Meet the three men behind EndureMKE, a training group devoted to helping Black men prioritize their health

Yahoo

06-05-2025

What started as a meetup among three friends to do a three-mile run to the lakefront turned into an endeavor to help Black men be more proactive about their health.
EndureMKE was born from conversations that friends Sharaka Berry, Carnell Hogans and JaQai Ali had about breaking the generational cycles contributing to poor health among Black men.
The group wants to normalize Black men prioritizing their health by providing a safe space to learn about fitness and mindfulness, while supporting them on their own health journeys.
All three knew each other from their work in the community. They often heard talk about Black men needing to make lifestyle changes but rarely saw any action behind it. So they took matters into their own hands.
From left, Ja Qai Ali, Sharaka Berry and Carnell Hogans do pull-ups while working out with their group, EndureMKE, a Black men's exercise group on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, at Riverside High School.
They got together Sundays at Reservoir Park to do pushups and squats, followed by that three-mile run. Afterwards, they practice mindfulness, sitting cross-legged in the grass, meditating on the lakefront, focusing on breath work. Sometimes on Saturdays, they do night runs on the Oak Leaf Trail.
That was last September.
'It was months ago that we had this conversation,' said Ali, 24, an organizer with WestCare, a nonprofit social service organization.
'It was really divine how just, at the drop of a hat, we were able to initiate this (and) to not only maintain consistency but to build on it the way we have over the past months."
Now they meet at Riverside University High School's track. And what started with three guys exercising has grown into something more.
They've done health and wellness talks at a high school and partnered with Nearby Nature to expose more Black men to the outdoors with nature walks at Havenwoods State Forest.
Between five to 10 men work out with the group Sundays. (Check EndureMKE's Instagram for the schedule.) The trio envisions growing EndureMKE to offer more school and corporate wellness programs as well as create branded fitness events.
The group's name goes beyond physical exercise — it also personifies what Black men endure in society.
'We've been training and conditioning ourselves to meet and overcome all obstacles in our path for a long as we've been in this city,' Ali said. 'This is us putting a slogan or a title on an initiative to build mental, physical, spiritual fortitude necessary for young Black men in the city of Milwaukee.'
Each of the three founders brings something different to the group. Berry is the running captain, Ali is the calisthenics coach and Hogans focuses on mindfulness.
Hogans said it's important for Black men to learn to unplug from the calamity of life and just be in grass.
'The biggest thing is getting as many Black men aware of holistic wellness through nature and physical activity,' said Hogans, 26, an early childhood facilitator with Fathers Making Progress, a nonprofit supporting fathers.
Three different personal health journeys put the men on this path. At some point in their lives, all were overweight.
For Ali, it started when he was a 5-foot-4, 210-pound eighth-grader. As he got older, he shed the weight through different activities, whether healthy or unhealthy.
As an adult, Ali became more health-conscious. Then the pandemic came. Housebound and idle old habits resurfaced, especially around food. Once he saw the impact food was having on him, he challenged himself to eat fruits and vegetables for seven days.
'The difference was night and day,' Ali said.
He had more energy — physically and mentally. And one day, he ran to Marshall High School from his Hampton Avenue home and then did several laps around the track.
'I've never done that before. In fact, I hated running,' Ali said. 'When I realized the impact that had on me, that stuck. I understood I needed to make a change in my life.'
Hogans, too, had an unhealthy relationship with food. During the pandemic, he weighed 225 pounds. He endured a lot of hardships and heartbreaks. Food became therapy.
'Food was my drug,' he said.
Through meditation, Hogans realized his unhealthy emotional attachment to food. He started fasting. That turned into vegetarianism and now veganism. He now weighs 140 pounds.
Hogans started researching food production and was alarmed about the chemicals in food, like trisodium phosphate, a food additive that doubles as a cleaning agent. That, he said, contributes to the health disparities in communities of color.
Members from the group EndureMKE, from left, Camron Smith, Ja Qai Ali, Shawn Mitchell, Sharaka Berry (kneeling), Deangelo Lee, Carnell Hogans and Jordan Lipsey on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, at Riverside High School.
'It is a biochemical warfare because of the foods we are indulging in,' Hogans said.
Long-distance running became Berry's origin story to a healthy lifestyle. The Chicago native ran long stretches to escape a negative home environment.
One day, Berry ran from Chicago's South Shore neighborhood to downtown and back.
'Just really running off anger,' said Berry, who works at Food For Health. 'It was not like this was an exercise thing. I just started running. I just felt a lot better.'
When he moved to Milwaukee in 2018 and, without any training, Berry, 29, started doing marathons, a challenge brought on by a broken leg. But life and a stressful job in social services packed back on the pounds and affected Berry's mental health.
He found solace in running again. He did a marathon and a triathlon in 2023, and stepped away from the group to train for the Madison Half Ironman. Berry hopes EndureMKE could be a springboard to get more Black men running, especially in marathons and triathlons.
'Black men in the running space is not there,' he said. 'I cannot think of a time seeing two or more brothers running together, just jogging. I want to change that visually.'
La Risa Lynch is a community affairs reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Email her at [e-mail]
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Endure MKE training group in Milwaukee prioritizes Black men's health