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Live Well, Lead Well: Kate Hendricks

Kate Hendricks in Duke's Office of Counsel practices tai chi for relaxation and flexibility

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Kate Hendricks, deputy counsel in the Duke Office of Counsel, practices tai chi regularly. Photo by Duke Photography.

Live Well, Lead Well is a series profiling leaders at Duke who balance work and life. Healthy habits boost mood and energy and combat diseases, which can also reduce healthcare costs for you and Duke as a whole. Through exercise or other behaviors, these leaders are role models.

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Kate Hendricks   deputy counsel, Duke Office of Counsel 

Regimen:

I’ve always been active and have a variety of exercise routines, mainly through the YMCA. I’ve been a member of a Y for over 30 years. Right now, I do two cross-training classes a week at the American Tobacco Y, and the cross-training is a combination of plyometrics, cardio and weightlifting. I try to do a spinning class once a week. The older I get, the more I pay attention to flexibility, so I take a mobility class on Friday mornings that focuses on flexibility and range of motion. I try to swim periodically. On the weekends, I run. I also practice tai chi. I benefit from the flexibility that tai chi develops, but there’s also the philosophical component as well that transcends the physical movements of the form. If I’ve had a hectic day and I go practice tai chi, I just feel like my blood pressure has dropped, and I’m in a better, more relaxed state.

Wellness mantra:

Constantly stay active. People will hear me say that workouts keep me sane. On Monday mornings, I’m always sluggish and tempted to skip my mid-day cross-training class to catch up on work. But I make myself go, and once I exercise, I’m always more energized.

Top health and wellness goals:

I try to run one to two half marathons a year, as well as other shorter races. In 2015, I ran a half marathon in January and in April. I try to stay active year-round with a variety of activities. Starting in the fall, I increase my running mileage to get ready for the longer races.

How a healthy lifestyle affects my work:

If I’ve challenged my body physically, then somehow that translates into being able to tackle difficult problems in my work. Once I feel like I’ve really pushed myself physically, then I think, ‘Oh, I can do this,’ if I’ve got a difficult problem to solve.

Biggest fitness accomplishment:

I really trained for running the Aramco Houston Half Marathon in 2008, and I set my personal record, 1:54:16. I had just turned 50 years old, so I was really proud of that. Since then, I did a sprint triathlon in 2011 in Hillsborough. I’ve also run five Army Ten-Milers. The Army mantra is “I shall never quit.” That’s a good mantra to have. Beyond that, it’s mainly trying to keep active and making sure I don’t cut back on my level of activity.

Advice:

Keep trying different things. People shouldn’t think that just because their friends run a lot that they have to do it, too. They should find what works for them. Back when aerobics was popular, I tried aerobics. I’m not a good dancer, and I don’t have the coordination, so that did not work for me.