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Fit for The Long Race
San Marcos City Councilman and CTMC Hospice Advisory Board Member Scott Gregson is committed to his personal wellness. As part of his active lifestyle, he completed a 200-mile bicycle ride from Seattle to Portland.
With his 60th birthday approaching, San Marcos City Councilman and CTMC Hos pice Advisory Board member Scott Gregson prepared for a 200-mile Seattle-to-Portland bicycle ride with one goal: that he would begin the adventure with his son, Tyler.
“He told me, ‘Dad, I want to spend more time with you;” Gregson said. “And the bike ride was a way we could spend a lot of time together:’ And they did just that in July.
Gregson lives an urban lifestyle, residing on the San Marcos square and biking or walking most everywhere he goes. His recent bike trek is a testament to his commitment to staying healthy and active. As a new grandad, city leader and member of several com munity boards and organiza tions, Gregson lives a busy life.
“You have to make sure you take the time to focus on your health, because if you don’t, no one else will. You have to set it in your schedule just like you eat and breathe;’ he said.
David Roscoe of Method Strength Personal Training works with Gregson twice a week to help him achieve his fitness goals.
“A lot of the people I work with are very busy folks, and Scott stands out as someone who is willing to go above and beyond to do what I ask him to do;’ Rascoe said. “He works at home to optimize his sleep, nutrition and stress levels, and he has seen really good results because of it.’
Although a personal trainer may not be the best option for everyone, Gregson stresses the importance of finding a workout partner for accountability and to make working out enjoyable.
“When I bike, I listen to books I’ve downloaded. It also gives you a lot of time to think when you want that;’ he said.
Gregson enjoys organic meals that are prepared ahead of time. He uses a variety of health-relat ed smart phone apps to help him stay on track, as well as tracking daily factors such as mood, stress, energy, glucose, water intake and sleep.
‘Tm a finance guy, so numbers mean a lot to me;’ he said. “You can only improve what you measure:’
Staying active and eating healthy are priorities to Greg son, but he knows there is an other essential factor to living a healthy and vital life.
“It’s healthy to have a positive mental attitude;’ he said. “The only person who can make you feel bad about you is you. Why create thunder clouds around you when you don’t have to?”
Gregson often uses humor to add positivity to life, and he always has a joke ready to tell people “just to put a smile on their face;” he said.
Moving forward, Gregson plans to carve out more time for meditation to de-stress from his busy schedule as well as getting more in-depth with tracking his personal health factors.
“I’m investing in my health;’ he said. “Just a minor effort makes a big difference, even walking. It’s about taking the time to do the things your body needs:”
The Beat Goes On
David Rhoads and his family credit the advanced technology at their community hospital for saving him during a life-threatening cardiac event.
Last summer David Rhoads, Jr. and his son, Jonathan, were completing an outdoor job on their five acres near San Marcos. “Dad runs circles around me,” Jonathan said. “He always has a project going on.”
Suddenly, David experienced a familiar aching and burning sensation in the back of his neck. The symptoms mirrored a past cardi ac event that resulted in several stents. He hoped the danger signs would fade with a nap, but his wife, Rebecca Rhoads, didn’t want to wait. “I just said, ‘Let’s go,’” she recalls.
The Rhoads family lives miles down a rocky dirt road beyond a few locked gates. “I knew we could get to the hospital quicker than an ambulance could get to us.” Jonathan drove as fast as he could, weaving in and out of traffic to bring his father to the Central Texas Medical Center Emergency Room in San Marcos.
David admitted, ”A lot of times when you go to the ER, you dread having to wait, and this wasn’t the case. They took me immediately into the room and did an EKG.”
Dr. Anthony Cedrone, CTMC’s interventional cardiologist, entered the room to tell the Rhoads family that David’s electrocardiogram was not normal.
“He told us, ‘I think you’re having a.. .’ and before he could finish his sentence my dad flat-lined;’ Jon athan said. “I couldn’t believe what I just saw. I didn’t think that would ever happen in front of me.” Jonathan recalls a swarm of doctors and nurses rushing to his father’s aid for shock compressions.
“Watching the staff and how they took care of him, I knew that he would be okay;’ Jonathan said. “I knew that he was going to come back. I had faith in everything that was going on.”
CTMC’s emergency medical team was able to stabilize David, and Dr. Cedrone put two stents in his heart.
Dr. Cedrone sat down with Rebecca, Jonathan and David’s oldest son, David III, to explain Mr. Rhoads’ condition. “He went the extra mile which did a lot for me because I’m very visual,” David III said.
“I couldn’t ask for a more considerate person than Dr. Cedrone;’ said David Jr:s sister, Mary Routh, who also rushed to the hospital as soon as she heard the news about her brother. “We are family, and we are glad that CTMC is here to take care of us.”
Dr. Cedrone says the goal of CTMC’s cardiology program is to provide the highest level of cardiac care for the local community. “That’s really invaluable since patients can stay close to home, and their families can stay close to home, too,” he said.
Although David wasn’t aware of CTMC’s Heart Center at the time of his heart attack, David calls the technology a blessing. “There are times that I’ve heard, ‘Go to Austin; but that’s really not the case:’ David Jr. said. “This is a good, good facility. The quality of care I got I would say is as good as anywhere I could have gone. I’m glad to know they’re here.”
The Real McCoy
At the age of 40, Miriam McCoy — whose husband founded McCoy Building Supply — was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Decades later, she’s still managing her condition through healthy lifestyle choices.
Slow cooker beef burgundy with veggies, green chile chick en and corned beef with cab bage are among the aromas that fill Miriam McCoy’s rural San Marcos home.
“I have my eating down to a science;’ she said. “I always have good food in my refrigerator and pantry:’
A nutritious diet is important to her because, at the age of 40, she was diagnosed with type 1 di abetes. Although she was not aware of any family history when she was diagnosed with the disease, Miriam knew something was wrong when she started experiencing excessive thirst and unintentional weight loss.
Miriam and her late husband, Emmett, relocated their fam ily to San Marcos with their Building Supply Company in 1972. After Emmett McCoy’s passing in 2012, Miriam continued to make healthy meals a priority.
“Many people say you can’t cook for one person, but mother eats good, fresh food;’ said McCoy’s daugh ter, Brenda Remme. “She likes to eat well. When my dad was alive, he always said he felt healthier because he ate what she ate:’
For Miriam, the key to healthy eating habits means setting aside a few hours every week end to prepare bulk meals for the week.
“That way, I have good food ready to eat all the time:’ she said. “I choose milk over orange juice because it has protein. The sugar in juice doesn’t last in your system as long. I’m careful to not overeat, and that makes a difference:•
Miriam McCoy checks her blood sugar before meals and at bed time. In addition to using insulin shots to manage her condition, she will use an insulin gel when needed. Because it’s important to include a carbohydrate in meals when taking i11Sulin, she always has sweet and white potatoes on hand in her kitchen.
blood sugar levels and keeps a record of her insulin intake. Every six months, she visits her endocrinologist for a check-up.
In addition to eating well, regular exercise is part of Miriam’s weekly routine. She played tennis until the age of 80. “It’s a great game for getting several generations together at the same time;’ she recalls fondly.
Today her personal trainer meets with her three times a week for an intense hour-long workout. “I never dread going to exercise because it’s a fun time and as we get older, we all want to keep up our muscle tone,” Miriam said.
A Central Texas Medical Center dietitian gave her a journal where she logs her
When it comes to managing her diabetes, Miriam’s positive outlook plays just as much of a role as her healthy nutrition and activity habits.
“If I had to get something, I would choose diabetes;’ she said. “It helped me improve my lifestyle, and I could still live the way I wanted to live. I feel good every day. It really isn’t hard to live healthy:”
