Washington YMCA launches Rock Steady Boxing

The Y in Washington has kicked off its own “Rock Steady Boxing” program last week, a no-contact class designed for people with Parkinson’s disease, a condition which hospital data says effects nearly 100 county residents.

“There’s a lot of day-to-day things targeted with how the program is designed,” said boxing coach Angie Boyse. “Thinking about boxers and how boxers move, you have to have a lot of balance, so that addresses that, that’s an issue with Parkinson’s. You have to have hand-eye coordination … you have to have muscle power when you’re punching. All of the things that specifically are attributed to a successful boxer link straight into all of the issues that people with Parkinson’s have.”

There is no cure for Parkinson’s disease, but Boyse said studies found intensive exercise could slow its progression.

“When exercise is done at a volunteer rate, there’s less benefit than when exercise is done that pushes or forces somebody out of their comfort zone,” she said. “That’s what Rock Steady does. It pushes that individual out of their comfort zone, and that’s where the benefits are. There’s actual medical studies that have been done on exercise and Parkinson’s.”

For those that attend the program — at the Washington Y, at 1 p.m. every Monday and Thursday — it’s as much about emotional support as much as physical.

“It gives me a sense of accomplishment,” said Lana Todd, a Parkinson’s patient from Columbus Junction who attended a class in Washington. “There’s a lot of tasks that seem hard to do, but when they break it into little parts, then it makes you feel like you accomplished something … it helps you be accurate. I’m a big believer that they’re working the brain as well, and that’s a big part of it.”

The Rock Steady Program involves the caregivers of people with Parkinson’s as well, calling them “corner men.”

“We do encourage caregivers or whoever of the boxers, to be corner men,” Boyse said. “They don’t participate in the actual workout, but they’re there as a support person for that individual.”

The class is very personal for Boyse, whose mother attended Rock Steady classes herself in Mason City.

“Every day that you have, that’s going to be your best day. It’s a progressive disease, it gets worse every day … for her, it was a way to combat that, physically and emotionally,” Boyse said. “Watching my mom and what a positive experience and how it made her feel like she was a person again and what it impacted, I wanted to make sure that I carried that on.”

For the local Y, the cost of starting its own Rock Steady program was too high, given the extensive in-person training required to certify coaches. When that training became possible remotely, the Washington County Y jumped at the chance.

“Since it’s something that’s very near and dear to my heart, I took the reins and ran with it,” Boyse said. “My background is already in fitness and I’m the wellness director here in Kalona, so it kind of fit in my wheelhouse.”

The program is small for now with only a few participants, but Boyse said she expected it to grow quickly.

“We talked to a couple local Rotary groups, and I explained about the program, and my first question to them was, ‘How many people in this room know somebody with Parkinson’s?’” she said. “Every single one of those people raised their hands. So the need is there … it’s a matter of getting the word out now, that this program exists and why it is so important.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com