A diagnosis of multiple lung conditions led to a 6-times-a-week hiking regime OK, most Utah Valley residents have hiked the trail leading to the block Y on the mountain.

But how many run down the mountain on their way back? Or start the hike from their homes, rather than the trail's parking lot? Or have done it six times a week for more than four years -- all while fighting off multiple lung problems?

Anyone?

Guy Larson is the only man standing.

Finding the motive behind this Provo man's hiking habit may be as interesting as his personality. How do you characterize someone who performs this task -- under less-than-ideal conditions, no less -- with such unwavering persistence? Hank Miles, a hiking buddy of Larson's from Orem, described his friend as loud, bright and very religious.

But that's only touching the tip of the iceberg with Larson. When approaching other hikers on the trail, he shouts out greetings and well wishes to fellow hikers. In his words, he wishes them "a hearty good morning." The word "hearty" certainly wouldn't be an understatement -- neither would the word "yell."

The shouts originated as a result of Larson's gratitude for his improving lungs.

"I have lungs that work; I might as well use them," he said.

His shouts, er, greetings have produced a variety of reactions. Some hikers respond in kind and wish him a good day. Others, if asked how they're doing, reply, "better than you." This type of comment tends to come from downhill hikers who note that Larson still has a good amount of ground left to cover, he said.

Because of his boisterous enthusiasm, Larson sometimes is asked what he's eaten for breakfast.

"Life -- and I don't mean the cereal," he replies.

Once while coming upon a couple, a woman asked Larson what he had for breakfast, and the woman's husband answered the question before Larson could.

"Cocaine," he said.

All kidding aside, his usual breakfast consists of a banana, a glass of juice and two pieces of bread -- enough to raise his blood sugar, but not so much that his stomach feels heavy when running.

In sickness & hike

On Thanksgiving day in 2002, Larson's health began to cause him serious problems. He came down with secondary and tertiary infections, double pneumonia and bronchitis.

On July 2, 2004, hiking the Y became a way to fight sickness and strengthen his lungs. Larson described his initial hike to the Y as an impromptu decision -- a decision that had some serious consequences. By the trail's second switchback, he had a massive coughing attack.

"I had images in my mind of coughing up a chunk of my lung," Larson said. "It's probably farfetched, but you have to realize I coughed up so much blood and mucous at that time that it was a serious possibility in my mind."

The idea of completing the trip seemed overwhelming, but the fact he had already gone so far drove him farther. He thought of the 19th-century group of settlers called the Donner Party, which failed to reach its destination when it spent time going downhill instead of toward their target, Larson said.

"Some people will put more effort into failing than they will into succeeding," he said.

Larson said the same mindset is applied in modern-day life. For example, a couple may put more effort into fighting about who is right rather than healing their marriage. He also shared the hypothetical example of a student working harder to find the easy way out instead of simply studying.

Larson was motivated not to give up. Pressing forward, he convinced himself that rather than use energy returning to the trail bottom without completing his trek, he could use the energy to go a little bit further.

"I can manage one more step," he kept telling himself, while gasping for breath and asking other hikers how much farther he had to go.

After completing the first hike, it became part of his daily routine.

"When I got to the top, I was so thrilled to be able to make it that I figured I would do it everyday, and that's been my commitment ever since," Larson said.

He even uses the same spot ¬ -- the far top corner of the Y -- as his turnaround point so he can time his hike and compare it with previous results. Not bad for a guy who describes himself as not being an active person by nature. Not bad for someone whose hiking shoes appear more like loafers to be worn at a church service -- except with a nice layer of dust caked onto them.

Words, action, to live by

A deeply religious man, Larson works at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints's temple in Provo. Although he was born in Boston and his graduate studies led him to Sweden, Larson calls Provo his home. He has spent almost his entire life in the valley, and he said he looks for any excuse to go to the temple or to go for a hike in this mountainous region.

A BYU graduate and son of the late BYU professor Everett Larson, Guy Larson has spent time on the campus since his youth.

"You could say I grew up in Provo, but more accurately, I grew up on BYU campus," he said. "I spent more of my waking hours there than I ever spent at home."

Larson has spoken to a couple of youth groups who hiked the Y, telling them they can jump life's hurdles.

He should know.

"Challenges can be overcome," he said. "Maybe not how we want it to happen, but I can live a normal life, and the Lord made it possible."

Larson, who now has hiked to the Y more than 1,300 times and once helped push a paraplegic girl up the trail in a wheelchair, inspired a friend to make a shirt that says "Guy: King of the Y." Out of modesty, Larson doesn't wear the shirt.

"Life is, in many ways, what you make of it," he said. "It's not that life is without its challenges, but if you truly turn yourself over to the Lord and strive to face the challenge with faith and a determination to do what's right ... he will turn that challenge into a blessing in disguise. I'm just real grateful to be alive."

Larson said faith grows much in the same way a muscle does -- by being pushed to its limits. Undergoing physical, spiritual or emotional hardship is helpful to one's personal growth, and should be welcomed, he said.

"When your faith is strained to the point where it feels like it's breaking -- that's when your faith really grows," Larson said.

Along with prayer and fasting, Larson has attributed his improved -- though far from perfect -- health to diet and exercise. Among his favorite foods are fruits, vegetables and hefty whole grain bread. In many ways, he feels healthier now than he did before getting sick, he said.

"I feel half my age," Larson said.

Using that math, Larson would be 22.

"We can do something about our health," he said. "We can take better care of our bodies than we're doing. That's not to say we can turn everything around and undo everything [that's going wrong], but there are still things one can do about one's problems."

Larson can hardly stand sweets, and chocolate makes him sick to his stomach, he said. With a bachelor's degree in physics and further studies in quantum chemistry, Larson said he understands what those difficult-to-read ingredients are on the boxes of junk food.

"I know what the stuff is and I don't want it in my system, and you wouldn't either if you knew what it was!"

• Sam Scorup can be reached at 344-2561 or sscorup@heraldextra.com