by Dan | Jan 29, 2017 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Heart Health, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health
How many times do you hear somebody say, “if you want it, you need to take a chance!” Exercise, just like life, is the same way. You never know what you are truly made of until you take a chance. Here Sarah is showing her muscles, getting ready to take on another race. She has done many half marathons, but never a marathon. She has always said she is only “half stupid”. Well, come October this year, she is going to be doing her first ever marathon…26.2 miles! She is taking the plunge. I have no doubt she will finish, but she is nervous. She has never done one before. Just like for everyone else, we don’t know what our body is capable of, until we “take a chance”. People don’t take a chance because they think it is impossible, too risky, or even pointless.
Those who have heart say, “Give it a try”. Only by going too far can you truly know how far you can go. We take chances every day in our lives. We take risks, we worry, we may even think some of the things we do are “stupid”. But if you have heart, the sky is the limit. Who knows what you are capable of achieving. We even surprise ourselves many times.
But you have to start. You have to start somewhere. You have to start sometime. The time is now. 5 minutes, then 10 minutes, then you are doing a mile, then a 5k. What is your end point? Who knows! We ourselves don’t know what are limits are…and then most of those limits are created in our heads. We don’t believe we can do them, so we don’t even try. Unless you start, you will never know!
Our run club has been going on for over 4 years now. We started our very small…so small that for much of that first year it was the “Dan and Sarah club”. It keeps growing every year. People start to see that it is more than just running. It is about socializing, making friendships, …laughing. It is about taking a chance. Taking a chance on becoming a better you! Everyone starts out slow, and then you keep building. Quality takes time! Overcoming our fears, and our minds, tend to be the biggest obstacles.
When my daughter Megan was home over the Christmas break from school, she came running with our run club on Sundays a couple times. It was much colder here than it was back at school. She had to overcome her resistance to the cold, but once she got going, she ended up going 6 miles with us! That is the furthest she has run! Now she has been talking about doing a half marathon sometime in the future. This is a swimmer talking about running! We need to get out of our comfort zones, and if no exercise is our comfort zone, then we just need to get moving!
In life, you have to take chances. If you don’t take chances, life gets pretty boring. Be adventurous, take a chance…you will surprise yourself with what you are capable of achieving. This whole process will help you become a better you in every aspect of your life!
If you get a chance, take it! If it changes you, let it! I have said many times things worth having or doing are never easy. That is why accomplishing them makes them so much better! Don’t go through life having regrets, wishing you had done this, or done that. Go do it! What is stopping you? Yourself! Believe in you! The return on the investment of you is incredible. You are priceless…you only get one life. Live it to the fullest!
What are you waiting for? Tomorrow? Next week? Next year? How about today! Today is a great day to become a better you…so take a chance on you! I have a feeling you are worth it!
Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3411
by kelsey | Jan 26, 2017 | Etc.
Jumpstart your wellness and get ready for summer by joining our spring STRIVE! Join us for STRIVE 2 Survive, our 12-week health and wellness program beginning March 14th!
The two main components of STRIVE 2 Survive include diet & exercise.
12 Week Wellness Program
6 Lectures: every other Tuesday @ 5:30-6:30pm.
March 14: “Healthy Eating Made Easy” Kelsey Raml, MS, RD, LN
March 28: “Exercise for the Health of It” Dr. Dan Reiffenberger & Dr. Torness
April 11: “Your Equation to Success” Dr. Jon McAreavey
April 25: “Medications…to do or not to do” Deidra VanGilder, PharmD
May 9: “A Walk thru the Wellness Wheel” Dr. Clark Likness
May 23: “Making Health a Way of Life” STRIVE Team
6 Take Home Lessons: sent to you during the weeks we don’t meet. Topics are focused on wellness.
Evaluations
- Lab Work: lipid & glucose labs: beginning and end of program
- Body Composition Testing : beginning and end of program
- Weekly Weigh Ins
Cost: $130 includes lab work, body composition tests, lectures, lessons, and Strive 2 Survive t-shirt
STRIVE 2 Survive applies to all who have a heartbeat…adolescents to the elderly!!
Contact us NOW to get enrolled!
For more information and to sign up, contact:
886-8482 or email strive2survive@brownclinic.org Visit our wellness blog at: www.s2sbrownclinic.com
by kelsey | Jan 25, 2017 | Food
Did you know that more than one million farmers and ranchers raise cattle in every state in the United States?! Since cattle are raised throughout the nation, the producers use their local resources to produce nutritious, safe, and tasty beef. Because of this, there is a wide variety of choices of beef for consumers. You may have heard the terms grain finished, grass finished, natural and certified organic when considering choices of beef. It is important to understand the meanings of these choices to help make the most desirable selection per your personal preferences. One thing is for sure though, no matter what you desire, there is a great choice for you!
Grain Finished: cattle spend most of their lives grazing on pasture and then spend 4-6 mo in a feedlot; fed scientifically and healthy balanced diet of grains such as corn, wheat, or soybeans; may judiciously be given FDA approved antibiotics or growth promoting hormones; may be given vitamin or mineral supplements; have continuous access to clean water and room to grow and roam
Grass Finished: cattle spend their entire lives grazing on pasture, may judiciously be given FDA approved antibiotics or growth promoting hormones; may be given vitamin or mineral supplements; can be difficult to produce year round in North America due to changing seasons and weather conditions
Naturally Raised: cattle can be grain finished or grass finished–look at the label for details; have never received antibiotics or growth promoting hormones, may be given vitamin and mineral supplements; must be certified by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service
Certified Organic: cattle can be grain or grass finished as long as the feed is 100% organic; have never received antibiotics or growth promoting hormones, may be given vitamin and mineral supplements; must be certified by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service; look for the official label.
For more information check out: www.beefnutrition.org or view the full educational handout regarding this information at: http://www.beefnutrition.org/CMDocs/BeefNutrition/ChoicesofBeef_Final_web.pdf
-Kelsey
by Dan | Jan 22, 2017 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
Ever have that moment when you would like to accomplish something, and those thoughts in your head start getting in the way, trying to convince you that it can’t be done? I think we have all had those at one time or another, but we need to look past that. We need to quit listening to all of the negativity that our mind will try to produce, and only think of the positive. Here my nurse Chris, and former nurse Susan, just completed their first half marathon. I have written on them in the past. These are 2 people that if I would have told them 10 years ago they were going to run a half marathon, they would have told me I needed medication. They worked hard, they worked and supported each other, and accomplished what they set out to do! They just had to convince themselves that it could be done.
If you can imagine, and then believe, you will achieve! If you convince yourself of this, you are half way there. We tend to be our own worst obstacles when it comes to exercise, and not believing that we can do something. We can! You have to have the belief first, and then keep working on it, and believe it with all your heart.
Sarah and I both try to practice what we preach. We tell our patients all of the time that they have to work on their diet, and exercise. My line is “I am going to keep telling you this until you are not here anymore”! We need to keep working on this for as long as we are alive. Maybe, it will help us stay alive longer too. Life becomes much more fulfilling, adventurous, and rewarding when we do this as well. We have also tried to instill this upon our kids as well. Megan is the swimmer…I still am not sure how she got this, because neither one of us really like to swim. Molly and Nick both run…that they got from us! We can have our fun competition as well.
We can show how tough we are before the race! But what was even funner for me?
Crossing the finish line with one of them! Here I am finishing one of the runs with Molly. Sarah and I are planning on going to Disney again next January. Sarah wants to do the half, I will do the marathon. Megan, my swimmer, says she wants to come along and run the half! I am going to make a runner out of her yet. When she was home over Christmas break, she ran a few times with us at run club. I loved that! We are rubbing off on our kids!
No truer words have been spoken! Never give up on yourself. You have no idea what you can accomplish yet. When that day comes, and we are no longer here, we want to be able to say I did all I could, and lived my life to the fullest. No regrets!
I will summarize with this quote by Mark Victor Hansen.
Believe, and good things will happen! Believe that the greatest gift you can give your family, and the world…is a healthy you! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3404
by kelsey | Jan 19, 2017 | Diet, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Stress is a part of everyone’s life and many of us deal with it by resorting to food. Emotional and stress eating is very common and can be very detrimental to your health, so it’s important to learn how to deal with that stress to not only reduce your stress, but also improve your health! Try these easy to follow tips, to help you avoid stress eating.
1. Tune Out & Move! Turn on your favorite tunes and get moving! Exercise is always an easy way to reduce stress because it helps clear your mind. Even 5-10 minutes of walking after a stressful situation can relax your body and help you be more level headed. An added bonus is that it burns calories and can help you reach your weight goals.
2. Drink Up! Drinking water not only keeps you hydrated but also can help you to function. Drinking 64oz per day is a great place to start. Warm teas can also be helpful because they may have a calming effect, in addition to providing your body with antioxidants, beneficial for disease prevention.
3. Eat some carbs. Choosing complex carbs such as whole grains, will keep your blood sugar more level and help to keep you from getting stressed. Including small portions of these complex carbs at each meal can give your blood sugars a better consistency throughout the day, as those ups and downs can be extremely stressful, and lead to more eating.
4. Increase veggie consumption. Crunchy veggies help reduce tension because it gives some release in those jaw muscles that always tighten up when we are stressed. Eating raw carrots or celery is a good snack that won’t ruin your waist line
5. Make “good fats” your friend. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in foods such as olive oil, canola oil, nuts and fish. These can help control stress hormone levels as well as mood disorders. These fats also contribute to brain function, allowing you to deal with the stress properly instead of turning to food.
6. Don’t skip meals! Eat a balanced, consistent intake with several small meals and snacks/day to prevent being too hungry and overeating and binging on unhealthy foods.
-Kelsey
