Health

Bartendaz Giving New Meaning to Pick Up Bars

by Tina Kells | March 9, 2009 at 01:35 pm

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Bartendaz sounds like the working title to Vince Vaughn's next film, or a group of bottle tossing Pussy Cat Doll-esque bartenders, but the reality is something unexpectedly different. Bartendaz are not Wedding Crashers gone wild. They are not pretty girls mixing drinks while wearing next to nothing and singing pop songs. The Bartedaz are fitness fanatics.

That is right, I said fitness fanatics. Bartendaz get their name from an unconventional exercise program that uses gymnastics type bars to stay fit. Think of it as extreme gymnastics fused with old-style break dancing. The Bartendaz are a group of fitness oriented performance artists who are hoping to encourage urban youth to get in shape.

These fitness gurus aren't promoting underage drinking. Named for the creative moves they perform on the pull-up bar, the Bartendaz are empowering youths through calisthenics.

By ditching free weights and weight machines in favor of using their own body weight on the bar and the floor, the Bartendaz have developed a series of acrobatic strength exercises that have sparked attention on YouTube and from such celebrity clients as rapper Ludacris and mixed martial arts champion Rashad Evans. Some members also earned a stint with New York's Apollo Circus of Soul.

But Bartendaz founder Hassan Yasin's proudest achievement is his program's impact on youths.

"My number one claim to fame [is] ... when I walk in the park and they're not chilling on the benches, they're at the bars," said Yasin, 40. "All the guys that [were] hanging out there, taking up space, [are] now leaving because there's too many youth coming back."

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eastvanray

at 14:43 on March 9th, 2009

Anything to get people active. I just watched a documentary about a 19 year old kid who weighed over 800 lbs. And doctors are finding these extremely morbidly obese patients are getting younger and younger.