Just call me ROCKY

There are certain things a PwP can no longer achieve. For example, pickup sticks. Can you imagine trying to pick up the top stick? Why, even you tremorless folks would have difficulties and for tremor dominant, the game would be a nightmare. The world can be a bully when a game of pickup sticks is your greatest nightmare.

Fear not for we have a weapon to aid our cause.

Boxing!

I joined Rock Steady Boxing and had my first workout today. It was not too difficult and it was enjoyable. I was interested to see the various stages of parkinson victims and I count myself lucky. My symptoms were not apparent and there was quite a range of symptoms in the class, I am guessing stages 1 to 5, all very nice people.

The class starts with a warmup, followed by boxing maneuvers and ends with strength exercises. Unfortunately, there is no body contact; I'd like to have that experience.

In my youth, I boxed, well brawled, twice. I was knocked out cold in my first bout. It took place in my parents' basement. My father had been a Canadian army boxing champ and had 2 sets of gloves. We children used to use them for.....what else? Hitting each other. We called it "boxing".

One day, a rather large friend asked if he could take me on and yada, yada, yada, I got knocked out. My moment of glory occurred at the high school when a brash classmate wanted a piece of me. We gathered in the gym, put on the gloves and had at it. Well, yada, yada, yada, I feinted low; he dropped his gloves and I hit him square on the face and down he went. He was momentarily out cold. They were unsupervised, no training fights, using boxing gloves. These were ghost matches held in the absence of parents and teachers.

The literature hints that too many concussions may be a cause of PD. Well, in addition to "boxing", I've had a few blows to the head playing hockey and football, so I may have doomed myself to PDdom.

Anyway, if Rock Steady boxing can slow down the progress of PD, I am there with bells on. Here is a good description of the program and the effects on PD:

This full-body workout, recently highlighted in The Washington Post, tests balance, agility and hand-eye coordination, all of which can be affected by Parkinson's. It also can build muscle strength, potentially help speech (some say grunting or yelling while punching aids with vocal projection) and even offer an outlet for frustration toward symptoms or disease. Plus, Rock Steady promotes comradery and community, reminding participants that they're all “fighting together against Parkinson's.*

*(written by Kat McCormick, Foxfeed Blog, May 23, 2016)

Rock Steady has a fight song:

I don't know, but I've been told

This PD is getting old
Yada, Yada, Yada, something, something, I forget.
The next line ends with "beat the crap out of PD"

I will let you know the last two lines when I have learned them.

It will be a long, hard fight, but I will be in it for the duration (I have to be. I have no choice.)