No Equipment? No Problem! (Crull Fitness

No Equipment? No Problem!

by Teri Hebert

Did you know that you can effectively work out your entire body without the use of any equipment? No gym, no weights, no problem! Try these effective body weight exercises if you find yourself without equipment but with a desire to start getting active or to maintain a workout schedule away from your home or gym.

1. Squats

Tried, true, and effective. With your body weight in your heels (not leaning forward), feet about hip width apart, and toes facing forward simply stand straight up, then lower your body down. And repeat. Be careful to keep your chest up and your back as straight as possible. If this feels awkward at first, try this move with your back against a wall to see what it feels like to not lean forward while standing up and lowering down.

2. Pushups

Everyone’s favorite exercise! If you are new to pushups, try a modification. In the pushup position (face down, hands flat on floor and placed about shoulder width apart), keep your knees on the ground. Be sure to keep your back straight as you lift and lower your upper body. Once these get more comfortable and you build your upper body strength, lift up to your toes (no longer resting on your

knees). Having lower back discomfort? Try using a countertop edge (rather than the floor) as your push-off point.

3. Sit-ups

Lay on your back with your knees bent and heels on the floor. With your fingers resting lightly behind your ears, sit up straight, then lower back down. Be sure not to lock your fingers behind your neck to avoid a neck injury (don’t pull on your neck!). Use your core muscles to lift and lower your body, working your abs and low back muscles.

4. Leg Raises

Lying flat on your back with your legs slightly above the floor and out straight, lift and lower your legs, one at a time, alternating legs. Be sure to keep your low back firmly connected to the floor to avoid back injury or strain. This move not only works your legs, it works your lower abs to help flatten your tummy and build a strong core.

Do each of these exercises in a circuit (one after the other), 10-12 reps each, three times throughwithout a break if you can, but feel free to rest 30 seconds between each round if needed. You’ll find that it doesn’t take long to go through these exercises, you can do them anywhere (indoors or out!), you’ll work up a sweat, and if you are consistent about doing these or similar exercises several times per week (combined with a healthy diet!), you’ll see improvement in your strength and body composition over time.

Super Seniors

VETERAN SUPER SENIORS

by Teri Hebert

In this July/August edition of Canyon Creek Life, to honor the celebration of our country’s independence following the July 4th holiday, we wanted to highlight two of our veteran Super Seniors. We appreciate not only their service to our country, but what they bring to our neighborhood and to so many lives around them. This month, please get to know Jay Delhite and John Tuthill!

If you haven’t met Jay yet, you’ve probably seen him around the neighborhood on his light blue golf cart, or you’ve seen the fruits of his labor: one of the 1,500 flags placed throughout the neighborhood four times a year as part of the neighborhood Flag Program. Jay is the guy who coordinates the effort to place flags at homes in Canyon Creek for Memorial Day, July 4th, Patriots Day (9/11), and Veterans Day.

Jay is a veteran who served in the Army from 1953 to 1955. He joined after college, which he says was a blessing. Had he been drafted as scheduled in 1950, he might have been deployed to war. Instead, he was able to go through the ROTC program in college and graduate with a commission as an Army 2nd Lieutenant. He then went through Quartermaster School, thinking he would serve his country in the role of supporting troops with food, water, and other field services. But his assignment to Killeen Base was something very different.

As Jay tried to find where he needed to report for duty, he were told to go to Killeen, TX and Ft. Hood. But when he arrived at Ft. Hood, they told him that his assignment was actually at Killeen “Base” a different location. Jay soon learned that it was actually a secret location, and the man at the service station where he asked for directions to the base had never heard of it.

Killeen Base at the time was a storage facility for nuclear weapons that required Top Secret clearance for all personnel. Jay arrived without the proper clearance for his duties and only Quartermaster training. So, while he waited for his clearance to come through, he worked for two months as the assistant officer’s club manager.

Finally, his clearance came through and he was trained for his job as a handling officer. He helped test weapons in the storage facility and get them safely where they needed to be, whether that was back to storage or to be transported to another base somewhere.

He said it was interesting work that he couldn’t talk about, since it was top secret. Of course as I chatted with Jay for this article, I confirmed with him as he shared his story with me that I could share his top secret story with his neighbors of Canyon Creek. Luckily, Jay says there are no concerns now.

After fourteen months in his role, he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant. And after he served his commitment to the Army, he left and worked for the next 40 years with Shell Corporation.

Shell moved Jay around the country a bit, but we’re so glad he’s been settled in Canyon Creek since 1973. Eventually, Jay found himself on the HOA Board in the role of Vice President of Membership. Through his vision, he helped increase the HOA membership from 200 to 2,000 (out of 2,800 homes) at its highest.

Several years ago, Jay met with the then president of the Rotary club about the flag program. They both saw it as a good fundraising idea, and Jay began putting it in to practice. He saw the convenience of adding the optional $35 annual flag fee to the $15 HOA annual membership dues, which helped increase the number of homes requesting flags each year. Eventually, Jay took over the program from the Rotary for Canyon Creek and he’s been the flag man ever since.

More than 1,500 flags are distributed for those four recognition times each year. The flags go out the Saturday before the holiday and are picked up the Saturday afterward. Jay does much of the legwork and organization work himself, including putting the flags together with the poles in his own garage.

But he also coordinates with the Boy Scout troops to help put the flags out and bring them back in for each event. With 1,500 flags to

put out four times a year, it’s more than one flag man can handle! And with the partnership between the HOA and the Boy Scouts, it’s a significant fundraising effort that supports both organizations.

Though he lovingly calls it an administrative and logistical nightmare, Jay keeps a careful watch over the program, both the flags and his database of flagneeding neighbors, with every detail in his process developed over time. He also goes out every April to check all of the flag pole Photo by Amber Starling Photography holes to make sure they are in good shape after the winter and before Memorial Day flags are put out. And when he notices a flag is beginning to show too much wear, he respectfully takes that flag out of use and honorably retires the flag to the Boy Scouts for their official flag burning disposal events.

Jay, we are thankful for your service to your country, and to your neighborhood through the flag program!

John Tuthill has lived in Canyon Creek on Overcreek drive since 1981. He and his wife celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary just two years ago. I learned that John flew quite a few combat missions in Vietnam. But I had no idea that when I spoke with John, he would offer an amazing testimony. And that “quite a few” missions was actually 233 missions.

John served 5-1/2 years total with four of those years in combat, followed by a year and a half as an instructor in Beeville. But John wants to be clear that Vietnam war veterans do not consider themselves heroes. I hear that, yet it creates a challenge for me to honor John and others like him for their service without regaling them as heroes. We typically celebrate our veterans as those who fought for our freedoms, which by default puts them in to a “hero” category.

But with John’s wishes in mind, here is an excerpt of a piece John wrote himself about a specific mission he flew and the impact of that mission later in his life:

All was focused on “going home.”.... as a close-air support pilot,... in support of U.S. Army and U.S. Marine ground pounders, I found satisfaction in knowing that maybe I could help someone survive his 365day tour and go home....

Eight Marines were being pursued by an entire company of NVA troops and in eminent danger. Helicopters had gone in twice in attempts to extract these men, and twice they had been repelled by intense enemy fire. The enemy had closed within 50 meters of the Marines, and without immediate action, their survival was in doubt.

As we circled under dense overcast skies and in mountainous terrain to spot the “friendlies”, I lost my radio and had to use hand signals to relinquish the lead to my wingman. I had no transmission capability and only intermittent reception. The airborne FAC asked for quick low-level action due to the severity of the situation. Dropping ordinance at 450 knots on top of a mountain within 50 meters of “friendlies” is difficult at best.... It’s a case of hit the target or these eight Marines don’t get off this mountain, let alone go home....

It was easy to see where to drop after I rolled in and got the target in sight. The top of the mountain lit up like sparklers on the 4th of July as the NVA filled the sky in front of me with intense small arms automatic weapons fire. I zeroed in on the muzzle flashes and released my nape to land right in the middle of the area where the muzzle flashes emanated. I passed over the target at 500 feet altitude, pulled off hard left at four to six Gs, and turned my head back toward the target to see if we got a hit. Right on, right on....

Back in the trailer we heard that ten minutes after we pulled off target, the “jolly greens” had gone in to pick up the eight Marines and did not take one round of enemy fire. Eight more men survived one of their 365 days one more day closer to going home. No champagne, no great celebration, just a knowing smile to George, and our wingman, and his RIO that another mission was successfully accomplished.... Not a day has passed since I came home in June 1970 that I haven’t thought about those who served, those who survived, those who died, and those whose lives I took on a day like that.

While John might not see himself as a hero, it is clear that he had a purpose by serving in that war, and in the story he’s shared since then. He goes on to say:

We all pick up burdens as we travel the road of life, and the Vietnam Veteran has more than his share. These burdens look like boulders on life’s road behind us. We can’t remove those boulders from our past, all we can do is recognize them for what they are, accept them, and be watchful that we keep life’s road ahead of us clear. God doesn’t want us to forget the past. He want us to understand it, to accept its unchangeability, to learn from it, to remember our friends, to look at those boulders as sign posts to help keep us and others from creating more boulders because of a focus on that which we cannot change.

John, thank you for your service, for the difference you’ve made in many lives, and for allowing us to share your story this month!

Your Attic . . . . Air Quality, &

Your Family - choose local! by Teri Hebert

You can always depend on Texas weather to impact your home’s energy efficiency (and bills!), no matter the season. Extreme heat in the summer creates a hot, humid attic space that increases the heat in your home. And those chilly winter nights (yes, we do get a few!) can make your entire home feel like an icebox without proper attic insulation.

Aside from cranking up the a/c in the summer and the heater in the winter, is there anything else you can do to maintain a comfortable home year-round? If you ask your Canyon Creek neighbor Ryan Amerson, he can help overhaul your attic in a way that properly insulates your home while also reducing your utility bills.

Energy Attic, locally owned and operated by Amerson and his wife Tiffany, uses a 3-part Energy Reduction System (ERS System) to make your home or office as energy efficient as possible, save you money on heating and cooling costs, and reduce your carbon footprint on the environment.

With a Micah 6:8 mission to “Do what is right, Love people, and Work humbly”, the Amerson Family has developed a business that puts people first, and profits second. “It seems to be working!”, says Ryan. “We strive to live out Galations 6:10: ‘. . . while we have the opportunity, let us do good to all people.’ Home means a lot of different things to a lot of people . . . to us, it’s where life happens. We have an opportunity to change the performance, air quality, and energy costs in the place where everyone can make a difference in this world: Home.”

How do they do it? Their System combines three different components: Radiant Barrier, Attic Insulation, and Proper Ventilation. These three components work in tandem to make a complete system that will reduce your year-round energy costs.

Some of our older, established homes here in Canyon Creek have years of deteriorated materials in our attics. These materials are harmful to breathe, plus many older homes have developed cracks and crevices in the attic space that allows dust, moisture, and sometimes unwanted critters into your home.

Ryan and his team work diligently to clean and clear musty, dusty, and moldy attics to transformed it into a clean, air-tight, energyefficient space. They are meticulous and detailed in their work to help make your attic something that helps improve the air quality in your home while saving you money.

Energy Attic products offer the following benefits for home or business owners:

Pay for themselves in a few years or less Offer green alternatives for saving money on your bills and addressing the comfort level of your home Can be installed in new or existing homes, offices, or out-buildings Conserve energy and help the environment by reducing your carbon footprint Qualify as Energy Star products

Visit www.energyattic.com or Call 972-548-0088 for your FREE ATTIC OVERHAUL ESTIMATE.

Does anyone actually love to do laundry? What if you never had to do your own laundry? Well this month, meet your local laundry service! Operated by your neighbor, Spencer Peterson.

What is your name and the name of your business? How long have you been in business?

Spencer Petersen, co-owner/operator of DFW Linen & Laundry Services. We have been in business since 2016. Though we are relatively new, we have made large strides. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel, but instead disrupt the norm by offering convenient residential services while delivering excellent customer service to both our commercial and residential customers.

Tell us about your business (what do you do, where do you do it, etc.)

We consist of two entities: DFW Linens, a Commercial Laundry service offering Linen Processing, Linen Rental and Facility Service Programs.

The second entity is DFW Laundry, a Residential Laundry service offering pick-up and delivery for Wash & Fold, Dry Cleaning, Household Item Cleaning, and more servicing the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

What inspired you to do what you do?

I’m a big believer in building true partnerships. Our goal is to develop a unique and genuine partnership with all of our customers

What do you love most about living in Canyon Creek.

to simplify and support their business needs while bridging the gap from business-to-business and business-to-consumer.

Tells us a favorite story or two about your business.

When building a company from the ground up, it is always a challenge to constantly evolve the way you run your business and maintaining that growth. There was a time that we all had to pitch in a little extra, doing things that weren’t necessarily our jobs. But by doing that you learn to problem solve as a team and you become as close as family. At DFWLLS we are not only a team, but we are a family. It doesn’t matter what location or department you are working in, we all know each other, and we are all friends and laugh constantly. There is no family I would rather work with than my DFWLLS family.

How long have you lived in Canyon Creek?

Four years

What brought you to Canyon Creek?

We moved to Canyon Creek to be a part of a community where family comes first, people are always outdoors, and the close proximity to so many great things!

It is a small neighborhood with a passion for all that is homegrown, full of wonderful people, and is community-oriented.

Tell us about your family (names, ages, schools, work, etc).

Colleen and I have been married for twelve years. Our oldest son is Tristan, age seven, and is going in to second grade at Prairie Creek Elementary. Our youngest son is Brody, who is age five, and will be going into Prairie Creek Elementary in 2019.

Share with us a funny or awesome story of living in Canyon Creek.

Not all legendary stories should be put into print! LOL! Let me just say, I love my friends and I love this neighborhood!!!

Anything else you’d love for your neighbors to know about your business or you?

Our laundry service is meant for everyone to take advantage of in a residential setting. The Delivery Wash & Fold program will save you countless (not to mention mindless) hours in front of the washing machine. This service is there for YOU to make your life easier and

give you a better quality of life.