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December 2010

SECRETS OF THE CHEFS SUCCESS, PAGE 5

Let it Snow!Enjoy ski season, even after surgery

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P A GE 2 2010D E C E M B E R

John W. Sutter P UBLISHER Janel Bladow E DITOR - IN -C HIEF

Jerry Tallmer M ANAGING E DITORMark Hasselberger A RT D IRECTOR

Colin Gregory, Allison Greaker A D R EPS

Published by COMMUNITY M EDIA, LLC

145 Sixth Avenue, New York, NY 10013PHONE: (212) 229-1890 ADVERTISING : (646) 452-2465 2010 Community Media, LLC

LETTERFROM THEEDITORDear ThriveNYC Readers,

While we all hustle about getting prepared for the holidays, thoughts of a new yearloom over our heads. Usually those thoughts at any age are of shaping up andfeeling healthier. We all want to live longer, happier, more productive and energeticlives and to do so we need to be the best we can physically.

Thats why we at ThriveNYC visited with personal trainer Harry Hanson whoprides himself in the number of t and happy Boomers he exercises every day.Hanson believes in cardio and strength training as the key to strong bones and longer,happier lives.

We also see the merits of fresh air and fun activities. I hobbled around the citymyself for years, feeling older, weaker and less happy because of a deteriorating knee.I started saying No or mostly, Uh, too busy when friends asked me to join themfor a drink, dinner, a movie, shopping or a walk around town. I made excuses thatI didnt need to go to the store or that I could substitute or subsist. I was in denial.

What I was doing was not getting the most out of my life because it hurt to walk andclimb stairs. My excellent orthopedic surgeon, Kenneth E. McCulloch, said these wisewords: Youll know when its time. I nally had to admit it was and Im so sorry thatI waited as long as I did. My knee operation was a life-changer and last season I wasback on skis. Im looking forward to the snow again this winter.

The not-so wise say this is the gray, glum season but we say bundle up and enjoythe cold, fresh winter air. Walking around our colorful city at this time of year isuplifting and the rst steps to a fun, t and fantastic New Year.

Have a great holiday and happy New Year.

Janel Bladow Editor

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BY JANEL BLADOW

August 2009. I thought I would neverski again.

I ripped my right knee while hop-ping rocks, boulders really, climbingLongs Peak in the Rocky Mountains, asa 19-year old college student.

I had my meniscus removed less thana year later and arthroscopic surgerynearly 20 years ago. Id been limpingaround in denial ever since.

Now I was stretching and exingwith two interns outside the operatingroom at New York Downtown Hospitaltalking about our favorite skiing spots.I felt great. My knee felt exible, rmand without pain. At the moment, all theaches and groans that go with poundingthe pavement were gone. All the canceleddates and missed opportunities because Ididnt want to trek up and down subwaysteps were forgotten.

I was energized. I was convinced washealthy.

I was about to have knee replacementsurgery.

I was about to bolt.Thankfully, I didnt because four

months later, I was cross-country skiingacross a beautiful, snow-covered mead-ow upstate. I was gliding through morethan a foot snowfall, early for the season.I was creating a path, enjoying the viewand watching my dog race ahead thendrop on his back and make doggie snowangels.

We were on state land, carving trailsand looking longingly south at theAlpine runs on Belleayre Mountain in theCatskills. I hadnt dared ski downhill ina few years, knowing that my achy kneemight let me down.

The next month, December, dreamsof downhill danced in my head. I pushedthrough three times a week physicaltherapy, earning kudos and a scaled-backschedule.

February 2010. I was shushing downintermediate trails of freshly fallen snowat Shanty Creek Resort in northernMichigan.

And I was pain-free.

I was a downhill skier!At my side was Randy Anderson, a level

three Nordic and Alpine instructor andmember of Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA) for more than 30 years.

With his guidance and encouragement, Ichallenged myself to take on slopes I neverthought I would ski again.

The day before I warmed up and prac-ticed with a two-hour trek on some of theresorts 31 km of cross-country trails. Ireverse snow-plowed (ski tips out, heelsin) up a small incline. I oated across aeld and trudged through the woods.

I started my downhill morning beingouttted with a new set of parabolicskis, the wider, shorter boards whichhave replaced the longer, narrower skis Ihave. Just gliding over to the bunny slopeI noticed a difference. A larger sweetspot makes skiing a breeze, turns grace-ful and balance better. These babies wereeasy to handle!

I effortlessly got on the rubber peoplemover an escalator-like conveyor beltthat hauls you up the tiny bump of a hill.I disembarked without difculty but atthe top I froze, nervously looking downthe slope.

Could I do it? Fear hotly shot through

my spine. The only way out was down.My self-talk went from take your time,stop if you feel scared to when doubt, sitit out. I slowly began my descent, makinglong, wide, loopy gure S-s in the snow.

It was just like getting back on abicycle.

After a couple more runs, I was sail-ing down the hill, stopping with a jauntyturn. I was back!

Randy said it was time to tackle a begin-ner run so off we went to one of the moun-

tains two double lifts. Again, at the top, Ishakily looked down the slope then, encour-aged, eased into a slow, controlled drop.

Best way to stop, especially after aknee replacement, is to snowplow, advisedRandy who some of the time watched meas he skied backwards down the run. Ortake one ski out of the trail and single plow.Snow plowing uses hips.

He also championed the new para-bolic skis. They are best, especially if youve had knee injury or replacement.Theres less stress on joint, because youdont have to work as hard at turns andthey are more forgiving, he explained.

The turns were smooth, easy. I dustedaway the fresh powder in my path. Mycondence grew with each turn, everyrun. Randy said I was ready for interme-diate trails. And off we went.

With two mountains and 49 runs,more than 67-percent of them beginnerand intermediate level, my adventure waslimitless. The 450-feet of vertical terrainand long, winding runs the longest at5,280-feet gave my intermediary skillsplenty of options.

My day was perfect: downy snow-akes the size of silver dollars sailedthrough the sky creating a fresh, uffycarpet under my skis.

My condence renewed, I know Imready for whatever snow this winterbrings.

P A G E 3nyc

Back On The TrailAfter knee replacement, I wondered, would I ever ski again?

You can do anything you did before,said my orthopedic surgeon, Kenneth E.McCulloch, M.D., who has his ownpractice in Manhattan and operates atNYU Hospital for Joint Diseases andNew York Downtown Hospital, where Ihad my knee replacement surgery.

Surgeons divide activities into low-impact and high-impact and most dontrecommend high-impact for their kneereplacement patients. Nordic or cross-country skiing is a low-impact sportwhile downhill, which places morepressure and stress on the knee joint, ahigh-impact one.

But Dr. McCulloch says factors suchas the strength of your thigh muscles,the skill of your surgeon and the qual-ity of your replacement can get youback to as active a life as you onceenjoyed.

I tell patients the rst six weeksare recovery time, says Dr. McCullochwho graduated Princeton, Columbiaand Stanford (among others) and is aboard certied hip and knee surgeon.

Three to four months after surgeryis for learning how the knee functions,

taking long walks, moderate hikes,golng and low-impact exercises. Afterthat, if you have your quad musclestrength and range of motion back,theres no reason not to experimentwith what sports you can do.

Dr. McCulloch says key to a well-functioning knee replacement is a goodt. Thats why he performs a customcut procedure based on a MRI a 3-Dimage of the knee that maps out thecuts on a computer.

This gives you the best possiblealignment, maximum longevity andincreases the activities you can do.

Key is physical therapy followingsurgery and building strong quad mus-cle strength.

Take activities step-by-step,increasing your strength, control andwork up to tolerance, he adds. Startwith low-impact outdoor sport likecross-country skiing.

Success is part what the surgeondoes and part what the patient does.The harder the patient works (at physi-cal therapy and strength building) thebetter the results.

Shanty Creek ResortsThree villages (Summit, Cedar River and Schuss) with three hotels (Summit Hotel& Conference Center, Cedar River Lodge and Schuss Mountain) make up ShantyCreek Resorts, surrounding Lake Bellaire in northern Michigans Antrim County.Building started in the 1960s and last year saw a $10-million renovation of onefacility. While the resort has more than 600 rooms and four restaurants, the vibe iscomfortable, non-crowded and low-key.

A year-round family fun center with golf, swimming and summer sports, ShantyCreek is best known for is wintertime activities. Snowshoe and Nordic ski trails windthrough the woods. Three terrain parks and one half-pipe cater to snowboarders whiledownhill skiers have 49 runs on two mountains to schuss.

For those who want to relax, try dog-sled and horse-drawn sleigh rides. And,theres always the spa. Visit: www.shantycreek.com

Go For It!

Photo courtesy Shanty Creek Resorts

The old gang enjoys a photo break during a great ski day on Schuss Mountain.

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P AG E 42010D E C E M B E R

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P A G E 5nyc

A Go-to Chef Shares His

SuccessChef Bernard Ross secret to a long,happy life is in his kitchenBY ROWANN GILMAN

If youre looking for information aboutthe food business in New York City, BernardRos is your go-to guy. But if its goodfood, easygoing neighborhood-y feeling andrecession-proof prices youre after, his res-taurant, Meli-Melo, is the place to be.

Meli-Melo roughly translates asmlange, in this case, a mix of Frenchand Italian cuisines that combines the bestof both, with a few ourishes tucked in.The restaurants hand-painted wall muralsays it all: maps of France, Italy, China, andEngland accompanied by portraits of nativesh swimming in the surrounding seas.

Ros arrived in the U.S. a little morethan 40 years ago to see the 1967 WorldsFair, and decided to stay. Immediately,his innovative cooking style caught on

and he was able to start the rst of verestaurants that he has, at one time oranother, created all over town. East side,west side, upper west down to Tribecaand now the Madison Park area, Ros hasgentried his chosen neighborhoods withhis uncluttered, avor-centric menus.

As executive chef and exclusive pastrychef, Ros is a believer in letting the tasteof the main ingredient shine through,without the interference of heaps andfoams of cover-up avors. Consideredto be one of the most creative chefs inthe city, he is also known to be amongthe most good-hearted people in a hard-driving business.

At night, Meli-Melo turns into a hiring

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Chef Bernard Ros in front of Meli-Melo.

Continued on page 6

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P A G E 6 2010D E C E M B E R

BY JANEL BLADOW

If you want to feel younger, exercise.Thats the philosophy of personal trainerHarry Hanson who sees seniors as hisfavorite clients.

Boomers are loyal clients, he toldThrive. They never leave you as longas you do the job they want. Theycare about being exible, not gettinginjured, slowing aging process and stay-ing healthy. They are great clients tohave.

Some come to lose weight or lowerblood pressure or cholesterol. All thiscan be done with a combined programof strength training, cardio and diet.

Hanson became a trainer 25 yearsago after a man approached in him

Washington Square Park and offeredhim a job. He was 225-pouns with6-percent body fat. He didnt even knowwhat a personal trainer was.

At that time it was extremely trendy,he says. People sat around at dinnerparties and said they had a personaltrainer. Now its built into your lifestyle.I was one of seven guys hired, from thedozens who applied.

Hanson got certied and stayed atthat Soho gym for 10 months beforeopening his own studio.

My rst client was Tom Cruise.He wanted me to become his exclu-sive trainer but I have a business here,family. We still get together sometimeswhen hes in town.

Today Hanson, the married father of an 18-year old daughter and a 13-yearold son, has ve studios three inManhattan, one in Boston and one in aprivate rm. He also owns two personaltrainer schools The Academy, in NewYork City and Boston.

We are state licensed and interna-tionally accredited. We graduate about200 students a year and have 97-percentplacement.

But unlike most personal trainers,Hanson is driven not to bulk up young,athletic bodies (although he has plentyof those clients too!) but to strengthenolder ones. Thats why he offers a seniordiscount at all of his studios.

His senior program incorporates abasic routine that is a total body work-out. He believes that if you train two,three times a week, working on differ-ent parts of the body chest, shoulders,back, biceps, core and legs you getthe proper workout to slow the agingprocess.

Pilates, yoga, core classes, are allgood but strength and resistance train-ing are the best way to slow aging,stimulate cells and stay stronger longer,he says.

Why is it important to exercise withage? Every cell, ber, tendon, ligament

gets weaker as you get older, Hansonexplains. The more sedentary you are,the faster your body dies. Exercise slowsdown aging process, constantly strength-ens every cell.

There are so many benets fromexercise: lower cholesterol, lower bloodsugar, rids the body of toxins, makes theheart stronger, burns calories, improvesdigestion, clears mind, makes you feelgood about yourself, he lists.

Strength training also strengthensbones to ght osteoporosis and preventhip, knee and leg injury and improvesbone density. Youre never too old tobuild bone density.

Ive had clients come in with aslight curvature of spine, back pain.Exercise can help ward off scoliosis.Stronger core muscles make bendingeasier. Stronger muscles mean a betterquality of life.

Most people dont know how to pickup things the right way and often hurttheir backs then cant pick up groceries,their grandchildren.

Hanson believes that with exerciseyou can cut down the number of visit youmake to the doctor, saving you money inthe long run. And by working with a per-sonal trainer, you are less likely to injureyourself while working out than you arealone in a gym or at home.

Women are more likely to cometo personal training than men, saysHanson. Men think they can do it ontheir own but they cant. Women, onthe other hand, nd when they workwith a personal trainer that theyve beenusing too much weight or not enough,and learn the correct range of motion.There are so many variables. This is whypeople hire trainers.

Hanson told Thrive about one client,a very obese woman who came to himand said that she wanted to y to Parisand walk around the City of Lights atleast once before she died.

She arrived the rst time by car ser-vice, he remembers. She was in suchbad shape that we had to help her upthe stairs. She couldnt climb them byherself. That was ve years ago. Shes

been to Paris ve times since.He says the key to a successful work-

out is motivation. Exercise will makeyou happier, increases condence, helpyou feel better about yourself, and feelstronger, he says.

Diet, he offers, is another importantfactor. He recommends seniors rst seea doctor for blood tests and to checksugar and cholesterol levels. Then,simply stay away from sugar! Theresabsolutely zero benet in sugar. Seniorsshould also cut back on carbs, anythingmade with our. Im not saying nevereat it, but I believe in moderation to loseweight and live a healthier lifestyle.

His recommended carbohydrates: oat-meal, brown rice and sweet potatoes.

One time a week, eat whatever youwant. Other six days, only those carbs.Give yourself a cheat day or cheat mealto look forward to. It makes it easier tobe more disciplined.

This is my life, he continues enthu-siastically. Im here to help people. Imnot a model or an actor. Im here to helppeople feel good about themselves.

And with that, he cites another clientas an example.

A 72-year old woman, her husbandhad been in a nursing home, startedto workout. She started to feel bet-ter, feel better about herself. Nowshes met a guy and is in love. At 72!Exercise does that. It gives us all theconfidence, well being, positive out-look. Imagine meeting someone andfalling in love at 72?

For more information on senior dis-counts or to schedule a session, visit:www.hansontness.com.

Move It!Live longer, stronger and happier

Photo by Janel Bladow

Harry Hanson, personal trainer

hall for anyone looking for a job, recom-mendations, referrals, gossip, and industrynews. Out comes the Rolodex; phone callsare made, appointments set. Whats more,before Ros places a chef, he trains him inhis own kitchen, sharing his recipes, teach-ing the prospective chef how to preparethem, and offering sound business advice.He will even train the wait-staff. Mostexecutive chefs guard their recipes withtheir lives, but Ros believes that no one isin business to do a bad job. Well-trainedemployees carry that message with them.

The eyes eat rst, Ros says. In otherwords, food must be appealing to the eyeas well as the palate and for that reasonhe emphasizes plating and presentation.In the old days, when service was per-formed tableside, often in the form of showy ambs and individual carvers,food didnt have the same appeal on theplate. When composed for presentationin the kitchen, it comes to the table as a

complete visual experience.People arent interested in elegant din-

ing the way they used to be, says Ros.They dont want to get dressed up fordinner. The hardships of the economypush change, and you must adapt withyour pocket, not your palate, he adds.Youll notice that the places opening noware burger restaurants and tacquerias thatoffer low-cost, casual, homey food. Beforethe recession, restaurants in need of a pick-me-up might count on changing the chef,moving to a new location, or checking outwhat the competition is up to.

These days, you have to be more ex-ibledevelop new, less-expensive menus,offer comfort foods. We serve a $22three-course lunch and a $24 completedinner, and our menu lists six or sevenappetizers and entres that include wild-caught salmon, hanger steak, cod, stripsteaks, and half a dozen pasta dishesas well as other familiar and comfort-able foods for which his customers makerepeat visits. There is always a Special of the Day and a Vegetarian option.

Part of the way Ros keeps his costsdown is by visiting the Hunts PointMarket every day to stock up on his pre-ferred ingredients rather than order themfrom an industry service. As a result of Ross savvy, the 40-plus years hes been inbusiness hes accumulated customers whoare now like family. The idea is to be ableto feel that anyone can walk in and ndsomething theyd like to eat, he says.

How does Ros, who is 65, stay asebullient and active as anyone in therestaurant business has to be? You haveto eat your cake and enjoy it, he saysmetaphorically. Ros feels that its all inyour head: It is very stressful to have arestaurant and you have to be up on yourgame. Dont aim to project plans on yourneighborhood. Instead, switch your riefrom your left hand to your right hand.Be exible. Im always waiting for sun-shine to walk through the door, he says,so give your local restaurant a chance.

Meli-Melo is located at 110 Madison Avenue between 29th and 30th Streets.

Continued from page 5

Go-to Chef

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P AG E 8 2010D E C E M B E R

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