by Dan | Apr 22, 2018 | Equipment, Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, weight lifting, Wellness/Health
We may all be at different levels, but the bottom line is that we are all athletes! We were made to move, and some of us may do it faster than others, or longer than others, but if you get out and move, and push yourself more than you would need to do, or are required to do just to do your activities of daily living, than you are an athlete. We don’t have to be professional. We just have to move. Besides Family Medicine, I am also involved in Sports Medicine, and came across a definition here recently that I think sums this up the best.
For all of us who stay active, there are bound to be times when we get hurt, or develop pain. The majority of these are still temporary. The problems were are helping to push back, or avoid altogether (high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity) can last a lifetime. We all need to get out of our “comfort zone”. We all can achieve benefit from this. For my part, there is always things to learn about Sports Medicine. I was just at a 2 day conference in SF to learn more about this.
There are always new treatment plans, ideas, research, and literature to review. They had new updates on concussion protocols, surgery updates, therapy updates, challenges of getting people to get out and move, as well as challenges that we as health care providers face when dealing with people who get injured, and how to get them back to what they want to do. It is always a challenge, but one thing that helps me in my plans of how to take care of someone, is being a runner myself, I understand the mindset involved with this, and how much somebody wants to get back to their same level of activity. Very few of us our professional athletes, but we should all be recreational athletes. We all need to move. “Use it or lose it!” The best part of all of this is there is so much variety of different activities out there to do that we can ALL find something to get involved with.
Here are a bunch of our run club members out in my garage, the Reiflex Center, doing weight/resistance activities. It is so much more enjoyable doing this as a group. We all need to do something. That hidden athlete is in all of us, just waiting to come out. Specific weight goals, times challenges in walks or runs are not the ultimate goal. These goals may help though to keep us motivated to keep working on things, and to stay active and healthy. But, the ultimate goal is to live life to the fullest, to be able to spend time with our family and friends, and to continue to have good times, and make lasting memories. That is what it is about. Keep pushing that inner athlete in you. It is there! Some days may be harder to find than others, but the rewards that can come about are more important that any time or medal that you may get. It is impossible for each of us to know everything, and to do everything. Making an effort is a start, and something is better than nothing. Keep learning! Keep trying! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3847
by Dan | Apr 19, 2018 | Diet, Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
We have just received news that our dietitian, Kelsey Raml, has just been selected as the winner of the South Dakota Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (SDAND) Young Dietitian of the Year for 2018! Great job Kelsey! She will formally be presented this award at the annual SDAND/SDAHO conference in September. She was nominated by a previous student that she had here at Brown Clinic. In her students words: “Kelsey is a tremendous role model in the South Dakota dietetics community. Not only does she work as an outpatient dietitian at Brown Clinic, but she also dedicates time to teaching for SDSU and consulting at Assisted Living facilities. I first met Kelsey as my Quantity Foods Instructor and then was honored to do most of my practicum hours with her. She is always willing to work with students to help achieve their practicum and internship hours. I remember coming home from the first day of my practicum and being excited for my future as a dietitian. Kelsey’s passion for dietetics is contagious. Fast forward a few years, Kelsey and I continue to stay in touch. She is always willing to answer any of my questions as a new dietitian and we often converse about emerging research. We have also been able to use each other for referrals with clients who have moved across the state. When thinking about who to nominate for this award, I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this than Kelsey!” Neither can we! Great job Kelsey, and congratulations!
You manage to juggle all of your responsibilities at work and at home. Your husband Adam, and 2 year old son Corbin, keep you incredibly busy at home, and we always have projects for you to work on at the clinic. You are a great asset to our team at Brown Clinic. You not only continue to work on teaching our patients healthier ways to eat, but also help with our diabetes teaching, our Strive to Survive program, and blog, and our Medicaid Home Health program, which you have helped create the template for the rest of the state to follow. We at Brown Clinic are incredibly proud of you, and proud to have you on our staff, and team.
You are always involved with helping to promote Brown Clinic and what we do overall in primary care. Teaching dietetics is fundamental to the overall care of our patients, and can also be one of the most difficult and challenging obstacles to get patients involved in. We appreciate your continued efforts on all of this, and understand how difficult this can be.
I want to especially Thank You for all of the work and effort you help out with in our Strive to Survive program. The two of us make this program go. We both spend a lot of time teaching, and I think complement each other very well. You do the nutrition teaching, and I work on the promotion of exercise/activity. I personally have learned a lot from you over these past 5+ years with our teaching of this program. I always thought I could outrun a bad diet. Not anymore! I have listened to you talk to our patients signed up for this program more times than I can count, and I learn something new every time. It just goes to show that you can’t just hear something once and think you are going to get it. Nutrition is such a huge part of our health, and often times is one of the things that we neglect the most. It takes continued effort working on this, and you help to remind us all to keep working on this as well. I appreciate your efforts with all of this. I like to think we make a good team with our Strive to Survive program, and want to take this opportunity to congratulate you on being bestowed upon this great honor. You are truly deserving of this award, and I am proud to have you working at Brown Clinic. I appreciate all you do! The rest of our team of doctors and staff appreciate all you do. And most importantly…our patients truly appreciate you! Thank you for being a part of Brown Clinic! Congratulations on winning this most deserving award! The South Dakota Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics definitely got this one right!
Keep moving everybody…and when you get tired, go see Kelsey and learn how to do better with your diet/nutrition plan!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3844
by Dan | Apr 15, 2018 | Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health, Winter
This extended Winter is getting really tough to handle. We rarely ever get Spring anymore. Patients come into the clinic as well, and they are not happy. Everybody is crabby! We have all had enough of this weather. The only good point to make about it is we all have to contend with it. It is not just some of us, but all of us, have to contend with it. So, you can either make the best of it, and continue to whine and complain. Bottom line: we still have to put up with the extended Winter.
Here was our run group this AM. The paths were not cleared yet, as it was still even snowing yet. The roads were not all plowed, so we ran down 3rd avenue to at least get somewhat of a relatively clear path to be able to run. It was icy, and still had a lot of snow. It was a tough run…tough on the feet today. There was lots of complaining…probably even mainly from me! I was ready to be done when our group made our first stop back at the zoo. Sarah did not want to do anymore at home, such as finish on the treadmill, or the elliptical. She wanted to keep going, and be done. We were trying to finish 10 miles today as we are getting ready for the Fargo Half Marathon, now 5 weeks away. So Tom continued on as well, and Paula, and Jill. It was like a domino effect. By ourselves, we would have probably all quit. Together, we kept going. As Tom said this morning, “One plus one, plus one, plus one, etc, and we keep going”. It is easier to keep going with friends. You need other people to help push you through those tough times, those tough weather days, and even though days when you just don’t feel like running, or working out at all…period! We can all keep complaining, or we can act like Patricia did in this picture. You can be happy, ready to take on the day…or just be glad the run is done. Either way, you are in control of your mood, and attitude. Accept the things we cannot change, and keep working on the things we do have control over. When all was said and done, we were able to finish the run. We were able to finish because we had help from our friends. Which, as you can see by the next pictures, the weather makes it a little tough to get fired up about running, or working out, outside.
So, don’t be a whiner! A complainer! Be a doer! Be in charge of your health, your activities, your situation. You can either do the best you can under the current situation, or let ii take control of you, and then be even more angry, upset, crabby! Spring has to be coming. It is testing all of us, and our patience. Remember why we need to keep working out, and working on our health. We want to be around. We want to spend time with friends, and family. We want to live. So, put our head down, your mouth shut, and keep your feet moving forward, regardless of what type of exercise you want to do. Help others get there too. That does not mean we can sometimes express our true opinion of what we think of the weather. I did! But now that I am done, I am thankful these other people helped push me on. The next time it may be me pushing them on. We can all help each other, and be there for each other, and live life to the fullest. Bring it on! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3840
by Dan | Apr 8, 2018 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Heart Health, Motivation, Wellness/Health
When it comes to kids, the best way to teach them is by example. You can tell them, try to explain to them, or better yet, try to reason with them (Ha!), but the best way to teach them is to show them. Show them by example. They will watch you, and it will just naturally rub off on them. If you are active, and choose good things in regards to your diet, then they will too. They will be like sponges, soaking it all up. Take advantage of those moments, and teach wisely. Sarah and I have always been active, so it was natural for them to start taking an interest in being active themselves. Here I am the morning after one of Grandmas Marathons, with my cheerleading girls giving me support. Of course, they were there for me during the race, and afterwards as well.
They were there for me cheering me on, so of course, as they grew up, and were active in sports, we were there for them as well. That is what families do. They support each other, cheer for each, care for each…they are there for each other! That is why it is important to take care of yourself. This way, you can spend more time with them, teach them…just be with them. We started early with the kids on activities.
We got a Burley to take behind our bikes, and to go walking with when the twins were born. This way we could get out and do things, and they got to come along. We all got to spend time together. We had this Burley for years, until they were all finally old enough to walk on their own, or ride bikes on their own. We got them involved with lots of activities: running, swimming, riding bikes, bowling. Anything to keep us moving. Here we are doing all these activities.
We were a force to be reckoned with as they were growing up. It was not hard to see them doing their activities. The T-shirts they would have for their activities covered their backs from one shoulder to the other!
You can make it work. You can spend time with each other. You can be active together. You can be a family together. Start when your kids are young, and continue as they grow older, and then, I hope, will do other events/activities as we grow older too. The running together already started this past January in Disney with my twins running their first half marathon with us. Those are memories I will cherish forever. By watching them take an interest in their own health as they grew up meant a lot to us. They learned by watching us. You should all do the same. Lead by example. The health benefits are too numerous to count. But, the most important part of all of this is that you get to make lifetime memories that you, and your kids, get to make for a lifetime. Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3833
by Dan | Mar 25, 2018 | Equipment, Exercise, Family, Goals, Heart Health, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health, Winter
What are you waiting for? I tell my patients this many times when it comes to getting ready to make a change in their life, and work on diet and activity. I hear all kinds of excuses: It is too cold; it is too icy; it is too hot; it is too wet; I have this big project to get done at work; as soon as things slow down with my kids activities; I don’t have enough time; trying to exercise costs too much; and on, and on, and on! Always an excuse. I hate to tell everybody this, but there is always something that will come up in your life that will get in the way. We are all busy. But, we all have the same hours in the day as everybody else. It is time to make a commitment, and get fired up about it!
This was me after finishing the Dopey Challenge at Disney in January…a 5k on Thursday, a 10k on Friday, a half marathon on Saturday, and a marathon on Sunday. This was me after crossing the finish line of the marathon. I did it! I set a goal, worked for, and completed it! We all need to set a goal. We all need something to shoot for, whatever that may be for all of us. We are all on a different level, and at a different stage in our lives. Only we as individuals know what each of us is going through. Nobody is in our shoes. You can either do something about, and keep complaining about your situation. Exercise is also a good escape mechanism. The weather is not always going to cooperate with us either, especially in South Dakota.
I took this yesterday as we got hit with out Winter storm, during the first week of Spring! Life, and weather, does not always cooperate. But, if we wait until the weather is perfect, we will never get started. It will just serve as another excuse. It was no different when our run group met this morning for our weekly run. As far as the weather, the cold, the wind, the icy roads, nobody really wanted to be out there. If we had all been on our own, we would have probably struggled, and ended up doing something else. Yet, we were there for each, and because of that, we all got out the door. We were held accountable to each other, which can really help you get started on things when it comes to exercise.
Life is not always going to be easy…having time to daydream, and look at the ocean, and forget all of our problems. This works good as a vacation, or a break, or as a means to get our heads back on, but it is not going to be everyday. Things in everyday life get tough. Who needs to watch any of the reality TV shows now? Just wake up and face your own day. I think that is enough reality for all of us. Who needs to sit and watch about other peoples problems. Don’t we all have enough of our own? We can sit and choose to just sit there and dwell on it, or get off our butts and go do something about it. Will it be easy? Ha! Life is not easy, but getting out and exercising is a great stress reliever as well, and it can sure make your day go better, and more manageable as well.
Of course, there will be days where you wonder if it is all worth it. It is work! You are going to get tired! But, you are conditioning your body to handle anything that may come your way. You will be able to handle it better…tolerate it better…and feel better as well.
There will be days when you feel like you are “sucking air”, or just having every last bit of energy feel like it is being “sucked out of you”. Do something about it! You are in charge of you…nobody else. Be in the driver seat, and take control. You only live once, so what are you waiting for?
Sarah went to Huron this weekend to spend some time with her mom. They spent it quilting and sewing, and they both love this. But this morning, when the rest of here in Watertown were going out for a long run (we are getting ready for the Fargo Half Marathon in May!), Sarah went out by herself, and ran it by herself. Facing the cold, the wind, on her own. She had us back here, knowing we were doing the same thing, but it is tougher by yourself. How bad do you want something? What are you waiting for?’
When all is said and done, you will be happy you did it. You will feel better knowing your accomplished something that many other people would not even think of doing. Bottom line, you have to give it your all! You are the one who will benefit. You will have more energy. You will get to spend more quality time later with your friends and family. Time to reach for the top…your top! Where that is only you will know. Just don’t settle for something less than your best. Be happy with you! So come on…what are you waiting for?
Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3819
by Dan | Mar 18, 2018 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
Yesterday was St. Patrick’s day, and also Sarah’s birthday! We had a great run in the AM! We were originally supposed to go to SF to run the Irishman there…a 5 mile run, then later a 5k run, followed several hours later with a 1 mile run. We did not make it down due to the weather there…rain, becoming ice, so we did not take a chance. Quite a few of us who were going to go down decided to stay back, and we got together Saturday morning to run the 9.1 miles here. Then, we all went out to celebrate Sarah’s birthday! It wa a lot of fun. We do a lot of talking on these run club runs. You get to figure out and hear how everybody else is doing. You listen to issues…both good and bad…that someone else is having to deal with, and you support each other. I love these runs because I get to run with Sarah! I have said many times she is my “one and only”, my forever partner…with everything. Someday one of us is not going to be here. This may be reality, but not something I really want to spend a lot of time worrying about. I am going to take advantage of all of the moments we have together…now! I can’t even imagine doing something, or going somewhere, without having her come along. I would be totally lost. I love her beyond words! We are working on 28 years of marriage…I am saying “I do” now, just like I did back in 1990!
She looks just as beautiful to me now as she did on our wedding day! That is why I do all this activity…working out…trying to stay healthy. I want to spend as many days as I can with her, and my kids. I want to experience as much of life as I can. I want to be able to say that I have no regrets. So I throw out a challenge to all of you: “What are you waiting for?” “What excuse do you come up with now to not get started?” When is the right time for you?” The right time is now! There is no excuse for waiting. Time goes by so fast, that if you are not careful, you are going to miss some of the most important times in your life! Plus…you may not have as many days in which to enjoy all of those extra activities that you want to do if you don’t care of yourself. Appreciate what you have, and who you have in your life, everyday! Your spouse, your kids, the rest of your family, your friends…anybody who is a part of your life! And then continue to keep showing them how much you appreciate them!
These were the flowers I had sent for Sarah for her birthday. Never stop showing how much you love somebody. I don’t want her having any regrets either. Does this mean we don’t ever have any tough times? Any arguments? Please…we are human. Every couple goes through tough situations, but you stay together because the bond you have together is so much stronger. Our wedding announcement had this saying on the cover: “Two hearts that beat as one!” Right on! Forever!
The older we get, the more I realize how time goes fast! Really fast! So fasten your seat belts, stay healthy by working on your diet, exercising, and spending the time with those people who are important to you! Then, you can always say with confidence, “I did the best I could, and I have no regrets”. No regrets! Strive to Survive…I have been saying that for years. Hopefully, I don’t just say it, but live it! I continue to tell my patients this all of the time. “If I can do it, so can you!” No more excuses! What are you waiting for? Nobody is going to do it for you! Enjoy all of the experiences life has to offer, with the people who mean more to you than anything. I love you Sarah, and want to have many more years, and celebrations with you! I am going to keep working on it as well to help ensure that I do everything in my power to make that happen! Keep moving everybody…and don’t take anything for granted!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3812
