The hardest part is still fighting organisations be it government or businesses or even hospitals and medical people who are suppose to be there to assist disabled people or people with a rare disease yet they have zero understanding of what life is actually like to be living with a serious disability or rare disease.

Then on top of that it is becoming increasingly harder for people to fit into a world that is obsessed by ones physical appearance or social standing.

I have always said if all I had to deal with was my rare disease I would be laughing! My life would be so incredibly simple.
I’m not saying this to make anyone feel sorry for me or anything like that because I think I am one of the lucky ones who is winning this battle but I think it needs to be highlighted that everyday should be world rare disease day where anyone living life trying to succeed or fight the good fight while living with a rare disease or painful disability should be commended and supported rather then the opposite which is so often the case.

Well 2013 has well and truly kicking off in an interesting way.

Some challenges to over come as always and some great things as well.

One such great thing happened just last weekend (January 27th to be exact).

I smashed my previous best in the gym with a new record bench press lift of 140kgs.

I’m still completely stunned by that I have achieved. 140kgs was the dream goal I had set for myself to strive to be able to achieve one day. I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to lift it but I did it really easily. It just goes to show what we are all capable of achieve if you work hard and Never Admit Defeat!

I hope you will jump over to my video page and check this amazing lift out.

All the best.
Dean.

I just wanted to take a quick minute to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Years.

If you are traveling please stay safe on the roads and I look forward to updating you all again on my activities in the new year.

All the best and here’s to a huge 2013.

Regards
Dean.

I’ve got a few minutes free so I thought it was time to jump on here and quickly update you all.

It’s been a really busy time for me lately which has been great fun.

Earlier in the month I traveled down to Newcastle to speak for Dubbo City Toyota during their staff weekend away that they all had.

It was a fantastic trip and great to meet everyone. I look forward to catching up with everyone again sometime soon hopefully.

This week I am off to a charity luncheon tomorrow and then on Friday I head down to Sydney to speak at a trivia fundraising night at the St George Leagues Club. It should be a really good fun night. Hopefully there will be a big turnout. All the proceeds will go to supporting all the families living with e.b. Very worthwhile getting behind even if I do say so myself.

I’ll get back online and update you again next week.

Well I am just about to jump on a plane and fly off to Newcastle this weekend.

I’ve been invited to speak for Dubbo City Toyota tomorrow morning down in Newcastle. I’m really looking forward to this trip. It should be a great day tomorrow with all the crew from Dubbo City Toyota. I’ll be watching the NRL Grand Final in Newcastle at a special evening tomorrow night with all the Toyota crew so that will be great fun.

Plus tonight I’m going to catch up with some friends in Newcastle.

It’s going to be a really busy full on trip but I can’t wait.

I’ll post a photo or two on my facebook page so click on it and check it out over the weekend.

Until my next update.
Stay safe

Dean.

Things have been so busy lately. So many things to update. Where do I start?

In the past few months I have smashed my all my previous bests in the gym. My new record now has me bench pressing 137.5kgs which you can watch in the video section of this website. My friends all tell me that this record will not last for very long though as I am currently lifting so well we are expecting yet another record  in the coming weeks.
I’ve also had a heap of speaking engagements as well. There have been numerous in Brisbane as well as a trip to Newcastle, Melbourne and Cairns as well. It’s been great fun. I’m loving every second of it.
Juggling between all the speaking engagements and the extensive gym program I’ve been doing hasn’t been easy but I have been loving the full calendar and busy schedule I’ve had.

I will leave it there for now but I’ll update my blog again soon. That is a promise.

Until then, Keep raising the Bar.
Dean.

He certainly didn’t disappoint.  From the moment he walked out on stage, until the end of his 90 minute keynote you could have heard a pin drop.  He held the audience in the palm of his hand.

Here are just a few of the comments we received on our feedback form:

“What an amazing person. My life will change because of Dean.”

“Very inspirational, will be raising the bar on my goals.
Will remember to never give up.”

“An absolute inspiration.”

“Fantastic motivation.”

In fact our clients scored Dean’s presentation at a 9.3 out of 10, which is the highest of any speaker we’ve had at this conference since it commenced in 2007.

Our goal for Dean’s keynote was to kick the conference of on a high, with a huge dose of inspiration and that’s exactly what Dean delivered.

We were uncertain what to expect in Dean, as we booked him after hearing a radio interview and without having seen him present. Our normal process is to attend a presentation with our speaker before booking them.  From the first phone call through to the follow up after the event, Dean was a true professional.  His process is flawless and his communication is excellent.  He kept us in the loop every step of the way and delivered on our desired outcomes to a tee.

If you a considering Dean as a motivational speaker at your event, don’t hesitate….just book him!

Harry Raftos and David Crook

ActionCOACH Business Coaching (Newcastle)
http://www.actioncoach.com/harryraftos
http://www.actioncoach.com/davidcrook

Watch this video on YouTube.

Ok so I’ve had a few people email me or in general ask me about my gym program that I work off that has got me to my 135kg record.

There are many different things that I do in the gym however this is the tried and true program that I always go back to that gets the best results for my style in particular.

The key is to work out what your best style is for yourself and to learn with expert guidance ever step of the way. But in saying that this is a brief 10minute video clip to give you an idea of what I do on an average week.

I must apologize for the work I did editing this clip down. I’ve had troubled with my laptop and some software lately so it’s not as clean as I would have liked but I’ll aim to record another week soon and edit it down better.

I will leave it there for now.

All the best.

Dean.

Well today is the end of 2011 and so it was my last chance to hit the gym for this year.

As some of you know I’ve been really struggling in the gym. My skin has been a little tricky to handle of late in one tiny little area on my left arm. The consequences of that tiny little 2mm area has been that the skin around my left shoulder has been particularly tight since that little issue arouse. That has meant that I’ve had to change my technique in the gym because of the reduced flexibility and movement that I’ve now got in that shoulder.

That small little issue has made getting back into the heavy weights in the gym a lot harder then ever before. Technique is so crucial to lifting the really heavy weights that I regularly lift. So I’ve been struggling to get my form and technique at the level I need to lift big and have struggled in the gym at weights I normally eat up for breakfast. Weights like 115 or 120kgs that to most is very difficult for me is usually a stroll in the park. Not so much anymore. It’s been a real fight for control and stability as my technique has had to be re adjusted many times since then.

The past few weeks or couple of months actually I’ve not enjoyed my gym workouts as much as normal while I adjust to the increased pain and adjust to the new technique and new style in the gym. Granted most non gym people probably would not see or notice the slight differences but to me they have been huge.

So with today being the last chance for the year to get into the gym I was keen to send the year out on a high note. Before I went into my gym I sat down and thought about my technique. I focused on four things. 1) Technique 2) Control 3) Power. and the 4^Th) and final thing was to focus on how fun this is and how easy these weights sessions are for me. Pain is no issue. Never has been an issue for me. I focused on the mental side of enjoying it and knowing that this 115kgs is an absolute piece of cake for me. “It’s easy. Simple. It’s nothing.” I kept telling myself. The mental side of life is something that I focus heavily on these days and so I focused on the mental side of my gym workouts more then I have done for a while of late.

Today’s gym session ended up being an absolute piece of cake. I only went up to 115kgs (253 pounds) but it’s the first time in a number of weeks that I felt like my old self in the gym. I could have gone a lot heavier but I’m working towards another record attempt in the not to distant future so I stuck to my plan that I’ve created to get me to my next record.

It felt fantastic to be back lifting like my old self again and reminded me again of the need to focus on the mental side of everything that we all do in life because that is the difference that turns hard work into easy work.