Meet Bo Babenko | Doctor of Physical Therapy, Nutritionist & Fitness Trainer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bo Babenko and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bo, we’d love to hear more about your end-goal, professionally.
I want to (do my part to) change the nature of how fitness and healthcare are perceived. Having spent a significant amount of time as a healthcare provider and getting to work in many unique settings from NYC to Dubai, I have found there to be an incomplete view of “fitness”.

As a doctor of Physical Therapy and fitness trainer I believe we should be standardizing and prioritizing our physical training. Most humans have lost touch with what it means to truly be “fit”. I believe there are many ways we can begin to encourage a “movement practice” that encompasses many aspects of fitness that folks simply are not equipped for.

There has not been anyone like Jack LaLanne for a long time and as much as I would love to embody what he stood for and carry on and evolve that legacy, I simply want to ensure that some version of this is what comes to the forefront. A strong voice that can rise up over the many fads and pseudoscience to declare: “this is what true Fitness should look like” “here is what the science shows” “stop chasing symptoms and short term issues when we can accomplish so much more in the long term”. My current work includes helping people of all ages set up a “Physical Retirement Plan”, similar to a financial one, simply to ensure they are working towards feeling stronger every year of life. Aging does not have to make us weaker and less useful if we know how to train properly.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My business is called FitCare because I have tried to balance the worlds of FITness and healthCARE, where I feel there is much to be desired. Serving as a Doctor of Physical Therapy, I felt the insurance companies had too much power in dictating how we worked with patients so I moved away from the traditional model of care very early in my career. Following the fitness path I noticed there was a lack of scientific rigor that I saw in the Physical Therapy space with much less licensing, oversight, etc.

My business has transformed into a lifestyle coaching practice to ensure we are addressing the 5 pillars of health that often get neglected:
1-Movement
2-Nutrition
3-Recovery
4-Mindset
5-COnnection

It is a challenge selling people on long term solutions when “sexy peloton” is promising “results” in a quick time frame. The science of what actually helps people achieve results is relatively clear cut BUT that means it might be boring for folks and less likely to sell. I usually end up working with folks who “have tried everything” (translated to at least 5 different practitioners – chiropractors, acupuncturists, orthopedic surgeons, etc.) and often can offer a unique approach that sets them up for sustainable success and actually addresses the root cause of the issue at hand – which unfortunately, most of the other practitioners failed to do.

At the end of the day, FitCare is about empowering YOU to feel better than ever.
We can help you get out of pain and move better in 30 minutes; get a plan in place for the next 30 days to set us up for the next 30 years.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This actually happened a few weeks ago, my best friend visited from Los Angeles. We are very food focused for sure so we wanted to take them to unique experiences. We checked out Acreage for the glorious sunset and awesome ciders; they had never tried Ethiopian food so we went to Ras Kassa’s in Lafayette; tried the blood orange kolsch american gold medal beer festival winner!; we got fresh ingredients from Seventh Generation Farms and made some heart dishes (offal is incredibly overlooked by most and one of the healthiest things you can eat!). We went for a bunch of hikes to burn off all the foods at various trailheads, tons of views of the flatirons of course. Also, introduced them to rock climbing at our normal gym: the spot climbing in Louisville. If we had more time we likely would have gone up to Estes Park and visited where they shot the Shining. Always so many things to do and great scenes to take in!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My wonderful wife, Maha Nasrallah-Babenko, who has been featured here too and connected me here.

All of the amazing guests who have been gracious enough to spend time with me on my podcast “Bo Knows Health”

Website: www.fitcarephysio.com

Instagram: @drbobabenko

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobabenko/

Twitter: @bobabenko

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BoBabenko

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DrBoFitCarePhysio