by Dan | Oct 29, 2017 | Diet, Exercise, Food, Goals, Motivation, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
The weather is beginning to change outside, but that does not mean you can’t still get out for some adventures. Halloween is coming up, and a great time for kids, and grandkids, as well as adults, to get dressed up and get creative…and also enjoy some sweets. If you make up for some of it by walking, running, biking, or other activity, then it is easier to enjoy the “sweet”. Many from our run club joined in on the fun at the Wellness Centers Halloween 5k run/walk. The majority of them dressed up as a unicorn, and they were known at the “unicorn herd”.
I think Jill Makepeace was the brains behind the group theme this year. It started out kind of cold earlier on Saturday morning, so you still had to dress well for it.
The McElroy family went as the Wizard of Oz theme, and Jenn and Owen each ran with one of their daughters. Talk about a great way to get your kids involved with running, and just being active in general! Great role models!
Steve Arbogast went as “Jawsome”. What a hilarious costume! Very well done Steve! Way to be creative.
Like I said, when you do the extra activity, then you get to partake in some of the other fun activities…eating candy…especially peanut M & M’s. My weakness! It is ok once in awhile to treat yourself, and enjoy life. Just make up for it in other ways. If you don’t do the activity, or watch your portions in other ways, then all this will accomplish is helping you gain weight. Does it take work? Absolutely! Can it be done? Absolutely! It takes some planning, creative ways of thinking, and making a little bit more effort to accomplish, but overall those extra rewards in life are what make life fun! Enjoy once in a while. I also celebrated my birthday earlier this week, and my nurse Chris made me one of her famous M & M cakes again!
It was excellent! I had to make some accommodations that day, and even that week, for what I planned on having for “extras”, but it was not that hard to do. Plan, make changes, learn to go with the flow, and keep working at it. Working on our diet and increasing our activity is a lifetime goal. One day here or there will not blow your whole plan…as long as you make those accommodations. Be diligent! Be honest with yourself, and still enjoy the pleasures in life! Just remember: Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3683
by Dan | Oct 22, 2017 | Exercise, Goals, Heart Health, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health
The wind is blowing. The leaves are changing color, and disappearing. The temperatures are dropping. But it is a great time to spend outside. Get moving, get active, and appreciated the view we have. This first one is Sarah and I earlier this month out by Gettysburg for a meeting, with a view of the river behind us. We took some time sitting out on a deck overlooking this view. Breath taking!
There are lots of nice scenic views right here as well. Go out and hit the trail, and take in all of the changes in color, especially around the lake and golf course.
But don’t keep waiting to go out and see the views. The leaves are going fast, especially with how the forecast is looking as far as wind.
It is always better seeing it with other people as well.
Our run club meets every week, and will continue throughout the Winter. Great times, spent with great people, and staying healthy. That is what it is all about. This is how we strive to survive! This is what life is about. Don’t let life fly by, and miss the important things. Take it all in while you can. Appreciate the experience, the ride, the views along the way. You won’t regret it…but you will if you miss out on it. The days go fast…time goes fast.
Take in all these days before the sun sets…and then watch the sun set sometime as well. It is beautiful to look at, and a great time to just sit and think. We don’t take enough time to just sit and think. Everything is hurry up and do this, and to do that, and much of which is really not that important to begin with. Enjoy life along the way…just take the time to do it! Strive to Survive! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3676
by Dan | Oct 15, 2017 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
Ah, those days of medical school. It brings back a lot of memories, good and bad. The amount of time spent with studying was overwhelming, and I often look back and wonder how I did this. I know for a fact if it had not been for running, I don’t think I would have made it. It was a great escape, and again, time for a break. Time to spend working out some frustrations, and giving my mind a chance to think about something other than medicine. The best part of medical school is finding Sarah, as we were classmates, but did not start going out until our second year. We were both dating someone else the first year, and neither one of them could handle all of the time we had to spend studying, so they both ended before the Summer of our second year. I knew Sarah ran too, but did not know much else about her. She definitely got my attention the first year though. I always conveniently planned my running routes that second year that I would end up running past the house she was living in. I think it is safe to say I got her attention! By our 3rd week of our second year of medical school, we started hanging out together, studying, and would meet to go for a run. It did not take long before we were “officially” dating. It was great going through those last 3 years of medical school with Sarah. We had each other for support, to study together, bounce things off each other with questions. It made it so much more enjoyable. All of the pressure we had going through school, and the drive to keep pushing, would get to you after awhile. Having Sarah there, and running together, made things much easier.
This is a picture of our medical school class, the graduating class of the University of South Dakota Medical School class of 1991. We went through hell together, pushed each other, tried to support each other. We may have all had different reasons for going to medical school, and different plans for what we wanted to specialize in, but every single one of us had to go through the same 4 years of medical school. We would have our fun times as well.
This is Sarah and I dressed up as two of our professors our second year of medical school for a Halloween party. It was a hit! You had to find ways to blow off steam, or there was no way you were going to make it through. Running was our common link together, and our way of blowing off steam. I believe it was the difference of being able to make it through!
We got married Oct 6, 1990, a few months into our 4th year. We managed to get a week off for a honeymoon. We went to Estes Park, and spent the week hiking in the Rocky Mountains. Many great adventures on this trip. Being in shape from running definitely helped with all of the hiking, and being able to see things we would not have be able to otherwise. The deer were so tame where we stayed they would come right up to you and eat from your hand!
The views we were able to see by hiking was incredible! Much of this we would not have seen otherwise. Of course, that was not the best view out in the mountains though…the best view was Sarah!
This was the first time we actually got to spend together, and no studying. The first time in 3 years! Estes Park definitely made an impression on us, because we went back on our 10th and 20th anniversary as well. Incredible every time!
Remember, there will be times that overwhelm all of us, no matter what it is that we do. You have to remember to take care of yourself, to strive to survive in this busy, fast paced life. If you want to achieve something bad enough, you will find a way to do it. Then you can look back on it and say, “WoW! I did it!”.
This was me after finishing our second year. We were getting ready to take our first Board test. It was not that the material was that difficult, especially when you had an interest in it. But it was the volume of the material! I still look back and ask myself how we did that…how I did that! Like I said above, if you want to achieve something bad enough, you will figure out a way to do it. I made it because of running, and especially because of Sarah. Thanks!
You can accomplish what you want too! Just keep at it! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3669
by Dan | Oct 8, 2017 | Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
Well, we did it! Our Watertown group of runners, the majority of which are part of the Watertown Area Run Club, finished our runs in the Twin Cities last week, finishing either the 10 mile run, or the marathon. All of this done for raising awareness, and money, for Friedreich’s Ataxia! I have written on this several times in the past, but this last Sunday was the day that brought it all together. The last 4 months we have all been working hard at training, and raising money for this cause. We succeeded! Everybody was able to run, and in particular, me. I had a leg injury 2 weeks prior to this day, but was able to still run, and I ran it with Sarah. I helped pace her through mile 21, then the leg was bothering quite a bit, and she helped me finish. We are the ultimate team…the ultimate running partner…my one and only! Thank you very much Sarah! This was her first marathon, and we were helping each other get to the finish line. The finish line though was the success for the marathon, but the ultimate success was the journey we had along the way. The journey we had with all of our “running family”…all in this for the benefit of someone else. We all now have memories for a lifetime!
The idea for all of this started back in February when Tom Batta asked to see if we would be interested. His daughter Ryanne has this genetic, neuromuscular disease, and is one of 4 in the Watertown Community to have this. This is a pretty significant number of people affected by this for this small community, as it is present in about 1 in 50,000 people. We are a community of 20,000! We should not have any! We all jumped on board with this, and even though we may have been raising money for this cause, I think it is pretty safe to say out of all of us running, we are the ones who benefited by doing this! I have never felt more connected to a group of people ever! It was a great learning experience for me…for us! ALL of us were going to do this, and willingly accepted this challenge! This picture was a large portion of us a few weeks prior to the marathon!
We all wore our shirts many times these past few weeks. Here we all our posing for the front of the shirt…
…and the back of the shirt!
Together we will find a cure! Together we will run for them! Together we will do this, and not think about our own personal times/goals/aspirations. Those all help, but the motivation for this run was why we were doing this, and how we were going to help someone else. It truly goes beyond words!
This is the group running the night prior to the event after going out for spaghetti and pasta, with some of the people we were running for, including Danny Rieffenberger, a second cousin of mine. We were ready to go, and they were ready to cheer us on!
Sarah and I were helping each other out, and trying to keep smiling. I admit, it got tough after mile 21…my leg hurt, it started pouring out, and did not quit until an hour after we were done. We kept pushing each other, and kept hoping everybody else was doing ok as well. We were a team, and wanted everybody coming in without any problems. We raised money as a team, we were in this together as a team, but we were running as “family”…a family that worries about each other, cares about each other, and works hard for each! Together…Together we will find a cure!
Sarah and I were coming across the finish together…this will be a great memory for me forever! We came across together, and pushed each other during the training time, and the day of the marathon!
I love this picture! It captures everything of the moment! I personally was struggling those last miles and had to keep walk/run because my leg was giving out! Sarah stood by me, pushed me, encouraged me! The elements of the weather was making is challenging as well. I had to keep telling myself that my pain and struggles would be temporary…we were in this for people who cannot run…who cannot do what the rest of us take for granted every day. This then motivated me to throw another surge in and keep going…for them! The look on my face shows a lot of relief at being done, and I was! I did not know if I was going to even be able to run this event, or finish, so the fact that I did, that is all that matters. I wanted to run this race more than any other one I have been in before. Why? Because I was truly running for someone else…we were all running for someone else, and it felt good! It changed all of our lives, and I only hope that with the money we helped raise, that we can help make a difference in the fight for Friedreich’s Ataxia! For this, we will keep running! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3662
by Dan | Sep 26, 2017 | Etc.
Another mile stone completed…10 years of consecutive exercise completed…and on to year 11! This journey started on September 26, 2007. Days where I did not feel the greatest, or recovery from certain injuries, but still capable of doing some kind of exercise, and putting up with the changes in weather…these did not make a difference. Basically there was no excuse, or at least an excuse I was going to listen to. This may be my consecutive exercise streak, but I have had help. The biggest supporter, or training partner has been my wife Sarah!
We support each other with our running, or any kind of exercise. She has been the master motivator. I keep going because I want to be around longer to spend time with her, and with my kids. She is my inspiration!
I was hoping I would be able to help her complete her first marathon…The Twin Cities Marathon coming up this weekend, Sunday, Oct 1. I got an injury a little over a week ago, and tore the calf muscle in my left leg coming in at the end of a run. Now I don’t know if I will be able to run this weekend, or if I will be a cheerleader for the rest of the group. I can still walk, or be on the elliptical with no pain, but I can’t push off with running. I can be a good cheerleader though…and I will help support my fellow Watertown runners who will be running this weekend, as we were running for charity and awareness for Friedreich’s Ataxia. I am really disappointed that I may not be able to run, but I am looking at the bigger picture here. There are bigger things going on than me being able to run, or even my consecutive streak. I guess we all have to take one day at a time, and appreciate everything life has to offer. Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3650
