Friends,
Bill Stedman’s Self Defense program was awesome
I love it when people share their gifts and passion with us. Last Friday, Bill Stedman did just that. He had great messages for us and…he had a great sense of humor.
As we deal with our challenges of living with MS, we could certainly be vulnerable to someone wanting to do bad things to us. Bill shared many ways to avoid the situation in the first place along with ways to diffuse the situation if we get into one. He also showed us ways to protect ourselves if it gets physical.
Thank you, Bill for sharing your gifts and talents. You certainly made a big impact on me and many more of us.
Some of you were wondering how to get ahold of Bill. Here’s Bill’s contact information:
Bill Stedman – Safe Milwaukee Self Defense & MK Protection Strategies
N88W16741 Main Street
Menomonee Falls, WI 53051
Phone: 414-795-5598
E-mail: info@mkprotectionstrategies.com
Rebounding Class
It made my day last Friday when all 11 Bellicons were filled for our 8:00am rebounding class. I think we all have to admit…this is FUN when we do it “together”.
Fayth Caruso from Bellicon does an excellent job leading our classes with her videos. Thanks Fayth! We’re looking forward to meeting you on zoom on the 14th of March and in person soon.
Rebounding is not only fun; it’s proving to be a highly effective low impact form of exercise for us living with MS. We can all use more energy, improve our balance and mood, cleanse our lymphatic system, improve our immune system, strengthen our pelvic floor, build bone density, get stronger, have more endurance, etc. If we combine all that and watch what we put in our mouth so we have good gut health, our MS should behave quite well…especially when we do it together. Let’s beat this thing!
Valentine’s Day
Friday is Valentine’s Day. Let’s share our love with one another as well as our loved ones. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Fairy Food
I don’t know if you tried Shennan’s fairy food before Valentine’s Day. I will admit…I did. It’s REALLY good! Shennan puts a lot of time and love into her fairy food. Well done Shennan! And THANK YOU!
Day of Endurance Training
Let’s make this journey and experience the best yet and have some fun…together. As we begin our training, let’s enjoy each day and record what we do on the packet we put together for you. If you didn’t get a packet, please see Dr Kate or me for your packet. We’re trying to make it really easy for you to record what you’re doing on a daily basis. These will be interesting for you to look back at a year from now. Hopefully, you can do more next year than you can this year.
Ed and Adam’s Podcast
This week, Adam and Ed had a nice conversation with Steve Schwan as he shared his experience. Listen and you’ll know why we call him Mr Uno-Sclerosis with only one lesion. Lots of philosophy shared in this one.
Here’s the link:
Talking with Steve by Positive Vibes Living with MS
Thanks Adam, Ed and Ava for doing these podcasts together!
Member Spotlight
Lynn has been working hard and is good sport about climbing up on the trampoline and bouncing as best she can. I always love it when people engage in something helpful and Lynn certainly does that. She seems to enjoy it as well.
MS-Just Keep Moving Bowling Tournament Fundraiser
A huge thanks goes out to Bob and everyone helping to plan for our bowling tournament March 8th and 9th.
Our bowling tournament fundraiser is Saturday, March 8 and Sunday, March 9. Please share the information with your friends and family. There is one squad on Saturday and two on Sunday, sign up early as spots will fill up Details can be found on the events page of our website
We are asking for and accepting donations. Our big prize is the booze wagon like last year so if you can, please donate an item for the wagon or any other items for the smaller raffle items.
Also, here is a list of some FAQs we have received
Dance for MS Ballet and More!
We had fun in the two dance workshops we had in December. Here’s a message from Jessica with more opportunities to dance. I hope you’ll engage in these opportunities…I would highly encourage it!
Good afternoon everyone!
I hope everyone is enjoying the start to their 2025. We have exciting things coming up at Danceworks this winter and spring.
Dance for MS- Ballet will be Mondays in February (2/17, 2/24) from 10:45-12. Spring Ballroom schedule coming soon!
Dance for MS-Ballet is a ballet style class geared towards persons with MS. Students will do a mix of traditional ballet steps along with other movements. Ballet shoes are not required but can be worn if desired. Participants will have ballet barres and chairs available for support.
We piloted this class at MS Just Keep Movin’ this past December and it was a blast! Come alone or bring a friend.
Pre-registration is not required (but is preferred). You can register via this link or give us a call at 414-277-8480 and one of our lovely front desk staff can help you get registered. Please feel free to share this information far and wide.
If you have any questions do not hesitate to reach out to me at any time! I hope to see you at the barre soon.
Sincerely,
Jessica Fastabend
Community Education Director
414.277.8480 x6005
Cardio and Balance Programs
These classes are aimed to get everyone exercising together. I like that word “together” 
. We’ll need help from volunteers before and after the cardio class on Wednesdays and Fridays to get members on and off equipment. All are welcome and encouraged to join…friends with MS, volunteers, and caregivers.
Monday evenings (open from 4:00pm – 7:00pm)
5:00 pm: High intensity interval training (HIIT)
5:30 pm: Standing balance
6:00 pm: Seated balance
Wednesdays
8:30am – 9:00am: Cardio exercise
Location: in the big room using aerobic equipment in front of big TV
Pick your favorite piece of equipment to use, bring a water bottle, and arrive a few minutes early to get the equipment set up to your height.
10-10:30am: Cardio exercise
Location: in the big room using aerobic equipment in front of big TV
Pick your favorite piece of equipment to use, bring a water bottle, and arrive a few minutes early to get the equipment set up to your height.
Fridays:
9:30 – 10:00am: High intensity interval training (HIIT) body weight circuit class. Great for those who aren’t attending Friday morning bike rides and want to get their heart pumping! Geared to intermediate to advanced ability level. Class may be indoors or outdoors depending on weather. Find Dr Kate at the start of the class time.
10:00 – 10:30 am: Seated balance class
10:30 – 11am: Standing balance class
Pick the class / classes you feel most able and comfortable participating in. We will have chairs set up to sit on and/or use for balance support.
Email Dr Kate at kborn1234@gmail.com with any questions.
Spin / Cycle Classes Friday’s @ 9:00am
Mike Beiermeister is offering to lead some spin / cycle classes again this year on Friday mornings @ 9:00 in the front room.
Please be prompt and ready to start riding @ 9:00am. Spin bikes are limited so it will be on first come first serve. We did pick up one more used spin bike since last week so let’s put it to good use. Let’s get ready for spring bike riding.
Thanks, Mike for offering to lead these classes again!
Friday Morning Bike Ride
We are done for the season. Let’s work hard over the winter so we can pick right back up where we left off. Let’s enjoy our winter together and think Spring!
Educational Sessions
This Friday, February 14th 11am – 12:00 pm: Joe Holtman and Erika White from the National MS Society will be joining us to share the latest updates from the Society and some exciting information about Challenge Walk MS: Door County, a 3-day, 50 mile endurance walk coming up in September. The Society offers three Challenge Walk MS events nationwide each year and we’re lucky enough to have one in our own backyard!
Friday, Feb 21st 11:00am – 12:00 pm- Jackie Radaj, NP, and Jenn Kolesar-Springhetti, DPT, from ProHealth Care will present to us about bone health and osteoporosis.
Friday, March 14th 11:00am – 12:00pm Fayth Caruso from Bellicon will zoom in with us to do an educational presentation on the benefits of rebounding (workouts on the mini-trampoline), the science behind it, share some success stories, etc. Who knows, maybe we can even bounce with Fayth a little.
Friday, TBD 11:00am – 12:00 pm- Dr Kate Kern will demo the steps it takes to get up from the ground, whether it be from a fall or on purpose!
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.
Let’s get together!
We’ll be getting together from 8:00am – noon on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings at the gym. Plus Monday evenings from 4:00pm – 7:00pm. I hope you’ll join us!
Wisconsin Metal Parts – Westmound Building
MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc.
W228N791 Westmound Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186
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 goes 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, February 21st, 2025. 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!
Our Facebook page is private. That means you’ll need to join if you want access to all our fun and progress. We’re now at 578 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!
Thai Massage with Ricky Heldt
Ricky will be here on Wednesdays doing Thai Massage.
There is a sign-up board to be used to accommodate your needs for your exercise plan. Some people with spasticity need to be massaged / stretched out before they can exercise. Some people need a massage after a hard workout to loosen up their tight muscles or relieve pain.
We have limited spots for massages, please be considerate of people that need the massage the most in order to do the exercises they need to do or recover from the exercises they just did.
You can pick the time slot that works for you.
Reiki on Wednesdays and Fridays
Reiki is available at the gym, for FREE, on Wednesdays (Mary B, Jill K) and on Fridays (Linda C and Mary R), 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!
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 God We Trust…we are in good hands.
Dan
Our Website: http://msjustkeepmoving.org/
P.S. As we get ready to share our love for Valentine’s Day, I thought I would share some love I saw in nature this past week. Check out these love birds.
And these swans I saw on the Mississippi River by Dubuque, IA.
I love how they stick together in pairs
This one was coming on for a landing
And a little fly over
It looks like they love being “Together” as well
I got a little lucky with my camera again this weekend
This was an interesting buzzard / hawk / falcon. Who knows what it was, besides beautiful?
I caught this eagle flying over the geese with a fish in its talon
Here is one taking off from sitting on the ice
This ice looked a little interesting with the shadow in the water
This bluejay was colorful
So was this cardinal
For those who can’t get out and enjoy nature due your challenges with MS…my heart is with you. You are with me every time I’m out there. I enjoy being out there and I also enjoy sharing 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.
