's about learning to focus, about taking control of your health and your life.  These guys talk at prisons and at schools.  They are all about keeping kids off the streets and into fitness and their bodies.

It was also the warmest, friendliest group of guys:  there with their wives and kids.  They invited us to join them on their summer picnics, exchanged emails.  And by the end of the afternoon, our kids were best friends.

They don't have a show-- they just do what they do.  And what they do is amazing. Get out of your comfort zone and head up to 121st St  and Madison Ave. in Harlem.  And Hang.

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