'He guides me along the right paths'

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.

-Psalm 23:2-3

It's been months since this blog has featured a posting based on Scripture. Why?

My life has been increasingly busy - work, home, etc - and the Scripture-based postings require me to think differently. I don't want to just throw out random thoughts to accompany Bible verses. It's been easier lately to just quote a recent article about stroke research or prevention.

I ran across the verses above several weeks ago, waiting for inspiration. I don't know if I have inspiration or not, but I feel compelled to include these verses today, especially the last sentence.

Here's another story of 'A Stroke of Faith'

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

-Psalm 27:14

Mark Moore learned this lesson the hard way. Ten years ago he was hit by back-to-back strokes that could have taken his life. He spent a month in a coma and wake up to find his life forever changed. He re-learned how to walk.

His biggest challenges? One was impatience - recovery doesn’t happen overnight. “It’s incremental … you have to be patient,” he said in an interview earlier this week, coinciding with the release of his new book, “A Stroke of Faith: A Stroke Survivor’s Story of a Second Chance of Living a Life of Significance.” Just to be clear, the book isn’t directly related to this blog with a similar name.

Then again, it’s semi-related because like me, Mark had a stroke at a relatively young age, nearly died and struggled to recover. Also like me, he's finished races during his recovery. A year after his stroke, he finished a 5K (that's 3.1 miles) and went on to run a 10K.

What's your mantra?

If you've been here before, you might well know that I'm a distance runner. Not a fast one, but a runner just the same.

Before another dark winter sets in, I got a Road ID bracelet with my name plus phone numbers in case of emergency.

I added one more line: my running mantra. When I get tired or get in a bad mental state, I repeat to myself: "Relax. Power. Glide. God."

This is mostly stolen from Olympic runner Jeff Galloway. I'm a big fan, and his mantra is "Relax. Power. Glide."

Aging brains - including yours - might need some exercise

If you're alive, your brain is aging.

So recent research should be an interest for all of us out there, especially those of us who already have concerns about their brains. Seems that aging brains benefit from higher intensity physical exercise, study indicates:

In a recent study, those who reported doing little to no exercise showed greater long-term decline in memory and thinking skills, compared with those having high activity levels. The difference was equivalent to 10 years of aging, according to researchers at the University of Miami, Florida, and Columbia University, New York.

“Our results suggest that moderate to intense exercise may help older people delay aging of the brain,” said study author Clinton B. Wright, MD, MS, of the University of Miami. “The number of people over the age of 65 in the United States is on the rise, meaning the public health burden of thinking and memory problems will likely grow.”

Maybe all my (slow) running will help keep my brain functioning longer - looks like I have at least a bit of evidence on that.

New blog widget, good exercise tips

Today, a little something different.

When I began running in earnest in 1987, I had no idea what I was doing. Then, a few years later, I received a gift: the first edition of "Galloway's Book on Running."

And I'm still running. On the way, I've bought Jeff Galloway's second edition book, another one of his book titled "Running Until You're 100," a run/walk/run timer from his website and actually met Jeff in 2012. (Thus this photo; he's the one on the right.)

I give him a lot of the credit that, despite a stroke, back problems and a knee injury, I ran today.

So I'm pleased to announce a new self-created widget for this blog - a series of training and motivation tips from Olympian Jeff. You can find it along the right side of this page. Every time the page loads, the widget generates a random tip from Jeff's list.

He's coached over a million runners - slow, fast and in between - to their goals through clinics, retreats, training programs, books and e-coaching. You can sign up for his free newsletter at www.JeffGalloway.com.

Now, what if you're not a runner? And I realize most people aren't. You can still benefit. Even if you walk - even slowly - you can use many of Jeff's tips from the new widget and from his books or website. I hope the new feature is helpful - as helpful I have always found his solid advice to be.

Can you run too much for your health?

As you might know, I'm a longtime distance runner. And I'm convinced that was part of the reason I survived and recovered from my stroke in 1998.

When I began running back the late '80s, a 10-kilometer (6.2 miles) was a big race. A few decades later, half-marathon (13.1 miles) became in vogue. That still seems to be the case, although more and more I'm seeing races involving obstacle courses in addition to running.

Now that's a band wagon I'll never jump on.

Since some knee surgery last year, my running has been slower and less distances. This week, it was reported that might actually be better for me. So read this article titled Can a short jog lead to a longer life?:

'A light on my path'

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

-Psalm 119:105

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we're living in the dark much of the time. On most days that I get out and run, it's before daylight. My particular path is at least in part on a local gravel trail - unlighted and not always smooth.

So to avoid stumbling and falling, I wear an LED headlamp on those days. It pierces the dark and helps me pick my way along the trail. It's a light on my path.

I watch, too, other runners and walkers find a lamp for their feet. I see them, often at quite a distance, guiding their steps with their lights.

Life, too, can be dark - no matter the time of day. Trying to follow God, I've found, gives light to my personal path. I don't - you don't - all of us don't - have to stumble in the dark. God's word is there to guide you.

Young stroke survivor finds strength in determination

Photo from the U.S.
Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention

Are we all destined to run after a stroke? No. BUT, I still like stories like this because they do illustrate that after a stroke, determination is often key.

If you've visited this blog before, you'll know that was a runner before my stroke in 1998, started running again several weeks later, and continue to run. People, though, have different outcomes - physical, speech, vision, etc. - and not everyone can run. In fact, as the last post noted, stroke is the most common cause of permanent disability in the United States.

But the story is more than running. It's about a stroke survivor who found strength, a story that can echo in other lives. People might have different levels of abilities and strengths, different disabilities, different challenges. The important thing is to keep those challenges challenged.

So, here's a link, an excerpt and a video about a young stroke survivor finds strength in running:

'... Only God is here.'

Here then I am, far from the busy ways of men. I sit down alone; only God is here.

-John Wesley (1703-1791)

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

Today, I'm thankful of my times alone with God. Much of mine don't involving sitting, but rather running. In most places, there are lots of opportunities to run in groups. As a longtime runner, though, I like to run alone.

But not really alone. That's the time when I am away from the "busy ways of men" and find myself with God. When I pray, when I praise, when I worship. There are other times I do all these things, but today, I give thanks for those times when I'm alone with God.

 Have you found your times when you can sit down alone with only God? If so, when is that time? And if not - try it!

Exercise and stroke recovery

Photo from U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention

Nothing surprising in this report, how exercise aids in stroke recovery:

"There is strong evidence that physical activity and exercise after stroke can improve cardiovascular fitness, walking ability and upper arm strength," statement author Sandra Billinger, a physical therapist at the University of Kansas Medical Center, said in an AHA/ASA news release.

"In addition, emerging research suggests exercise may improve depressive symptoms, cognitive function, memory and quality of life after stroke," she added.

Despite these benefits, "too few health care professionals prescribe exercise as a form of therapy for stroke. There is a big gap in America between once stroke patients are discharged from rehabilitation and the transition to community exercise programs when they go home. Many are left on their own. We don't have a system in place to help stroke patients feel comfortable with exercise," Billinger said.

It's pretty self-evident that exercise- whatever level you can - is generally good for you. It can extend the length and quality of your life. It can be a tool in preventing strokes and other serious ailments.

If you've been here before, you've seen lots of references to the benefits of exercise. And I'm convinced that my history of a distance runner helped me survive my stroke and get through recovery.

So - with your doctor's blessing, exercise if you can, to whatever degree you can.

Running and stroke recovery, prevention

I'm now in my 27th year of running, and I broke a personal record recently. For the 27th time, I did not run in the Boston Marathon. Next year, I'll have a chance to break that record again with 28.

However, fellow stroke survivor Tedy Bruschi has completed the Boston Marathon.

A recent interview with Runner's World magazine touched on running and stroke:

Studies have suggested that running might help lower stroke risk. Did that factor into the formation of this team—and your decision to take up running after retiring from football?

Absolutely. One of the top ways to fight stroke—in addition to knowing the warning signs—is to keep yourself in the best physical shape you can. The doctors told me that one of the reasons why I was able to overcome and recover from my stroke was that I was probably in the best shape of my life. I was 31 years old, a professional athlete."

Good advice - event if you're never a professional football player. Stay in the best shape you can be. Might save your life.

'Run and not grow weary'

[B]ut those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

-Isaiah 40:31

I never get tired of that particular verse. And I certainly need it now.

A few weeks ago, I mentioned on this blog a knee injury. Initially, it seemed to resolve itself but not long ago, it came back with a vengeance. An MRI later, I was told I have a torn meniscus (cartilage between the femur and tibia).

And bad timing for this injury: Due to travel plans, I can't get it fixed (a relatively simple arthroscopic procedure) until April 1. So for the next several weeks, I can't run. That's quite a shock for someone who's been running for 26 years.

But like the Isaiah verse above mentions, hope is present. Like in my stroke recovery days and now, the key was - and is - to place hope and trust in God.

Here's hope that in warmer days ahead, I'll run and not grow weary. Again.

'In whom I trust'

I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

-Psalm 91:2

I've been injured. First, nagging pain in the upper part of my left calf. That subsided. A few days later came serious swelling and pain above my left knee. At this writing, I'm wearing a splint designed to immobilize my left knee, with crutches leaning nearby and an ice bag on my knee.

Also as of this writing, I don't have a precise diagnosis. However, when offices open, I plan to call for the earliest possible appointment with a specialist.

What will happen? I don't know.

For someone like me, that's annoying. As a longtime runner, I can't run at the moment, which bothers me intensely. Even routine tasks around the house are difficult and slow.

Thus the verse above - "...my God, in whom I trust."

What should I do while I wait to know what's wrong with my knee, while I wait to know about the future of my running, while I wait... ?

Remember that verse in Psalm - "...my God, in whom I trust."

I might know more before this is posted - that is my intention. I'm writing this to pledge that I will trust in God no matter what, before I know the outcome. That's not necessarily easy. It's much easier to trust my own judgment. I pledge to trust in God no matter what is before me.

God is present for you, too, to place yourself in his trust.

'Lead me on level ground'

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

-Psalm 143:10

This past weekend, I ran 10 miles into and around Branson, Mo. If you've ever been there, you know it's a very hilly place.

As a result, my time was slower than normal, and I had some sore leg muscles! 

Several months before, I fell. Pretty hard. I was running down a sidewalk I've run on numerous times before. A small unlevel spot caught me, and the next thing I knew, I was rolling onto the concrete and grass nearby. Fortunately, I wasn't seriously injured.

In both cases, though, I didn't regret my running at all. Running is my time to reflect, time to challenge myself, time to pray and praise.

Figuratively - if not literally - we've all encountered hills and even small rough spots that become obstacles. While taking on obstacles might strengthen us, our spirits often need some distraction-free level ground when we are ready to connect with God.

Follow him to that level ground.

(Photo midway through a hill I ran in Branson, Mo., from Google Maps)

Exercise: Stroke prevention medicine

I'm convinced that being a longtime distance runner helped me survive and recover from my stroke in 1998. Fifteen years later, I'm still doing it.

Not to say that running is for everyone. Some people can't stand it or aren't ready for it. Even starting a walking program, though, could reap benefits, according to a recent article how exercise can be a powerful medicine:

Exercise may be as effective as medication in preventing early death in people who've had heart attacks or strokes, a new study suggests.

"Doctors should give their patients advice about the lifesaving benefits of exercise, and when possible they should refer patients to rehabilitation programs with exercise programs," says the study's lead author, Huseyin Naci, a fellow at Harvard Medical School and a graduate student at the London School of Economics.

Preventing a stroke is far better than trying to recover from one (or another one). Exercise, I'm convinced, can be a huge help.

(Photo from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Moving more may lower stroke risk

A regular visitor to this blog won't be surprised - exercise is good for you!

I regularly run 4-10 miles - occasionally longer - and now, a study funded by the National Institutes of Health suggests that moving more may lower stroke risk:

The findings revealed that regular, moderately vigorous exercise, enough to break a sweat, was linked to reduced risk of stroke. Part of the protective effect was due to lower rates of known stroke risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity and smoking.

“Our results confirm other research findings but our study has the distinct advantage of including larger numbers, especially larger numbers of women as well as blacks, in a national population sample so these provide somewhat more generalizable results than other studies,” said Virginia Howard, Ph.D., senior author of the study from the School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham.

"Enough to break a sweat" is a good measure for exercise, at least in my experience. And it makes sense that exercise will help address high blood pressure and help with other key stroke risk factors.

Walking is a good start - cheap exercise most people can do.

(Photo from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Brisk walking helps stroke survivors

I'm a fan of moving - people who run or walk regularly benefit in countless ways. Now, a recent story mentions that research indicated that brisk walking helps stroke survivors:

Researchers at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica had one group of stroke survivors follow a supervised program of brisk outdoor walking for three months. A second group, which did not do supervised exercise, received therapeutic massages.

The walkers started out by following a designated route for 15 minutes, lengthening the duration of their walk by five minutes a week until they walked for 30 straight minutes. As people became more fit, they gradually increased their pace, reaching 60 to 85 percent of their target heart rate. People in the massage group received light massage on their affected side for 25 minutes three times a week.

At the study's end, the researchers found that the people in the walking group walked 17.6 percent farther in a six-minute endurance test than did people in the massage group and had a resting heart rate that was 1.5 percent lower. What's more, the walkers had nearly a 17 percent improvement in their quality of life, based on physical health, compared with the massage recipients.

I'm convinced that my longtime running habits helped me recover from my stroke almost 15 years ago. If you're not into running, walking can be vital, too!

'He will make your paths straight'

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

-Proverbs 3:5-6

If you've read this blog before, you know I'm a runner. These days - early January - it's dark most of the time I run during weekdays. I wear a headlamp to light the trail I use, but it's still dark and hard to see. And I can't see at all in a distance or to the side of my path.

So I can definitely appreciate a straight (and smooth) path.

And it's true in life in general. Often, even if things seem a bit dim to this human mind, if I keep following him, the path is indeed straight.




















(Photo from the city of Columbia, Mo.; text added by author)

'Be our strength every morning'

Lord, be gracious to us;
    we long for you.
Be our strength every morning,
    our salvation in time of distress.

-Isaiah 33:2

Somewhere along the way, I became a morning person. Most days when I run, I wake up before dawn, quietly prepare, and run. Not fast, to be certain, but run.

Because of this, I've seen lot of sunrises. Yet I'm never tired of them. A new day, new strength, new hope - all because of God's grace and love.

We often equate night - darkness - with times of distress. Yet God is waiting for us with a sunrise. We long for God, as the verse in Isaiah says. But in his time, morning is coming, with salvation, despite all the distress we face.

(Photo from National Center for Atmospheric Research)

Good news to modest-mile runners!

Without even realizing it, I'm ahead of the curve for runners!

Saw a recent story about how running helps you live longer. No big surprise there.

However, the article went on to say that when you run more than 20 miles a week, the benefit actually declines a bit. Unless I'm ramping up to a half or (maybe again one of these days) full marathon, I hit about 20 miles a week.

And don't get me wrong: High-mileage runners are still miles ahead, so to speak, than couch potatoes, no question. But the article discusses how even people who aren't elite athletes can reduce, among other things, stroke risk:

So read the article about running and mortality benefit:

What doesn't kill you is supposed to make you stronger, an adage that many a long-distance runner has clung to, but intriguing findings from a new study presented last week suggest the mortality benefits of running are best accumulated in shorter distances, specifically at less than 20 miles per week  In fact, at longer distances, the researchers observed a U-shape relationship between all-cause mortality and running, with longer weekly distances trending back in the wrong direction, toward less mortality benefit.

"We were thinking that at some dose of running, things would level off, that we'd see that runners would have a reduction in mortality at certain distances and then it would kind of level off," Dr Carl Lavie (Ochsner Health System, New Orleans, La.), one of the study investigators, told heartwire. "The fact that it reached its plateau at such a low level is surprising, as is the fact that it didn't level off but actually went the other way. We never had a point where runners did worse than nonrunners,"

So, no matter how slow, if you're a runner, get a few miles in this week!