How tailored exercise programmes can help people with Parkinson’s

Health & Fitness

Author: Patrick LoSassoPublished: 10 December 2015

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Become proactive in the management of Parkinson’s symptoms by finding a specially tailored exercise programme to suit you, writes fitness coach Patrick LoSasso

Regardless of your age when diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, it can be incredibly empowering to learn that with the proper knowledge and determination you can become effectively proactive in the management of your condition.

One of the things that you can do to improve your health and wellbeing is maintain a specially designed exercise programme to address the symptoms. The benefits of exercise for reducing Parkinson’s symptoms are validated in countless studies and shown to improve both motor and non-motor symptoms.

The purpose of article, and accompanying video, is to show that you can feel better, almost immediately, performing the right exercises. The video contains a short workout that includes 5 great exercises to help you begin in the comfort of your home.

Getting started

Before you begin any exercise programme, be sure to consult with your doctor or medical professional to make sure exercise is appropriate for you.

Balance, posture, gait and strength are just some of the components of function that can be affected.

If you’re developing your exercise programme on your own, you must become educated on how Parkinson’s can affect your body’s structure and function. This is critical because you’ll need to recognise the exercises that deliver meaningful changes to your personal functional movement.

Patrick LoSasso exercise routine

Knowing your body

It’s important to understand what parts of the body can be targeted by this condition. Your programme should be designed to maintain these areas, keeping them strong, flexible and healthy.

The small of the back, the area between the shoulder blades and spine can all be affected by the disease and should be maintained in your exercise programme. Keeping these areas strong and supple is one of our primary objectives.

On the front of the body, Parkinson’s often causes the muscles of the chest and shoulder to become shortened and stiff.

Fortunately, by maintaining the posterior areas mentioned above with the exercises demonstrated in this accompanying video, you will be simultaneously addressing both the front and the back of your body.

I hope this article will motivate you to become proactive in the management of your condition. As I like to say, “I’ve seen small changes make big differences!”

Be sure to watch to the end of the video as I’ve added a bonus stretch at the end.


To watch more of Patrick’s exercise videos, visit his website

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