5 minute read
How Boxing Fights Against Parkinson’s Disease
"Our Community" feature by Holly Stupak
Photos from the collection of Dr. Jennifer Brown, PT, DPT
You don’t have to have experience as a fighter or boxer to join Rock Steady Boxing. You just have to show up and have fun! That’s the motto of Rock Steady Boxing (RSB), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to “fight back” against Parkinson’s disease (PD).
“For Parkinson’s patients who have been suffering for years or even those newly diagnosed, this program can change the course of the disease and improve patients’ quality of life,” said RSB Broomall Founder/Director Dr. Jennifer Brown, PT, DPT. “Our classes are led by physical, speech and occupational therapists who specialize in PD and PD Plus diagnoses such as Lewy body dementia.”
It’s estimated that more than 1 million people in the United States are diagnosed with PD, a degenerative movement disorder that can cause deterioration of motor skills, balance, speech and sensory function.
Founded in 2006, RSB was the first program in the country dedicated to the fight against Parkinson’s. They now have 700+ affiliates worldwide. The boxing routines focus on posture, balance, walking, voice and socialization, and are tailored to meet an individual’s needs.
A pre-COVID live RSB class in Broomall, doing planks
Dr. Jennifer (“Jen”) Brown, PT, DPT is the Founder/ Director of the Broomall and the Main Line RSB affiliates. She earned her Master’s Degree in Physical Therapy from Springfield College in 1996, and her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Temple University in 2008. After working for Main Line Health for 15 years, Jen founded Dynamic Home Therapy & Neurofit (DHT; www.LiveDynamicNow.com) in 2011. DHT provides neuro-based treatments to patients in their own homes as well as to folks in assisted living facilities. DHT’s staff of OTs, PTs and SLPs work with patients with PD as well as Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury and other movement disorders.
Jen’s area of expertise is in adolescent and geriatric physical therapy with the neurologically impaired population. In 2009, she received her Geriatric Clinical Specialist certification, and in 2011, she was certified in LSVT BIG for PD, a treatment approach that addresses the movement aspects of the disease and leads to significant improvements in function, balance, and gait. Her inspiration to go into this field came from personal experience.
OT Sara Brown delPozo performing occupational therapy with her Broomall client Anna
For years, Jen was interested in starting her own RSB affiliate, knowing the impact it could have on her patients as well as other people with PD or other neurological conditions. “I wanted a program for my DHT patients, to keep them motivated after they were discharged from their therapy,” Jen said. “It also can be a built-in support group for everyone, to help with depression and anxiety, which are very common symptoms for those with Parkinson’s disease.”
L-R: Tracy Finney, PT, and Dr. Jennifer Brown, PT, DPT
After becoming certified in RSB in 2017, Jen, along with her Assistant Manager Tracy Finney, PT MSPT, opened an RSB affiliate in Wayne, which has since moved to Devon. In 2018, she opened the Broomall affiliate (Broomall.RSBAffiliate.com) in Young Forever Fitness. In-person RSB classes typically had about 10 members plus a coach and volunteers.
In addition to Jen’s team that teaches classes on a rotating basis, she also has a Wellness Leader, Barrie Greenberg, DPT, who performs the intakes for new members. Caregivers or other care partners can attend and are referred to as their “corner person.” “We’ve had members as young as 40 years old up to some in their 90s,” said Jen. “We can tailor the workout to all different abilities and different stages of the disease.” Each week, a different “theme” was offered, but every theme focused on optimal agility, speed, muscular endurance, accuracy, hand-eye coordination, voice, cognition, balance, posture and overall strength.
A virtual RSB class
Since COVID-19 forced all gyms to stay closed, RSB Broomall has used Zoom to offer virtual classes for its members. Although they can’t do the same workouts at home on the bags, they’ve been able to offer shadow boxing, yoga, voice and tai chi, and they’ve even offered cognition classes as well as guest speakers.
Because they’ve allowed members from different RBS affiliates to join the virtual classes, they have close to 70 members who hop on 3–5 days a week. “There is such a camaraderie with the group that we’ve also added virtual coffee and happy hours as well as trivia nights. The group loves catching up with each other before we start our classes so I always give them a few extra minutes to chat!” said Jen.
Newtown Square resident Ted has been a member of RSB for the past 2 years. “I joined Rock Steady the day after I retired and it’s been a lifesaver,” said Ted. “It has improved some of my symptoms, and the friends I’ve met there have become like family!”
Betinna, a Rock Steady boxer from Newtown Square
Betinna, another Rock Steady boxer from Newtown Square, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 14 years ago when she was only 34 years old. “Rock Steady Boxing has been a saving grace for me,” she said. “Parkinson’s takes a little away from you every day, but the Rock Steady regimen helps me fight back, quite literally. It’s about mainBetinna, a Rock Steady boxer from Newtown Square taining physical strength and dexterity. But it’s also the emotional support and genuine friendships. Jen and her team keep me coming back every day.”
Whether it’s in person or virtual, RSB is a fun way to stay fit, protect the brain, and meet new people! Although a cure for Parkinson’s disease may be many years away, there’s evidence that by participating in the RSB program, progress can be made in all stages of the disease.
