Rock Steady Boxing offers exercise and community for people with Parkinson’s

Participants in the Lebanon Valley Family YMCA’s Rock Steady Boxing class aren’t putting on gloves to learn how to knock out an opponent. The class is about balance, movement, and community for people with Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder mainly impacting motor function.

Guy Young, a member of the highest-level class at the Y, said he was diagnosed over two years ago. He went to the doctor after his wife asked why he was swinging his left leg when he walked.

“I’ve been pretty much attached to the class,” he said. “Two people had to drop out due to their health, but we’re here, and we’re staying steady. I think for me personally, my progression has not been real fast. I think it slowed down.”

Boxers attack the various punching bags throughout the room, pushing themselves and others to do their best. (Katie Knol)

Young said his Parkinson’s presents as stiffness, but the disease can also bring shakiness, slowness, or balance instability.

The class starts with basic stretches and movement as a warm-up before going into boxing. Instructors and volunteers push the students to keep moving their feet and hit the various targets around the room. Volunteers also pull people aside so the gym-goers can follow them around the room, further testing their movement and balance.

They are then led through a cooldown and discussion.

Instructor Shelly Vitelli leads the Rock Steady Boxing class through cooldown exercises with weights. (Katie Knol)

Beyond the physical benefits, Rock Steady Boxing is also a community.

There’s no judgment — it’s all encouragement, and they offer tips on things that might help each other. Anyone who wants to talk can share what they’ve been going through, and the class is full of people in similar boats.

“If somebody is experiencing something, at the end of every class, we sit, and we chat about it,” said instructor Shelly Vitelli. “Nobody feels left out. Everybody feels included.”

Vitelli pointed out individuals in the class and provided the unique nicknames they’ve gotten over time. The boxers, especially in the highest-level class, were constantly chatting and teasing each other.

Instructor Allan Feldman, who along with Vitelli launched the program as coaches, said the social aspect of the class is one of its most important benefits.

“I’m glad to hear so many people talk about the group as a social event because that’s just really critical to the piece that we were trained in, and I think that’s also something that could bring more people to the room,” he said. “We’re all in this together.”

Participants push each other to work hard during the workout, and it’s an opportunity to discuss their experiences with the disease. (Katie Knol)

Alyssa Arnold, Lebanon Valley YMCA’s Rock Steady Boxing coordinator, said she was impressed by the level of participation when she joined the staff.

“It’s hard with a fitness class to actually get people coming consistently sometimes, but everyone’s just so consistent,” she said. “They’re eager to be here — I love it.”

Arnold said her grandfather, based in New York, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and joined a boxing class there. She said he’s a stubborn farmer and was hesitant to put himself out there, but he found many benefits to joining.

Now, Arnold said he regularly meets with friends from the class outside of the gym, and he has gained some of his mobility back.

“It’s a class that I truly would recommend to anyone with Parkinson’s because it makes such a huge difference,” she said. “One of the big things that’s easy to do with Parkinson’s and any neurologic disease is become inactive, and one of the best things you can do is remain active, or if you’ve not been an active person, start that activity level. We want to maintain that function as long as we can, and this is a great way to do it.”

For many of Rock Steady Boxing’s volunteers, it’s a close familial connection to Parkinson’s disease that has gotten them involved.

Rock Steady Boxing coordinator Alyssa Arnold pulls boxers aside so they follow her around the room, targeting her gloves. (Katie Knol)

Karen Nicholson helped bring the classes to the Lebanon County YMCA in honor of her father, David Allen Byerly, who was a businessman, insurance agent, and Lebanon city councilman. His Parkinson’s presented as some shaking, difficulty with everyday movements, and a change in speech.

“He had it for many, many years and struggled with Parkinson’s with no exercises or no program to help him,” Nicholson said. “I wanted to do something in his memory, and I thought, what better place? I heard about Rock Steady and heard about how good it was, and set up a program at the YMCA.”

She funds the classes at the Y. What started as one class has grown into three, divided by levels of functionality. Nicholson said she’d also be interested in starting a Rock Steady program with the county Veterans Affairs.

Participants have said that the classes have slowed their progression, and one woman in the highest-level class said her neurologist included in their notes that the exercise was improving her functionality.

“When they come out, they’re enthused, they get the exercise,” Nicholson said. “They’re not sitting around. They’re doing things. They’re working their muscles, their brains.”

Boxers do their Rock Steady Boxing chant, created by instructor Shelly Vitelli, after the class. (Katie Knol)

Lebanon Valley YMCA will be able to start its evaluations to get new people into the classes in May, Arnold told LebTown. She said people interested are invited to observe a class and then go through an evaluation process with various balance tests to determine what their level should be.

Some boxers in the lower-level classes bring their walkers or canes for support, and some have family members tag along, too. They can hold onto the bag while they punch for stability or keep the walker right in front of them. Arnold said she’s also interested in expanding to a fully seated class. Volunteers are trained to spot and provide support when needed to ensure safety.

Anyone interested in joining should contact Arnold at rocksteady@lebanonymca.org.

Editor’s note: This article was updated after publication to clarify Allan Feldman’s role with the program.

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Rock Steady Boxing offers exercise and community for people with Parkinson’s

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