2020: On A Mission
Weight Training
It seems a little late to put forth my New Year’s resolutions, so I’ll just say that “I’m on a mission this year…again”. A mission to try even harder and bolder to get a message to those who share my Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis. What is the message? It’s one of hope and encouragement that YOU CAN “live well with Parkinson’s”. It is a message I first heard at a Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s in August 2014 and it resonates inside me today.
What does it mean to “live well with Parkinson’s”? To me, it means exactly this; I CAN SLOW, STOP OR REVERSE MANY, if not all, OF THE SYMPTOMS OF PARKINSON’S DISEASE IN MY BODY. This is not a boast, it’s not wishful thinking and it’s certainly not something I say flippantly. It is very real and others have witnessed it and commented affirmatively on it, including my neurologist.
How can it possibly be true? It is and the answer is not a secret. All the combined medical wisdom of today is in agreement that the only thing that has been proved to slow the progression of PD is EXERCISE. Yes, exercise. Not a pill or some new medication, but exercise. Understand this, the type of exercise required is not what you may want to hear. It is NOT casually walking on a treadmill or in the neighborhood at a leisurely pace while you daydream about what is on TV tonight. It must be more intense than that. But, even if you have to start out slow, you can build up to a more strenuous workout as you go,
Of course, I am a PWP (person with Parkinson’s), not a doctor. But, I do know what doctors, specifically neurologists specializing in treating PD, recommend regarding exercise. And, more to the point, I know what has worked for me. That’s why I believe in, regularly practice and constantly work at improving my exercise regimen.
This week my schedule looked like this.
MONDAY: 1 hr. of Weight Training with dumbbells + 40 mins on the treadmill or bicycle at 80% of max heart rate + 5 mins of ab work
TUESDAY: 1 hr. of RocK Steady Boxing class + 40 mins on the treadmill or bicycle
WEDNESDAY: 1 hr. of Weight Training + 40 mins on the treadmill or bicycle + 5 mins of ab work
THURSDAY: 1 hr. of RocK Steady Boxing class + 40 mins on the treadmill or bicycle
FRIDAY: 1 hr. of weight training
SATURDAY: 40 mins on the treadmill or bicycle + 5 mins. of ab work
SUNDAY: 1 hr. 20 min. bike ride
Richard
February 16, 2020
Greenwood, Mississippi
Sunday Bike Ride in the Carroll County Hills
