Rock Steady Boxing classes are more than just exercise, and members get their share of laughs as they play games that help develop and maintain skills.
Accommodations allow people with a wide range of abilities to benefit from all the program has to offer.
PHOTO BY KODY RUNYAN
Rock Steady Boxing is part exercise program and part social group.
Joan Hayes was a big inspiration for Kody Runyan to bring Rock Steady Boxing to Merced, and now the two are thick as thieves.
Classes start with dynamic warm-ups that encourage big movement.
Members get competitive while developing their reflexes and coordination.
When one thinks of a Parkinson’s diagnosis, a pair of boxing gloves might be the last thing that comes to mind. At Rock Steady Boxing, however, they are the first line of defense.
Rock Steady Boxing is a nationwide fitness program aimed at helping those with Parkinson’s fight their condition. Kody Runyan, a Physical Therapist Assistant at Park Avenue Physical Therapy in Merced, partnered with Merced MMA to bring the program to Merced.
Runyan, who is the lead instructor of the local Rock Steady Boxing program, got the idea from Joan Hayes, a Parkinson’s patient. Runyan was helping Hayes at Park Avenue Physical Therapy, and Hayes suggested Runyan look into programs tailored to Parkinson’s. Runyan trained to become an instructor for Rock Steady Boxing, worked with Merced MMA, and the program took off early this year.
“Because this is a progressive disorder, it’s something that just gets worse in time and there’s no cure for it. But it’s more of a movement disorder. So the more that you move, the slower it progresses,” said Runyan. “That’s why I love the phrase ‘movement is medicine.’ It’s huge for them.”
“Movement is medicine” is a clear theme of the program, and it is the cheer everyone makes during the end of class huddle. Even though the progression of Parkinson’s itself cannot be stopped, participating in a program like Rock Steady Boxing can result in great improvements for those who have the disease.
A class at Rock Steady Boxing is highly adaptable. Runyan is able to modify activities as needed so that everyone is included, so that each can benefit regardless of their current mobility. It’s also not limited to those with Parkinson’s, and is open to anyone who wants to increase their fitness regardless of age or specific condition.
“We’ll still see people with generalized weakness, I have someone that’s had a CVA,” said Runyan. He clarified that some conditions might not benefit if they are at risk of overheating, such as MS, and that a physician sign-off is required before starting the class. “If you want to come in there and to work out with us you don’t have to have Parkinson’s. … It’s made for that, but it could benefit other people as well.”
Classes are structured to address multiple skills that can be affected by Parkinson’s. There are drills for reflexes, dexterity, mobility, and strength. During one activity, members sit around a table and play a poker inspired card game, where winners get to dish out exercises to others in the group.
As the name suggests, members get to put on their boxing gloves and hit the heavy bag. The class is “no-contact,” so nobody is actually being hit. The class structure is anything but dull, and Runyan notes that members have formed friendships through participating in the class.
“When you get diagnosed with Parkinson’s, it’s very depressing. You don’t want to go do anything because you’re afraid of falling, you’re afraid of embarrassing yourself,” said Runyan. “People tend to just become homebodies, but that actually is the worst thing to do. If you’re not walking, you’re not moving, you just get closed in. Just being able to go in there and have people around you that all are going through the same thing as you is probably the nicest part for everybody, being able to talk to someone about it.”
Rock Steady Boxing classes are Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Merced MMA, 745 W. Main St., in Merced. The cost is $125 per month, and anyone interested in participating is encouraged to visit a class in person for free and see what it’s all about.