Friends,
Day of Endurance – This Saturday, August 29th
We worked hard all year training for our annual Day of Endurance. It’s much more than a Day of Endurance. It’s a journey of training hard all year for our Day of Endurance while staying ahead of our MS. If you did it in the year’s past, I hope you do better this year than prior years. This is a great check-in day to see how we are doing with our MS physically.
Let’s keep in mind all the mental, emotional, social and spiritual benefits of this journey as well. It’s good to have something BIG on our calendar to work toward. To have a community of people to share our journey of living with MS is truly a blessing. Our volunteers are dedicated and determined to help us on this journey. They are on this journey with us. We are so fortunate in so many ways.
Keep in mind there is no end time of this event. We have the day off of daily life challenges and get to do all we can do with people we love. If you do better in some way than you did last year or do something in addition to what you did last year, you get to bang on the gong. I hope we hear the gong go off all day. I know it will be going off a lot because many have done more in training this year than they did at the Day of Endurance last year. I hope you do better than last year.
We have 67 people with MS signed up to do something. The goals go anywhere from standing a certain time frame, to riding the Grit chair, jumping on the trampolines, walking, riding trike trains, running, biking, swimming, etc.
To me, this is the pinnacle of our mission seeing everyone come together to love and encourage each other to do all we can. And then next year…do a little more. It will be a truly inspirational day. I hope you join us. I’m hoping other people with MS who have not been to the gym in a while show up as well; even if it is just to encourage your friends.
If this is your first Day of Endurance experience, I’m really excited for you. Let’s make it amazing. This will be your benchmark for next year. I hope you do really well this year and even better next year.
I have three major goals for this event:
- People show up and engage in the event (This includes family members and friends as well as our friends with MS)
- We are safe
- We all have a great experience together and personally benefit in some way
Please be sure to invite and encourage your family and friends to come join you and support you and all of us. We will have plenty of inspiration, encouragement, energy and love to share. If everyone brings a dish to pass, we will have plenty of food as well. Please plan on bringing a dish to pass. Please bring your own drink (we will have water). Please bring a chair if you want to sit on anything besides a picnic table. There are plenty of picnic tables to sit on.
We have sign-up sheets at the gym for food so we don’t all bring the same thing. Please sign up so we know if we have any gaps to fill.
Kate has been working really hard planning for The Day of Endurance and creating a well-organized great experience for everyone. THANK YOU, Kate! Here’s a message from Kate:
Thanks to everyone who has committed to volunteering and participating in the 4th annual Day of Endurance this Saturday, August 29th. Please take a look at the Google Sheet link to see the routes, volunteer assignments, trike wave roster, and additional details about the event. If you see something that needs to be changed, have a question, comment, or concern, please let Kate know before the event kborn1234@gmail.com
If you are on the fence about joining us, I highly encourage you to come out for a few hours on Saturday and do whatever you can. We’d love to see you!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CpBYBwNeW1G8t5dQGOK-NnB2zYgVT3nBWNqgjfcTS_M/edit?usp=sharing
For more questions, here is our Day of endurance presentation:
You will need to get a park pass for the park for that day if you don’t have an annual pass. You cannot get this at the park.
Here’s a link:
Thursday Morning Walk – Short walk this week
We will be back at St Anthony’s again this week. I would suggest only walking 20-25% of your longest training walk this week. Let’s get together just to be together. We want to go into Saturday well rested.
The long-distance walkers will be starting at 6:30 am. The rest of us will be starting at 9:00am. We will be starting from St. Anthony’s parking lot.
St Anthony’s Church
W280N2101 Prospect Avenue
Pewaukee, WI 53072
Come a few minutes early so we can start walking as close to the starting time you choose as possible. Bring water and dress accordingly.
For those who wish they could walk but can’t, we are walking for you and have you on our minds and in our hearts.
Friday Morning Bike Ride – No Ride this week
No Friday morning bike ride this week. We will go to the gym for a light workout, get stretched out, etc. We will make up the Friday ride on Saturday. You can ride as many miles as you’d like. We have the whole day together. 😊
We will resume bike rides next Friday.
Music and friends to enjoy
If you want to relax a bit and listen to Joel Harris’s band Friday evening as you get ready for the Day of Endurance, Joel is playing in Waukesha. Perhaps you could gather some friends and go there together.
Educational Videos
More of our speakers and educational presentations are being uploaded on our YouTube channel. Here’s a link, check them out.
https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UClvyB43uSl1wJSoGBJkSeCw
Let’s get together – Open Gym plus programs!
We’ll be getting together from 7:00am – noon on Monday through Friday mornings at the gym. Plus, Monday and Wednesday evenings from 4:30pm – 6:30pm and Tuesday afternoons for the aquatics program. I hope you’ll join us!
Where:
Wisconsin Metal Parts – Westmound Building
MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc.
W228N791 Westmound Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186
Email Dr Kate Kern at kborn1234@gmail.com with any questions.
Exercise class schedule Feedback welcome to make this as best as it can be!
Nutrition Program.
I have been really pleased with the number of people engaging in our nutrition program lately. Nutrition is so critical to us living with MS. It can be overwhelming. It’s so much more fun when we learn and share together. I love the small community we are building with learning about nutrition and living with MS. Thanks to all who are engaging. The program wouldn’t be beneficial if people didn’t engage in it and benefit from it in life changing ways themselves.
The nutrition group had a really good discussion this week talking about the application of performance nutrition as we all prepare for the day of endurance!
Janine and the people who engage in our nutrition program prepared for the Day of Endurance this week from a nutrition perspective. They discussed what to do before during and after. If you missed the discussion, please read through Janine’s entire handout linked below.
If you are not engaging in our nutrition program, I would highly encourage you to do so. At least read the handouts that Janine and Maria prepare for us each week and apply the information into your lifestyle.
Here’s a link to the full handout:
Nutrition: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xIiOUS0S36US3FlXapOvPVCkKqe17rJP/view?usp=sharing
Janine and Maria put a lot into these presentations. It’s wonderful for them to share these presentations with those who can’t be here. It’s even more impactful for people who can be here in person to get the information first hand and be able to get questions answered and learn from others living with MS.
I would highly encourage you to engage in our nutrition program Monday mornings @ 9:00am so you can benefit at a high level. All are encouraged to come; people with MS, loved ones, care takers, volunteers, etc.
Thank you, Janine and Maria!
Prayer Group We’ll be having our prayer group Wednesday from 11:00am – noon.
I just love the way we share, pray and laugh together while we witness prayers being answered weekly. It’s truly amazing!
Thanks go to God and to everyone that joins us. Let’s get together to share, listen, talk, give thanks, and pray however God leads us.
MS-Just Keep Caring – Our Caregivers support group will be the first and third Friday of each month from 10:00 – 10:30am. The next one will be Friday, September 4th, 2026. If you’re a caregiver of someone you love with MS, please join us and share your experience of caring for your loved one. This has been very helpful for many. Thanks to all who participate!
Member Spotlight – Evening gym warriors
Every time I go to the gym when the evening program is going on, it brings me back to when we first started in the front room. It’s a small, happy, hardworking and appreciative group of people. I’m thankful we can offer this for them and that they engage in our offerings. Please feel free and I encourage you to engage in these opportunities to be with good people. Thanks, Kate for making this possible!
Ed and Adam’s Podcast
Adam and Ed had a conversation with Gregory Borden this week. Gregory has a very interesting journey of living with MS and shared it so freely.
Here’s the link:
Chatting with Gregory by Positive Vibes Living with MS
Social and Leisure Activity
Strong Strides Class – Wednesdays from 11-11:30 over 7 weeks from 9/9-10/21. This is a limited-time class offered by the Bryant & Stratton College PTA students! This session focuses on weight-bearing strength at the hips, knees, and ankles meant to improve walking mechanics. If you attended Dr. Sarah Andreucci’s presentation on knee hyperextension, you have introductory knowledge on the types of exercises that will be targeted. This class is for individuals who are currently walking – with or without an assistive device and hope to widen their exercise variety in a group setting to gain strength and confidence with walking.
Educational Sessions
Wednesday, September 9th 9:00 – 10:00am: Independence First is a resource organization for people with disabilities located in Milwaukee. They will share information related to their services and their assistive technology program https://www.independencefirst.org/
Friday, September 18th 11:00-12:00pm: Lauren E. Shuda, MD, Assistant Professor Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Medical College of Wisconsin, will talk to us about spasticity management.
Friday, October 9th 11:00am – 1:00pm: Somananda Yogi will present to us about Traditional Medicine. Please come with questions for Yogi to learn how it can help you manage your MS symptoms.
Future topics could include: emotional health, nutrition, yoga, tai chi, wellness topics, safe use of gym equipment for your body, best exercise for you and more. What topics would you like to see? Please let Dr Kate, Joan, Traci, Ricky or Dan know.
Day of Endurance Training
Event is Saturday, August 29,2026 – Training is now
What: Do what you can
- Consistent Daily Exercise
- One long day per week – increase each week – no more than 10% per week
- Buddy up and exercise together
- Enjoy the journey 😊
Shoe Donations
Do you have any shoes you can donate? Becky Thomas is collecting old or new shoes supporting Soles for Jesus. These shoes will be distributed to people in need of shoes in Africa. Becky dropped off a box for us to drop them in. Please bring in shoes if you have any extras.
Coughs, colds, flus, etc. – Let’s not share
There are a lot of bugs going around. If you are experiencing any symptoms, please stay home and recover from them instead of sharing with the rest of us at the gym. We look forward to you getting over it and having you back quickly.
Research Needs us!
Marquette University, UW Milwaukee, University of Illinois, and Carroll University have research opportunities they would like us to engage in. We have flyers and more information about these opportunities at the gym. Please engage in these opportunities if you qualify. You could make improvements yourself and you could be helping so many other people with MS as they face their challenges. We really need to get this MS thing figured out and you can help by engaging in these research opportunities.
Dr Ng Needs more participants
Dr Alex Ng from Marquette University reached out to me with this message. I would highly encourage you to participate in this research if you’re able to.
HI Dan,
I want to resend our study recruitment notice for our “singing study”. We actually have two studies going and we can sort eligible participants into the best one for them. Note that our age range has expanded to 20 to 80 yr. Still not completely inclusive but a step in the right direction. Any help you could give us to help get the word out would be appreciated! Thanks for what you created for the MS community.
Take care,
Alex
Alexander Ng, PhD, FACSM
Professor Emeritus
Program in Exercise Science
Department of Physical Therapy
Marquette University
Milwaukee, WI 53201-1881
414-288-6209 (ph)
414-288-6079 (fax)
Here’s a research opportunity that Marquette University is doing for all of living with MS. I would highly encourage you to engage in this if you qualify.
Health and Wellness Massage Opportunity – Carroll University
Our Facebook page is private. That means you’ll need to join if you want access to all our fun and progress. We broke 700 friends! We’re now at 703 members. That’s awesome! https://www.facebook.com/groups/2639832389489709
Our Facebook page is active and fun. Lots of people are doing more and sharing their journey on Facebook. Feel free to join, post and share your experiences and comments.
There were some awesome pictures, videos and comments shared again this past week. Thank you to all who are sharing!
Metals for MS
Thank you to all who brought in aluminum cans, gutters, copper, brass, etc. Please keep bringing them in…you are helping us. We will be taking another load in soon. Our total is up to $2,437.19 so far. That’s really good…thank you!
Parking
If you are able-bodied and willing to park across the street in the Acuity Foam lot so people with mobility challenges can park in our lot, please do so. We want to make it easy for people with mobility challenges to park and get into our building safely. Thank you for doing that!
Gym Open and Close Procedure
If you’re the first to come or the last to leave the gym, please use this procedure for opening and shutting down.
Thai Massage with Ricky and Nyani
Ricky will be here on Wednesdays doing Thai Massage.
Nyani will be here on Fridays doing Thai Massage
Our goal is to serve as many people who come to the gym consistently as we can with these Thai Massage services. Going forward we will be doing a rotational schedule to accommodate as many people as we can who need and want a massage.
There are some guidelines written up at the gym. Please respect the guidelines so we can serve as many people as we can. Please sign up according to the guidelines.
Here’s a link to the guidelines: Thai Massage at MS-Just Keep Moving
Reiki on Fridays
Reiki is available at the gym, for FREE on Fridays with Linda C, 9:30am until noon. Sessions typically last 20-30 minutes. Sign up for a session on the white board.
Reiki (ray-kee) relaxes the body so that healing can occur! The “magic” of Reiki has helped some of our members with pain, insomnia, constipation, and so much more! Try it the next time you are at the gym!
Here’s a Link to information about Reiki: Reiki at MS-Just Keep Moving
Inspirational Humor with Adam Wollert
We’ll be having our inspirational humor zoom call with Adam again next Tuesday. Adam is a gift to all of us. Thanks to all who joined us today!
Please join us if you can.
Tuesdays @ 1:30PM
Here’s the link to join us…I hope you do!
Join Zoom Meeting with this link
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9431389152?pwd=bWlYbFNaazVnM1M1cWxWMitlODdXUT09
Meeting ID: 943 138 9152
Passcode: 3qP2hu
Phone: 1-312-626-6799
Let’s reach out
I encourage you to share a smile and encouragement with someone. Perhaps you could call someone that you have not talked with for a while just to say hi and see how they are doing. We all could use a little extra love and encouragement.
MS is tough. Let’s have faith, remain calm, be flexible, help each other and learn as much as we can about the challenges of each day as we make good choices and take action.
Let’s keep moving, smiling, and loving 😊 It helps in many ways!
In God We Trust…we are in good hands.
Dan
Our Website: http://msjustkeepmoving.org/
Phone: (262) 232-8552
P.S. We had an opportunity to go on a Safari ride by Lake Geneva. I didn’t even know this place existed until we went there. https://safarilakegeneva.com/
They didn’t let us roll down the windows by the zebras. They said the zebras would bite.
It was very common to see the animals take the entire bucket of food away very quickly. We caught on the that trick pretty quick and only put a handful of food in an empty container to feed them.
This gentle giant came right up to our vehicle and ate out of our hand. I was worried about my rear view mirror.
These buffalo were in a good spot. They seemed very content.
The ostriches we probably the most fun and aggressive. You just didn’t what they were going to do next.
They certainly weren’t shy
This guy wasn’t shy either
The giraffe was fun to watch too.
Caleb had a blast feeding the animals and learning more about them. He got to know them pretty well by the time we left.
This wasn’t at the safari. This was at a friend’s farm. I was able to capture a sunflower opening up. I suppose If I would have stood there longer, I could have watched it open all the way up. I didn’t do that.
For those who cannot get out and enjoy nature due your challenges with MS…my heart is with you. You are with me every time I am out there. I enjoy being able to share with you. I know how hard it is not to be able to get out and enjoy nature. Let’s enjoy nature and God’s beauty together this way.
