MW: Yes, at first, but then family can make the decision that it has to be a conscious sit-down conversation; we have to be honest with each other. I have to be able to be honest with you, and you have to be honest with me, and let’s just say we make a promise, and give each other a hug and a big kiss and say, “I’m promising.” When you ask me how I’m doing today, I’m no longer going to say “Fine,” but, instead, I’m going to say, “My feet hurt, damn it!” And you can say, “I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do?” and maybe I’ll say, “Just come with me to the gym today.” But at least then I feel that we’re in touch, and that you’ve allowed me to be honest, and I also allowed my caregiver to be honest back.

GB: I was reading “Body Changes” and it really inspired me to start the 21-day program to see if I can get back into shape.

MW: That’s my life. I work out every day. I’ve incorporated another phase because I’m 50 years old, and as much as we need to be strong and maintain our skeletal strength and our muscle strength, we also need to be limber. I’m now training a little bit more for life and I’m incorporating a lot more stretching and I’ll be incorporating a lot more yoga and a lot of other forms of exercise, along with my resistance training and my agility training.  I’m doing all these things together, so I focus on that. I’m in the process of writing my next book; not only addressing eating, but also being fit for life.

GB: What would you say a family caregiver needs to do to start incorporating exercise into their lives?

MW: Of course, check with a doctor first, but the thing you need to do is to start with something simple... As crazy as it sounds, take a walk. Forget the weights, the gym, and the trainer; go out the front door and take a walk. The first time, walk until you feel tired but know you can get back to your house. The next day, walk until you get tired and tell yourself, “I’m just going to go three more minutes.” Then, the next time, you look at your watch, and if it’s the same time you got tired the day before, go six more minutes. The next time you go, I guarantee you that it will not be the same time as before. You’ve achieved something. That’s called physical exercise, right there; that’s your first achievement. If you’ve done this, then you’re ready to start on an exercise program by increasing that walking. One of the things people think to get in shape is that you’ve got to do it tomorrow because there’s something so action-oriented about “get in shape.” It sounds almost as if it were an order, to do it right now. But the truth is, even if you attempted to do it right now, it takes time; so take the pressure off yourself and recognize that it takes time. You have to find those little things that get you down the path of feeling like you’ve accomplished something, and the quickest way to accomplish this is by walking out your front door. A lot of times we look at this as “I have to get to the gym” or “I have to go to the mall to get an outfit and I have to look cute while exercising, and I’ve got to get my make up on” and so they never end up walking out the door.

GB: I’ve been reading a lot about the Montel Williams MS Foundation. Can you tell me about the work of the foundation?