Friends,
Dr Khatri’s Living Well with MS event last Saturday
It was good to see some of us at Dr Khatri’s event last Saturday. Dr Khatri and their team put on a very informative and educational event. A couple key take aways for me is that many people are not getting worse on their MRI’s and other testing methods but they continue to worsen overall as the disease progresses. Dr Khatri is very optimistic that there will be a new drug approved yet this year that will help with the overall worsening effect. Let’s hope this gets approved and is effective. It breaks my heart when I see people getting worse despite how hard we are all working.
The other BIG take away for me is that Dr Khatri could have talked about any topic he wanted to about with MS and he chose to talk about our gut health and how critical our gut health is to all of us living with MS. He chose this topic because it’s something we all can work towards and get highly effective results immediately…if we engage in it. He gave a great talk about it with a lot of passion knowing from a scientific and biological perspective, it will help us.
This made me feel really good about the weekly nutrition program we are offering. Janine, who has spent her entire career in nutrition as a dietician and professor teaching it teaches about and promotes a healthy gut microbiome. Since we are offering this on a weekly basis, we should be able to make individual progress learning what you we do for ourselves. Let’s keep focusing on healing ourselves from the inside. This starts in the gut. Please engage in our program and make the best of it. I love it when people with MS make progress and stay ahead of the natural progression of MS.
Dr Nicholas Ketchum and Dr Christopher Cronsell also gave great presentations about spasticity and what we can do about it. Therapy is the best solution. Today, therapy for our MS spasticity has many options. It still sounds like the best therapy is stretching, movement, massage, etc.
Ricky did an excellent job leading all of us through a yoga session as well. It was a powerful session. When I looked around the room ad saw everyone with MS engaging in it together…it was awesome. Well done Ricky!
Thank you, Dr Khatri, for this great event!
Our Golf Outing is this Friday
We have our golf outing put on by ePlatinum Health this Friday. A huge thanks goes out to team at ePlatinum Health along with everyone who went out and solicited donations, contributed donations, helped organize and package donations, plan for the event, etc.
We hope to give all the golfers and sponsors a great experience. We truly appreciate ePlatinum Health choosing our MS-Just Keep Moving mission to be the beneficiary again this year. We certainly don’t take that for granted and appreciate it very much. We are able to offer the services we offer for free to our friends with MS as a result fundraisers like this, all our volunteers and supporters.
We will not be riding bike this Friday. The trailer with some of the trikes will be at the golf outing so the golfers can experience the trikes they make possible.
Again, a huge thanks goes out to everyone that contributed to make this possible…THANK YOU!
Monday Hiking group transitioned to kayaking for the summer
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be surrounded by so many active and fun people with MS. We are now kayaking on Monday afternoons at 2:00pm for the summer.
Certainly, a fun and adventurous group of friends despite may having MS
If you’d like to do some kayaking with these fun people this summer, please let Chrissy Aukofer know. Chrissy is organizing these events and communicating where we will be kayaking each week. Thank you, Chrissy and team for making these opportunities possible.
Endurance Walking Opportunities
Walking is a very functional and sought after level of mobility for all of us living with MS. For those who can’t walk, my heart is with you. I don’t forget for a minute the days I couldn’t walk and I have you in mind on each walk. I wish we had quicker ways to get people who can’t walk, walking. Let’s keep working at it.
For those who can walk, let’s focus on keeping our walking abilities and try to improve upon them.
Our endurance walking group is training for the Day of Endurance. These are on Thursday mornings starting @ 6:00am.
Last Thursday, we walked 11 miles and we all felt better than 10 miles the week before. Our bodies are adapting…that’s exciting! Even if you can only walk a few steps, I would highly encourage you to try to walk a few more steps each day. Consistency is key.
We came across several snapping turtles laying their eggs
Joan and Pam gave me their best turtle face. They both gave us a good one 
We are walking different segments of the Lake Country Trail. Whether you have MS, are a family or friend, a volunteer, etc. if you want to join us, please let me know and I will include you in the communication of where we will be walking. We are hoping to gradually build up from 7 miles to 15-18 miles as we train for the Day of Endurance on August 23rd. I hope you’ll join us.
Nutrition Program
This week, Janine led us through some conversations about Gut microbiome. This is really timely knowing how passionate Dr Khatri is about this subject and gave his presentation on this before hundreds of people last Saturday. I’m so thankful we have Janine here to work with us.
Here are the nutrition links for this week: –
MS 2025.06.16 Gut microbiome.pdf
SCAN_NCAA_FuelingDuringExerciseNOMARKS.pdf
Janine puts a lot into these presentations. It’s wonderful for her 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!
Metals for MS
Thank you to all who brought in aluminum cans, gutters, copper, etc. Please keep bringing them in.
Parking
If there are able-bodied people willing to park across the street in the Acuity 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!
Member Spotlight – Todd Siewert
Todd is one of our long-term members of the gym. If I look back 12 – 13 years ago when he first started coming to the gym, I had no clue he would accomplish so much over the years. Todd is a great example of exercise being a sustainable way to stay ahead of his MS, especially living with primary progressive MS.
Let’s wish Todd all the best on the TOAD series races starting Thursday evening. If you want to go cheer him on and see him in action, here’s a link to the schedule of races. He will be racing in the handcycle division. https://www.tourofamericasdairyland.com/schedule/
Golf Outing Donations
Our golf outing is this Friday. It looks like we’re going to have beautiful weather for it. We are blessed.
A huge THANK YOU goes out to the people at ePlatinum Health for putting this on for us. A huge THANK YOU goes out to all who are sponsoring it, golfing in it, volunteering for it, etc.
A huge Thank you also goes out to all who donated and helped us gather donations for our golf outing. Thanks so much!
Let’s enjoy the day together
Day of Endurance – Saturday, August 23rd 2025
I hope your training is going well. I know some are hitting it hard and are well ahead of where they were last year at this time…good job! We get out of it what we put into it. I hope you’re feeling good!
Let’s make this journey and experience the best yet and have some fun…together. As we train, 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. Please turn your progress notes into Dr Kate bi-weekly. 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 do this year.
Remember, try to do daily workouts and just one LONG workout each week. It’s on the one long workout that you want to do just a little better than the week before on and gradually build up each week.
Ed and Adam’s Podcast
Adam and Ed had a nice conversation together.
Here’s the link:
Just Talking by Positive Vibes Living with MS
Thanks Adam, Ed and Ava for doing these podcasts together!
Exercise 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 Mornings
8:00am Rebounding Class
9:00am Nutrition Program – Friends with MS, caretakers and volunteers are encouraged to engage. Here’s last week’s presentations:
MS 2025.06.16 Gut microbiome.pdf
SCAN_NCAA_FuelingDuringExerciseNOMARKS.pdf
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
Tuesday afternoons
1:00 pm – 1:45 pm: Aquatic exercise program held at Wildwood Lodge – Pewaukee
2:00 pm – 2:45 pm: Aquatic exercise program held at Wildwood Lodge – Pewaukee
Wildwood Lodge has a lift available to get people in wheelchairs in and out of the pool safely
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.
9:30am – 10:00am: Seated Balance
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 Kern at kborn1234@gmail.com with any questions.
Friday Morning Bike Rides
No bike ride this Friday. We will be at the golf outing with the trailer and trikes.
Educational Sessions
Friday, Friday, June 27th 11:00 – 12:00 pm: Faith Zahorik, pelvic floor physical therapist from ProHealth Care will talk to us about the anatomy and function of your pelvic floor and core musculature, and the interaction of MS. You will also take home the initial tools to build strength and strategies for optimal pelvic floor health.
Friday, July 11th 11:00 – 12:00 pm: Day of endurance check-in presentation. We will discuss the details of the event held on Saturday, August 23rd.
Friday, July 18th 11:00 – 12:00 pm: Bi-yearly volunteer meeting. Meet in the breakroom to discuss any new topics, raise questions, comments, or concerns.
Friday, July 25th 11:00 – 12:00 pm: Rob Motl’s team from the University of Illinois Chicago will update us on research results from their recently completed MS studies, tell us about ongoing research studies, and what’s next for his research lab.
Friday, August 1st 11:00 – 12:00 pm: Kate will present interesting research findings and rehab techniques she learned at the 2025 Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) conference.
Friday, August 15th Fayth Caruso from Bellicon will be here to spend the morning with us. Fayth will answer any questions you may have about rebounding, the benefits of it, how to get started, experiences she’s had as a master trainer, etc. Fayth would also like to learn from us living with MS and how we have benefited it from it so far. Fayth gets lots of requests from people across the nation about rebounding and MS. She is hoping to get some testimonials from some of us to share with her Bellicon nation.
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 this Friday, June 20th, 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 625 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 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 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. You’re probably wondering what kind of pictures I was able to capture to share this week. I hope you read the e-mail too.
I was at Retzer Nature Center by the children’s pollinating garden. This little gopher was thinking about getting a drink from the birdbath
Finally, it decided to go for it even though I was standing right there
And then…it was happy and took off
Bird baths are popular with the critters. This deer was checking out our birdbath in our backyard
Good thing it had fresh water in it
Here’s another deer that visited us this week. He’s a cutie
The same little buck came back another evening while the sandhill cranes were there. The sandhill crane actually pecked the deer in the neck and the deer left.
This sandhill crane was stretching out. We all need to stretch more.
This turkey was prancing around so proud. He was pretty good looking if I have to say so myself.
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.
