Boxing Helps Seniors Fight Parkinson's Disease in Southwest Florida

FYZICAL Therapy & Balance Centers offer group classes in boxing designed by medical professionals to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson's disease in seniors, reports the Naples Daily News . Over half a dozen such centers are located in Southwest Florida. Parkinson's can cause skills that boxers rely on, including balance, hand-eye coordination, and mental focus, to degenerate. By forcing the body into a regimen that requires maximum effort, speed, strength, balance, and flexibility, programs like FYZICAL's Rock Steady Boxing may be "neuroprotective," and delay the progression of Parkinson's symptoms. Rock Steady Boxing offers courses not based on boxing ability, but rather the degree to which Parkinson's is affecting participants' daily activities. Certified instructors lead classes, which start with extensive warmups before participants rotate through a series of stations. Participants punch with both hands, while kickboxing is also included in the curriculum; balance, flexibility, strength, and endurance stations fill out the rotation. "It is very much a support group and an exercise class," said FYZICAL member Lee Accavallo.