Get Fit!

The snow storm on Tuesday was quite the deal!!  It wasn't the blizzard as advertised but it did drop a good 7-8 inches of snow followed by rain which then froze.  With temperatures in the 20's, the snow turned to solid ice.  I didn't go out on Tuesday and neither did the missionaries so no snow was shoveled.  Wednesday morning I decided I should at least clear off the steps in front of my door.  How foolish was I!  I would have needed a jack hammer to clear away the snow.  I sprinkled some snow melt on the ice but it had little effect on the thick ice layer.

Tuesday evening after the storm

Spending the day shut in was fun.  The sisters chose to spend much of the day with me too.  I did get a few things done like the first aid packets I give to the missionaries at the trainer/trainee meeting.  In fact I put together 30 kits so I will be prepared for a couple of months.

In each kit the new missionaries receive is an elastic wrap, Hand sanitizer, tooth flossers, hand wipes,
disposable thermometer, antibiotic ointment, and band-aids. My box of 30 kits.

Sisters Panoussi, Bush, Persinger and Steninger. My "shut-in" partners.

Wednesday evening, I went somewhere, I can't remember where, but when I got home about 8:30, someone had cleared off the steps and even shoveled the walk up to the church.  I don't know how in the world they did it but it was miraculous.  I asked the elders and one pair denied it outright, but the second pair I asked suggested that it was a ghost in the night.  I invited them to dinner on Sunday.

My car was frozen in the driveway so I rode to the mega-zone conferences this week with the Williams.  Thursday and Friday it warmed to the high 30's and some of the snow melted.  In the street at the end of the driveway there is still a large pile of frozen snow/ice pushed there by the snow plow.  Saturday, I decided that enough of the hill had melted so I braved the ice/snow/pile and got a running, sliding jump out of the driveway.  I was able to go grocery shopping and run a few other errands.

There are some cars though, that are still stuck behind mountains of snow.  Another warm day tomorrow is predicted so by Monday, maybe most people will be able to get their cars unburied.  Good thing public transportation is so good here.

We had some snow on Wednesday to add to Tuesday's storm. This picture shows how the cars are buried.
Imagine trying to dig you car out of this pile of ice!! (Today, Sunday, I saw people still unburying their cars.
Most are out though.)

The zone conference scheduled for Tuesday was postponed so all would be safe in the storm.  Wednesday the conference was in Flushing.  There was a bit of a storm that day too but the William's have a four wheel drive so they were able to get out of the driveway with no difficulty.

Thursday the conference was in Woodside and Friday it was in Plainview.  This conference cycle I decided to do a presentation on the importance of exercise.  This is what I based my presentation on:

The senior couples help with the lunches at the conferences. We were ahead of schedule so here
you see us catching up. Elder Williams, Sister Adams, me, Elder Johnson and Elder Adams.

Lunch

My posters

When many people decide to "get fit," they assume it involves rigorous activity. But you don't have to spend hours in a gym to be physically active. You can get in shape by performing everyday activities in the home. Every time you climb a flight of stairs, walk to the store, or carry packages, your health and fitness levels are improving.

When someone is physically fit, they feel and look better, and stay healthier. The earlier a person starts getting in shape, the more they'll reduce their risk of numerous illnesses. Here are some of the benefits that physical activity offers you:

1. It strengthens the heart. The heart is a muscle. Like other muscles, its performance improves when it's regularly challenged by exercise. The heart responds to exercise by becoming stronger and more efficient. Strengthening the heart muscle can help ward off heart disease -- the leading cause of death in the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services -- even in early childhood.

2. It helps keep arteries and veins clear. Exercise reduces the amount of harmful cholesterol and fats in a person's blood. It increases the flexibility of the walls of blood vessels, and helps to lower blood pressure. This can reduce a person's risk for heart attack and stroke.

3. It strengthens the lungs. Working hard increases lung capacity, and their efficiency in moving air in and out of the body. As a result, more oxygen is drawn into the body and more carbon dioxide and other waste gases are expelled. Regular exercise helps prevent the decline in oxygen intake that occurs naturally with age or as a result of inactivity.

4. It reduces blood sugar levels. Exercise prevents sugar from accumulating in the blood by triggering muscles to take up more glucose from the bloodstream and use it for energy. This can reduce a person's risk of developing diabetes.

5. It controls weight. When a person is sedentary, he tends to be taking in more calories than are needed. These unused calories accumulate as fat. A person who is physically active may have a deficit of calories, which takes fat away and lowers weight. Lowered weight is good for the heart and can be beneficial in people with diabetes.

6. It strengthens bones. Just as muscles grow stronger when physically stressed, bones also respond by getting stronger. Exercise increases bone density, which helps prevent osteoporosis, a condition in which bones lose density, weaken, and become porous and fragile.

7. It improves energy levels. Regular exercise often makes people feel more energetic, allows them to be more active, and reduces the likelihood that they'll tire during the day.

8. It enhances emotional well-being. Most people report that they feel calm and have a sense of well-being after they exercise. Exercise, according to one theory, releases beta-endorphin, a natural substance in the body that is hundreds of times more potent than morphine. Another theory points to serotonin as the cause of the exercise high. Increased levels of serotonin in the central nervous system are associated with feelings of well-being, heightening of appetite, and lessening of mental depression. The weight loss that accompanies exercise can also cause people to feel better about themselves.

The Human Body: A Gift and a Responsibility

Larry Tucker BYU professor of exercise sciences when this devotional address was given 28 May 2013.

The Lord understands everything about the human body. He created it. He knows how to make it healthy and what causes it to weaken and die. As He demonstrated with the Three Nephites and with John the Beloved, if He desires He can modify the physical tabernacle so that it will not get sick or die. Science is a long way from those discoveries, but, gradually, through research and the Lord's inspiration, we are learning how to best nourish, exercise, and repair the body.

In Doctrine and Covenants 130 we learn that if we want the blessings of good health, we have to obey certain laws. I love verses 20 and 21:

There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated-

And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.

Notice that all blessings are predicated on obedience to certain laws. Blessings-and, for that matter, negative consequences-do not occur randomly. Natural laws govern all aspects of the universe, including how the human body functions. These laws are eternal and unchanging. They are "truths." I find it fascinating to watch as new discoveries are made regularly, helping us better understand the eternal truths that govern all that we as humans know and have yet to learn.

We now know that much of good health and disease is determined by living or not living certain laws.

I love to get up in the morning and go to work to study the laws that govern human health and disease. These laws are intriguing to me. As Church members we are greatly blessed to have some of the most important and basic laws of health in the Word of Wisdom. I fear that many Church members underestimate the value of the Word of Wisdom. These truths are not all-inclusive, but there are many wonderful laws of health contained within the twenty-one verses of Doctrine and Covenants 89. Given that these truths were revealed in the early 1800s, they are remarkable in their coverage and accuracy. However, there is a catch. We must obey the laws to receive the blessings.

The effects of abiding by spiritual laws are typically gradual, line upon line. If we miss our morning prayer or skip our daily scripture study, there are consequences. We may not notice any change, but we will be different, ever so slightly. Fortunately we do not lose our testimonies in a day. If we miss another day, the effects are more significant, but we still may not notice any difference. Slowly but surely our testimonies grow or deteriorate based on the extent to which we nourish them. Over time the consequences of what seem to be insignificant choices accumulate, and we become who we now are.

The same is true regarding our lifestyle decisions and the health of our bodies. Line upon line, day by day, our bodies change ever so slightly based on what we eat, the extent to which we exercise, and other important choices. The daily consequences appear insignificant, but when summed together the effects are amazing-often dictating the diseases we develop, how long we live, and the quality of our lives.

On Thursday after zone conference, I went into Manhattan and had dinner with my niece, Alica and her husband, Matt, and their daughters, Aspen, Brooke, and Callie.  They came from Phoenix to NYC for spring break-just in time for the blizzard.  I enjoyed my dinner with them and appreciated the place they chose.  Max Brenner:  Chocolate by the Bald Guy.   You can read about it here.

Matt, Aspen, Brooke, Alicia and Callie

They couldn't get an available taxi so they arrived in a white limo!!!

The restaurant is in the area of Union Square Park.  There is a statue there of George Washington.  It is the oldest statue in the NYC Parks collection.  It is a very nice park.  I think I will go back on a more spring-like day and explore it more thoroughly.

You may read about the statue here

Across the street from the George Washington statue is a large creation on the sides of two adjacent buildings.  It apparently has caused quite a ruckus in the city.  I think it is interesting but many object to it.  The work is called the Metronome.  The digital clock is most interesting.  I encourage you to read about this.  The part about the clock is nearer the end of the article.

You may read about it here.

This city is full of amazing things.  Around every corner I find something that catches my eye or piques my interest.

This week I had occasion to study about feeling and recognizing the Spirit in our lives. The gift of the Holy Ghost I received at baptism blesses me in every way. I rely on and can count on that guidance as long as I am trying to do my part.  One of the talks I read was given by Sister Linda K Burton at a CES devotional at BYU-Idaho.  You may read it here.

I pray that you will enjoy the guidance and peace that the Holy Ghost can bring to you.

I love you my family and friends.

Before each conference the missionaries may have yogurt with granola. Sister Reynolds brings boxes
that each contain blueberry, strawberry and peach yogurt. The strawberry goes first and then the peach.
At the end there is ALWAYS a lot of blueberry and a few peach left over. On Friday I decided to
tackle the problem. We actually had a few strawberry left and much fewer cartons of blueberry!

You may remember Laura from previous blogs. She is a convert from Colombia. She desperately
wanted to attend the temple. She obtained her recommend the day before she left to return to her home
because her visa expired. I received pictures this week. She made it to the temple.
She is one happy young woman!

I love the blue skies and Jake, my hiking son. I appreciate the pictures he sends of the mountains I miss.

On my walk Saturday, there was a flock of birds around two houses. They were chirping noisily.
I only captured a picture of a small portion of the number.

Sunday dinner. Tula, me, Elder Wilkins, Sisters Persinger, Bush, Steninger, Panoussi,
Elders Winters, Aguilera, and Menden

Tula. My 92 year old friend from my ward. She is from Peru originally but has lived here for many years.
She said that when she moved here the only place to go to church was on Long Island. She has seen
the church grow and change in Queens and Brooklyn. She was the first Relief Society President in
the Rego Park 1st Ward. She is full of stories.