15 Minutes to Fitness

Dr. Vincent "Ben” Bocchicchio has worked professionally in the fields of fitness and health for nearly 40 years. An acknowledged leader in the field, he has built his success by combining science with effective body conditioning and technology to produce optimum health, fitness, rehabilitation, and weight loss for every body type. In the 1970s, Dr. Ben developed slow resistance training, a fitness technique that changed the way people exercise. Dr. Ben grew up in New York, where he became an award-winning athlete in high school and college. His involvement in athletics inspired him to pursue a career in exercise science. He graduated in 1971 from Ithaca College with a bachelor's degree in physical education, health, and science. Dr. Ben went on to earn a master's degree in exercise sciences from Florida Atlantic University, a doctorate in exercise physiology from North American University, and a doctorate in health services, with a specialization in physical exercise, from Walden University. He also completed a post-doctoral program at Columbia University in body composition analysis and weight management. In 1973, Dr. Ben founded Sports Conditioning in Staten Island to condition professional and world-class athletes. Soon thereafter, he was approached by a wider scope of clientele seeking fitness and conditioning advice and program development. Dr. Ben applied the principles he developed for the athletic population, Slow MAximum Response Training or SMART ™, to develop programs for weight reduction, cosmetic enhancement, general fitness, and health and rehabilitation for the general population. In 1978, Dr. Ben was lauded by the N.Y. Press as "The Guru of Fitness.” He has served as an expert consultant to professional and college teams, including The U.S. Olympic Committee, The National Football League, Major League Baseball, World Team Tennis, numerous major college athletic programs, and he served as the training program developer for Total Gym.™ In the early 1980s, Dr. Ben founded Cardio Management Systems and used resistance training as an integral part of Phase 2 Cardiac Rehabilitation. This was the first formally documented use of such exercise in the industry, and it is now commonplace protocol. Following that experience, Dr. Ben became the exercise physiologist for Lehrman Back Centers in Miami Beach, Florida, a multi-phased, medical rehabilitation destination. He instituted his training protocol and became one of the leading consultants in the area of corporate fitness. During this time, he consulted for Cardio Fitness Centers and The Vista Health Clubs for corporate fitness projects, serving the fitness club at the top of the World Trade Center; NY Health and Racquet Clubs, Gold's Gyms, and World Gym International. Dr. Ben was also commissioned by Lutheran Medical Center and Staten Island University as well as a number of other teaching hospitals as the exercise physiologist for health, wellness, and weight-loss programs. In addition, Dr. Ben became associated with the famous weight-loss program owned by Sandoz Medical known as Opti Fast, which was made popular by Oprah Winfrey. He developed an adjunct exercise regimen called Opti Fit, using Opti Fast patients as subjects in his second doctoral dissertation clinical trial. In that work, he established for the first time in scientific literature that long-term weight loss could not be accomplished without the incorporation of exercise. His paper, "The Development of Obesity and Fat Related Disorders,” still stands as one of the only documents that accounts for the multi-dimensional nature of obesity and fat problems and addresses the proper application of exercise in every instance of origin. Dr. Ben continues his research work in the fields of fitness, wellness, and health and has patented The FIRST Exercise System program and trademarked his SMART-Ex system, which is also licensed and in use throughout the world. The owner and operator of numerous health and fitness facilities throughout the nation, Dr. Ben currently maintains a private fitness and health practice in Phoenix, Arizona. This successful business includes a metabolic makeover program that includes a proprietary exercise regimen, nutritional counseling, and EECP (Externally Enhanced Counter Pulsation). This program is conducted twice a week for approximately 45 minutes per session. Professionally supervised and devised personal exercise programs are conducted and usually require 2 weekly sessions of about 20 minutes or less. These programs have been scientifically presented and have proven to be among the most effective available for body fat reduction, increased muscle tissue and metabolic rate levels, cardiovascular conditioning, and strength. All programs include sound, scientifically based and effectively healthy nutritional counseling. Recently Dr. Ben has conducted studies in the fields of exercise and health and has presented and published those to International Meetings of The American College of Sports Medicine and The American Physiological Society. He has authored more than 200 articles, studies, and professional presentations on the subjects of health fitness and exercise and been cited in numerous books, articles, and studies as an expert and a reference source. In 2009 Dr. Ben presented a study using his Metabolic Makeover techniques and demonstrated a reversal of the diabetic profile in 12 weeks in Type II diabetics. He is currently working with Johns Hopkins Medical School as an investigator and consultant on two studies utilizing his slow resistance training concept for Juvenile Arthritic (JIA) patients and elderly patients with inflammatory disorders. In his 60s, Dr. Ben continues to train regularly using his revolutionary SMART™ training system and maintains a high level of strength, significant muscle mass, and single digit body fat. He splits his time between Phoenix, Arizona and Coronado, California.