Ryan Benson

Love of my Life @blissfuls

Man this episode was very special for me. A big thank you to @andrewjfung & @davidbfung for trusting me and for venturing out to the area, Woodside, where I spent a lot of my childhood growing up. If y’all didn’t already know, I cherish the time I had growing up in Queens with my Lolo, my Lola & my Tito Tony. Some of my fondest memories involve walking to @ihawan_ to pick up bbq pork skewers before heading out to a Yankees game with my Lolo. To see things come full circle, walking around the neighborhood with a camera crew, was priceless. Hopefully this video helps bring to light the fight for Woodside’s historical designation as “Little Manila”. We as a community need to continue to support little mom & pop shops like the ones shown in the video so that neighborhoods like Little Manila do not disappear in the future. Small cultural neighborhoods, such as this, are the supportive backbone for the American Immigrant dream 🇵🇭🇺🇸 Please check out the link in my bio to see the whole vid! (I apologize for my awful karaoke singing in advance 😂) Shoutout to @reverynyc for always providing me with the freshest threads. Their denim jacket and graphic tee (seen in the vid) is available for purchase!

Rock Dump

Family Matters

Have you guys ever tried Asian fusion dishes like this before? The Indian-Szcechuan fusion dishes at @gazabnyc blew our minds 🤯 Check out our reactions to this restaurant and other Asian fusion restaurants (Korean + Jewish, Korean + French, Chinese + Vegan….and more!) on the new @fungbros Stay or Go Food ep! (Link in bio) Shout out to @dr.serena.ta & the team at @serenesmilesdental for getting me shoot ready with custom whitening trays before my trip. The process was quick & easy and the results speak for themselves. I am very grateful for the VIP treatment they were able to give me on such short notice. Visit @dr.serena.ta and her team for all your dental needs!

Been a while since I did one of these! It’s always a pleasure going on cam and sharing a bit of my culture, growing up as a Filipino-Irish kid in NJ/NYC, with such a broad audience. Big thank you to the @fungbros for having me on. Shoutout to @tsismisnyc @mamafinasnyc @kabiseranyc @eatmightybowl for allowing us to film and showcase their food. The food on this episode was some of the best we have had while filming these episodes the past couple of years. If you haven’t tried Filipino food before, please go and support these local businesses. You won’t regret it! Link is in my bio for the full episode ✌🏻 @andrewjfung @davidbfung

Best of friends since my freshman year in college @jessescheirer7 Although it’s been 5 years since we last saw each other in NYC, it was like time had never passed. Glad we got to see and hang with you for as long as we did on this trip. Thank you & the boys for showing my little brother, my friends & myself such great hospitality. Hope to see you again soon bud ✌🏻 Next stop: Chicago @outsoo

My buddy, Brian, launched his long awaited brand @jadesixworldwide over the weekend. Please show him some love and check out his site! 📷: @ronholdenjr

Proud of the lil guy @colm.benson for getting into the school of his choice. Now all there’s left is to drop him off at his school safe in one piece. Thank you @matt_yi for flying from LA to help me drive the kid back home. Let the cross country road trip commence! @jessescheirer7 see you soon bud✌🏻

B & W Film Styled by: @arroyoworks 📷: @arroyoworks

The moment I herniated a disc in my lumbar spine this past January; 3 things raced through my head: 1. I’m not sure what just happened; but, my athletic career is over, for the time being. 2. I am going to need surgery. 3. It’s going to be a long time before I start to feel normal. In the following days, I tried to do whatever I could to alleviate the pain. Nothing worked. Every little movement would aggravate my back. Walking, bending, sneezing & even sitting caused me an indescribable amount of pain. I was unable to even sit in the car to pick up a burger from in-n-out (shoutout to @brian.gn for the help w/ that). I feared for the worst and was mentally preparing myself for the moment I received a diagnosis. Upon reuniting w/ @dr.evanchait (my dear friend & PT since HS) and the incredible team at @kineticrehabspine (@justjoshuaa , @therealnickking , Meryl, Meg, Jess, Dr Mark, Dr Han, Dr Keller etc.), Evan allayed my fears and assured me that we could avoid surgery and that he would have me on the road to recovery upon committing to the program 100%. We put together an intense rehab schedule (5x a week) consisting of acupuncture, cupping, chiropractic care, supplementation & PT exercises. It was not easy (in fact it was pretty painful at times); however, 7-8 weeks later, I feel like a different person. For the first time in a while, I feel strong and I feel mobile. The pain I felt in my back and in my hamstring (a nagging, painful injury that caused the disc herniation) has mostly dissipated. I know there is still a long road ahead of me in terms of maintenance and mobility work. I will have to be diligent and tackle my issues every day if I want to continue my recovery process and prevent my body from allowing a herniation again. Thank you to the team at @kineticrehabspine . Without you, I’d be laying in bed, crippled and in pain. I appreciate every single person that has worked w/ me. I am truly grateful to have had such a wonderful team of humans working on my broken down body. A special thank you goes to @dr.evanchait for allowing me to come in before working hours and for continuing to fix my self inflicted injuries since I was a wee lad. Much love ✌

@crooksncastles 📷: @captured_by_mk