The MS Wire

News, info and tips for living with multiple sclerosis

Category: Exercise

Checking in with marathon MS runner Cheryl Hile

Cheryl Hile with other runners at RAMMS Mini-Event

Cheryl Hile is hard to catch up with. Hile is a marathon runner. When I first interviewed her, nearly eight years ago, she had just finished running a marathon in Cape Town, South Africa. It was the first race in her goal to run a marathon on each of the seven continents in the following 12 months. Goal accomplished! Hile followed that race with marathons in Buenos Aires, Honolulu, Antarctica,…Continue Reading

Spring training gets me training

A training workout

First, my exercise routine was disrupted by the pandemic. Then, Hurricane Ian landed a right hook on the exercise room in my Florida community, knocking it out of action. But not long after that, my thoughts were turning to something sweeter — pitchers and catchers returning to spring training here in the Sunshine State — and I finally returned to some spring training of my own. I’m a big believer…Continue Reading

April Hester is Lacing Up Her MS Hiking Boots Again

April and Bernie Hester at Appalachian Trail headquarters

Reservations at a base lodge have been made, and a starting date is circled on her calendar. MS hiker April Hester is ready to start up the Appalachian Trail in the eastern U.S. It’s always an uphill hike for April, even when the trail is flat. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1996, just after her 20th birthday. In October 2017, she and her husband, Bernie, hiked South Carolina’s…Continue Reading

A Pain in the Back Sends me Back to the Pool

back pain

In the past couple years, I’ve developed pain in a few areas of my body, especially my butt and back. Last winter, I tried physical therapy, but relief lasted only a short while. So, I think I’ll head back to the swimming pool to try some do-it-yourself aquatic therapy. In the pool I’ve been prompted to do this by a study recently published in JAMA reporting that for people with…Continue Reading

MS Exercise Study Looking for Volunteers

Here’s an opportunity to participate in a study that compares an in-person MS exercise program with one that’s done on-line. In the STEP for MS program, participants will exercise about one hour, twice a week, for 16 weeks. Some will do this in a clinic and some at home. A trained “coach” will help participants learn how to exercise and will provide encouragement as they do. There will be clinic…Continue Reading

A Paralympic Bull’s-eye for This Woman With MS

Lia Coryell says she wanted to die. According to The New York Times, after fighting COVID-19 last winter, Coryell 56, was hit with heart and kidney failure, pneumonia, and shingles. This was in addition to living with progressive multiple sclerosis. “I’ve had to fight this really dark demon that says: ‘Why are you fighting this? Just let go, let go,’” Coryell told the Times‘ Ben Shpigel. “But I’ve never let go…Continue Reading

My Laptop Needed a Weekend

Giving my laptop a weekend

My favorite line in the “Downton Abbey” TV series, uttered by the dowager played by Maggie Smith, is “What’s a weekend?” When you’re retired, if you’re working as a freelancer, or if like me you’re doing both, it’s easy to forget what day of the week it is. It’s also easy to work seven days a week. The stay-at-home mandates of COVID-19 have extended this problem to many people who…Continue Reading

She’s Hiking 2,200 Miles and She Has MS

When I wrote about April Hester two years ago, she and her husband, Bernie, had just finished hiking the 500 miles of South Carolina’s Palmetto Trail. That’s no small accomplishment for anyone, but it was a particularly special achievement for April because she has MS. Now, April is about to start a hike that will be four times as long. In early May, she and Bernie intend to hike the…Continue Reading

Water Exercise for My MS

Swimming exercise for MS

After a period of temperatures of 95 degrees or more making it too hot to swim, early August has been comfortable enough for me to get back into my water exercise routine. The water temperature has been close to perfect and cool enough to keep me refreshed, though sometimes cooler than most people like. I’ve just finished two of the best workout I’ve had this season: 30 lengths swimming punctuated…Continue Reading