Ultra-marathon runner Dr. Michael Martinez of St. Luke’s General Surgery in Palmerton considers himself the “luckiest man in the world.”

An essential component of his perceived good fortune is the ability to work and live in Palmerton, where he finds joy in his surgical career and running on the area’s wooded paths, including the D&L Trail.

His motivation stems partly from his desire to be physically and mentally in the best possible shape when he performs surgery.

“I get to walk to work every day and care for my neighbors,” he said. “It takes me five minutes to walk to work.” He relishes the small-town feel of Palmerton and the ability to get to know his patients and their families and friends. Concerned about his patients’ health, he encourages them to use the trail to improve their health.

As a general surgeon, Dr. Martinez treats a broad spectrum of diseases and injuries. He is a regional leader in minimally invasive acute care general surgery. His common procedures include appendectomy, abdominal surgery, colon and rectal surgery, gall bladder removal, hernia repair, soft tissue “lumps and bumps” removal and wound repair.

“I’m like the family doctor of the surgery world,” he said. “I can take care of 90% of what patients come to me for, and 10% of the time, I need to send them to a specialist.”

Dr. Martinez came to Palmerton in 2000 after completing his residency at the Guthrie Clinic and Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre. He raised his family in Palmerton and became involved in their sports so he could spend more time with them. He coached his children’s soccer teams from the time they were four years old. Then, when they entered high school, he coached their track and cross-country teams.

An avid runner, Dr. Martinez has twice run the Eastern States 100 in the Pine Creek Gorge of Pennsylvania, taking just over 31 hours to complete the race. Ordinarily, he logs between 30 to 70 miles a week, about a quarter of that on the D&L trail.

“As a physician, I have a moral obligation to be at my best for my patients because they come to me in their hour of greatest need,” he said. “Running on the D&L trail and being in nature puts me in the best position possible to provide my patients with the most positive outcomes. I need to get outdoors, run far and spend time in nature. That’s what I do because it’s what my patients deserve.”

Dr. Martinez points out, however, that you do not need to be an endurance runner to benefit from spending time on the D&L Trail.

“Everyone, of every ability level, can benefit from spending time of the D&L,” he said. “It is well established that exercise for as little as 10 minutes a day has measurable benefits to a person’s physical health and mental well-being.”

Dr. Martinez strongly advocates St. Luke’s University Health Network’s Get Your Tail on the Trail Program (GYTOTT), a partnership of St. Luke’s and Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor (D&L) to encourage healthy lifestyles. Community members can participate in free ongoing challenges, attend special community events and earn incentives.

The centerpiece of GYTOTT is the 165-mile multi-use D&L Trail that begins in the mountains near Wilkes-Barre and ends in Bristol, just outside of Philadelphia. The trail winds through woodlands, small towns and cities. Sections follow waterways, including rivers and canals, enabling hikers, bikers and runners on the trail to spot people on kayaks, canoes and rafts on the water below.

“The farthest I’ve ever run on the D&L Trail is 82 miles from Wilkes-Barre to Allentown in 18½ hours. Then, I got tired,” he joked. Dr. Martinez’s favorite part is the four miles between Weissport and Jim Thorpe, which he thinks is the trail’s most beautiful section.

Dr. Martinez also encourages his patients to use the trail. Besides the physical benefits of being in nature, it also boosts mental health, easing anxiety and depression. When patients need surgery, physically fit patients experience fewer complications and have better outcomes, including a quicker recovery. Dr. Martinez takes pride in his patients doing well.