People with Parkinson’s Take ‘Rock Steady Boxing’ Classes in Bemidji

The Bemidji Boxing Club is now offering classes for people with Parkinson’s disease in the form of Rock Steady Boxing, a non-contact boxing-based exercise program.

According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, as of 2022, around one million people in the United States live with Parkinson’s disease, along with another nine million people across the globe. Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological disorder that can cause slow movement, stiffness of limbs, and resting tremors.

While there is no cure for Parkinson’s, there are ways to help manage the symptoms, like the Rock Steady Boxing program that just started up at the Bemidji Boxing Club.

“The improvements in people’s quality of life is really what’s driven me to get this program going,” said Tessa Richardson, Head Coach of Rock Steady Boxing Program in Bemidji.

Richardson personally knows the struggles of those living with degenerative disorders.

“I have a family member with dementia, and there’s not really a whole lot we can do to help that,” she said. “This is something where you can really fight back and make a difference.”

For people with Parkinson’s, a regimen of jab, cross, and hook could be a big help, and it can even alleviate symptoms of the disease.

“High-intensity, large-amplitude movements can help slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease,” added Richardson. “So a combination of medications, exercise can really help improve people’s quality of life.”

Richardson works as a neuro-population outpatient physical therapist for Sanford Health in Bemidji and knows that one-on-one sessions don’t work for everyone.

“A lot of times, I’ll work with people that are doing great in therapy and kind of fall off the bandwagon, and I want it to be something where we can offer classes after therapy is done, where we can have the community and be together,” she explained.

She says having a coach-athlete relationship versus a therapist-patient dynamic with the clients can make quite a difference. “It’s more laid back, it’s fun; we got music playing, we’re shouting, we’re having a good time.”

And if you ask some of the athletes at the Rock Steady Program, the classes are going well.

“We decided that it would be best for him to start doing it, to start using his muscles and getting better at it,” said Carol Kranich, wife of Rock Steady Boxing participant Douglas. “He seems to be able to do punches and different things like that.”

“The intensity was there, people were sweating and working hard; they’re giving me that look like they’re starting to get mad at me because they’re working so hard, and that’s what I strive for,” added Richardson with a laugh.

The Rock Steady Boxing Program started in 2006 and has grown to be a program used worldwide with over 800 affiliate locations in every state, as well as 14 countries.