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The story of how boxing, daily movement, and community is changing the lives of people living with Parkinson’s disease.
Parkinson's is a degenerative brain condition in which a deficiency of dopamine can cause stiffness, difficulty with balance, and/or uncontrollable body movements. A body slipping out of control leads to an array of secondary symptoms.
His hands wrapped in Title brand gloves, Jeff Henry, age 68, wailed against a cylindrical boxing column. Small and skinny with thinned gray hair, he crouched as he delivered punches, right, left, right, left, right, left. A burly gym owner shouted “switch!” to the dozen or so participants in this class and Henry moved to a speedbag — those hanging, teardrop-shaped sacks that allow boxers to train their upper body strength and reflexes. Henry did not take his eyes off it as he pummeled it back and forth.
The class ended. Everyone took off their gloves, and the group marked a classmate’s birthday with frosting-coated brownies. Henry clenched the dessert and slowly brought it up to his mouth with patience, exhausted from his workout.
Henry, who owns a dairy farm in Western Pennsylvania, attended a cattle convention four years ago and saw a man dragging his leg, the same kind of drag Henry had developed. The man said he had Parkinson’s.
Henry, who owns a dairy farm in Western Pennsylvania, attended a cattle convention four years ago and saw a man dragging his leg, the same kind of drag Henry had developed. The man said he had Parkinson’s.
His regimen includes attending classes several times a week at the VSN Athletic Performance & Fitness Center in Boardman, Ohio. It is one of more than 800 outposts nationwide that offers Rock Steady Boxing, an exercise program centered on no-contact boxing for people with Parkinson’s disease.
His regimen includes attending classes, several times a week, at the VSN Athletic Performance & Fitness Center in Boardman, Ohio. It is one of more than 800 outposts, nationwide, that offers Rock Steady Boxing, an exercise program, centered on no-contact boxing, for people with Parkinson’s disease.
The disease causes a loss of coordination and agility, and physical activity works to refine the capacity for both, counteracting the decline. Also, Parkinson’s can lead to a more sedentary lifestyle that begets other health problems, like increased diminishing heart health. An exercise routine could, naturally, upend this effect.
A growing body of research has shown that exercise might help to counter Parkinson’s, a degenerative brain condition in which a deficiency of dopamine can cause stiffness, difficulty with balance and/or uncontrollable body movements. A body slipping out of control leads to an array of secondary symptoms.
Scientists are just beginning to understand the neuroprotective effects of exercise. But experiments on lab mice have shown that physical activity seems to stimulate several processes in which the brain maintains essential pathways. In these studies, physical activity was associated with survival and regeneration of cells in brain areas associated with emotion and memory. It also seemed to speed up the metabolism of neurotransmitters.
Rock Steady is the biggest name in a growing movement to encourage Parkinson’s patients to get to the gym to spar against cognitive and physical decline. Large population studies show that people who exercise regularly in their 30s and 40s are less likely to develop the disease.
Results from the Parkinson’s Outcomes Project — a massive study of 13,000 participants in five countries — showed that people who started an exercise regimen of 2.5 hours per week had a slower decline in quality of life compared to those who started later.
Rock Steady is the biggest name in a growing movement to encourage Parkinson’s patients to get to the gym to spar against cognitive and physical decline. Large population studies show that people who exercise regularly in their 30s and 40s are less likely to develop the disease.
Results from the Parkinson’s Outcomes Project — a massive study of 13,000 participants in five countries— showed that people who started an exercise regimen of 2.5 hours per week had a slower decline in quality of life compared to those who started later.
Rock Steady Boxing was founded in 2005 by Scott Newman, an attorney who had developed early-onset Parkinson’s, meaning he was younger than 50 when symptoms began. Using advice from a former professional fighter, he found that his boxing training program helped ease his symptoms.
The program exploded in popularity after it was featured on a CBS Sunday Morning segment in 2015. Connie Fiems, a physical therapist and co-chair of Rock Steady’s Medical Advisory Committee, said that affiliate programs — overseen by a trainer who has completed a course with the national nonprofit — peaked at about 1,000. This has diminished to about 800; some classes never reformed after the Covid-19 pandemic shuttered fitness centers.
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The program consists of more than boxing. The crowd in Boardman, Ohio works through stretching, balance, and coordination exercises before stepping into the room of boxing equipment. Two class participants did not even box due to shoulder conditions.
But no-contact boxing is a critical part of the program, both for health and marketing purposes.
The sport doesn’t just train for strength or the ability to do repetitive motions, but to develop coordination and rapid-fire reaction times, the kind of mind-body connection that Parkinson’s patients are losing.
The fact that most people have never engaged in boxing has turned out to be a benefit, said Chris Timberlake, Rock Steady’s director of training and education. It’s new to them, so they are open to it, and they don’t face the prospect of comparing their skills pre- and post-Parkinson’s.
“So they walk into the gym and they don't have any preconceived expectations of how well they did it before versus how they're going to do it in the future,” said Timberlake.
Many in the Boardman class, which has about 20 regulars, credit Rock Steady with improvements in their condition. “When I first came in, I had trouble getting out of a chair,” said Henry. “Jumping rope is my main exercise now.”
He said that when he started, he left class feeling sore but he doesn’t now. He thinks conditioning has increased his energy level. “I used to get tired so easily,” he said. “It meant I couldn’t be as sociable.”
Many in the Boardman class, which has about 20 regulars, credit Rock Steady with improvements in their condition. “When I first came in, I had trouble getting out of a chair,” said Henry. “Jumping rope is my main exercise now.”
He said that when he started, he left class feeling sore but he doesn’t now. He thinks conditioning has increased his energy level. “I used to get tired so easily,” he said. “It meant I couldn’t be as sociable.”
Doug Stein, the owner of the VSN Athletic Performance & Fitness Center, also teaches classes. He said his experience as a Navy medic makes him comfortable in helping people manage a medical condition.
The hardest thing is encouraging people to concentrate, to engage with their own coordination.
Paula Caldwell, 75, a retired college professor and yoga instructor, is one of the instructors and the catalyst for the classes in Boardman. She was diagnosed in 2005. She said people often come to class feeling tired, unsure they will be able to complete it.
After her Parkinson’s diagnosis, Caldwell called her local gym, VSN Athletic Performance & Fitness Center, to inquire about exercise classes for people like her. Stein picked up the phone. Together, they identified the need for a specialized fitness class for people diagnosed with certain diseases. Stein took it upon himself to earn a certificate to become a boxing coach, making his gym an official affiliate with Rock Steady Boxing.
One important aspect of Rock Steady is that it is social. People meet others struggling through Parkinson’s. Once a month, the Boardman group meets up not to exercise, just to share experiences with symptoms or new medications.
“We have become comrades for fighting this together,” said Caldwell. “We've become our own little unit, like a family. I have the most supportive, loving, wonderful husband. We’ve been married for 50 years this year. But he does not know what it's like to have Parkinson’s. But with boxers, we know.”
These guys were heroes who made me realize what a gift movement is. I left the gym a lot more aware of how important it is to stay active– even when your body says, “not today.” I mean, some of these guys could kick my butt!
Your donation to Rock Steady Boxing will help them continue their mission to empower people with Parkinson’s disease to “fight back.” There are over 800 boxing classes nationwide and programs are needed all over the world, your gift can help make it happen.
visit rocksteadyboxing.org
The Parkinson’s Foundation is dedicated to advocating for research and finding a cure. Help fund research to improve care, find new pathways for treatment, and ultimately find a cure.
visit parkinson.org
