This past week, I gave a 3 hour presentation at the Texas Physical Therapy Association’s Annual Conference – my third consecutive appearance at our annual meeting. The presentation was entitled “Mechanisms Of Therapeutic Exercise Progression”.

Exercise – and the parameters required to optimize the responses to it – is a large part of my daily world. Whether it is a program for injury recovery, injury prevention, or performance optimization, the parameters and dosage of exercise are critical. They are intimately related to whether or not we “turn on the gene” – or don’t.

The problem is that the application of therapeutic exercise, in my humble opinion, is a little behind the curve relative to what we actually know takes place at the cellular level. I see this problem with personal trainers, physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, chiropractors, and even physicians.

Apparently it is a topic that the physical therapy community in Texas is interested in. My session was very well-attended, with over 55 participants in a standing-room-only meeting room.

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There are too many distractions in our world that readily assail us at any juncture. Whether it’s work, or life, or relationships, or family, or any combination, it’s easy to get caught up in the “stuff”. Suddenly, stuff drives your day. And as they say, don’t sweat the small stuff, right? Well, a lot of stuff suddenly makes your day full of cognitive stress.

It is no small wonder that I don’t run with an iPod or mp3 player, simply because I find this to be a great time to get away from all the distractions of daily life. The peacefulness of hearing my feet strike the ground, my breathing, and then, my thoughts. And then – the moment. That precious moment. And another. And another. It’s almost like a string of pearls – each moment beautiful of it’s own accord, strung together one by one. A time when all stands still, when stuff just doesn’t matter, but the moment does.

Today’s 3M half marathon was a great reminder of how running provides us not only with an environment in which to "let go”, but also a metaphor for life as we know it. This metaphor also stands to remind us of how we err in daily life, and how we can excel.

Even when you know that stuff happens, that distractions rule your existence, it’s a challenge to rectify it. It is so hard to simply “be in the moment” and to let go of our attachment to emotions, drama, angst, anger, frustration, discontent, and a plethora of unpleasant stuff. And let’s face it – can you be self-actualized when you are chasing stuff around all day?

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It is quite amazing how when you decide to run for President, all of your past political successes and failures are scrutinized in the public spotlight. Texas Governor Rick Perry has come under scrutiny – thankfully, I might add – for his health care policies in the state of Texas.

Governor Perry has been very vocal about his 2003 tort reform and the effect it has had on physician recruitment in Texas. But I think that the only doctor that would approve of this statement might be a spin doctor.

Has Governor Perry’s tort reform in Texas changed the health care playing field? Or has his health care agenda been a miserable failure in more ways than one? Does any of this bode well for his role in national health care reform should he become President?

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As of today’s Supreme Court decision, we have an even greater mess brewing in our electoral process. In the Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission decision, the Supreme Court put up a hockey score vote of 5 – 4 to remove limits on corporate campaign spending. If we didn’t already have enough money being thrown at politicians to bend their ears on issues from immigration to health care to abortion, we now have even more.

In the decision, it was stated by Justice Anthony Kennedy that “"when government seeks to use its full power, including the criminal law, to command where a person may get his or her information or what distrusted source he or she may not hear, it uses censorship to control thought.”

I didn’t just read this, did I? Imagine, if you will, Corporation A (or Special Interest Z) with big budget, seeking support from Legislator B, “offering” to produce ads etc denouncing Legislator C, in return for “consideration” of their “policy suggestions”.

Hold on a second. I respectfully disagree with the Supreme Court decision. Fortunately, my First Amendment rights allow me to do so. Whew. Something about this whole thing just doesn’t make sense. A 100-year-old policy – gone – as quickly as it takes to say “Holy Campaign Finance Reform, Batman”.

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