Most people realize the importance of being physically fit, but they may not know how to start down that path.

In the heart of Arkansas, along Route 30, swaths of stores stand shuttered. In the once-thriving northwest pocket of the state, the retail fortress in Bentonville is under siege.

Leaving a comfortable and familiar practice to lead a new program at Conway Regional Medical Center was a leap of faith for Dr. Greg Kendrick, who in January 2008 agreed to head the hospital’s new hospitalist program.

Little Rock still may be snoozing under a blanket of darkness at 5:30 a.m., but a light is on at Leslie Basham’s house. The television personality rises before daylight three mornings a week to run with a group of friends.