Exercise is Medicine

  One thing I'm doing by myself these days is working out. The Y does have exercise machines I can use, but they also offer classes. Some of the classes are specifically for people with Parkinson's. To anyone with an observing eye, these classes are easy. But for someone with Parkinson's, they are difficult, indeed.

    My goal in going to the Y is to regain some mobility. It's pathetic to think how much ground I've lost to this disease. But I  am determined to improve. I've only been going for a couple weeks, but I can see improvements.They may only be noticeable to me, but I'll take it. It gives me hope and that's what I need.

    The guy in charge of the program at the Y  has little truisms he likes to say. One of them is exercise is medicine. I believe that wholeheartedly. Sleep for people with PD can be elusive. For years I'd get by on three to four hours of sleep. I'd wake about 2 AM and go to my gym where I'd do seventy  minutes on an   elliptical in addition to doing weights. I felt great and PD was at bay. Then came a season of surgeries which kept me from the gym. That's when I started to notice a difference. 

So I've lost some ground, but I want that real estate back. I know this road is bumpy and arduous, but it's manageable. The more I work at these classes, the better I'll feel. I don't know how much I'll improve, but I know this much. Working out is better than sitting waiting for improvements. It'll take time and effort on my part. Lucky for me I have all the time in the world right now.

If you have Parkinson's, do yourself a favor and stay as active as you can for as long as you can. If you haven't been active, start today because the guy at the Y is right. Exercise is medicine. 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Stride-q210c.jpg/347px-Stride-q210c.jpg


Comments

  1. 3sistersJuly 31, 2022 at 1:49 PM

    For those of us without PD or some other mobility-limiting condition, it's too easy to take our health and ability to exercise for granted. As a retiree without PD, reading today's blog inspires me to make regular exercise--and a variety of its forms--more of a priority. Free medicine!

    ReplyDelete
  2. My2centsAugust 22, 2022 at 6:51 PM

    When I retired a few years ago, one of my goals was to exercise every day. Because of some mobility issues I have, I bought myself a recumbent stationery bike. It is a thing of beauty with all kinds of bells and whistles. I have yet to climb aboard. I can't even figure out how to turn it on and the plug thingy that makes everything work is long gone. I have found several that look like they would fit, but even with the manual, I can't figure out where the plug goes. Life in the 21st century. Sigh.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Raise a Hallelujah

Image
Out of It. Continuing my last blog about my May 16, 2023, deep brain stimulation surgery and ensuing dysphasia, I woke up in shock that I couldn't speak. I was able to respond to prompts by medical staff to raise this finger, wiggle this toe, and so on. But verbal communication was nil for me. I knew I was all with it, but anyone looking at me pretty much thought I was now "out of it." It was a few days post surgery on a Sunday morning that God broke into my life.   Shattered Shoulder. Back up three years to April of 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. I had taken a Parkinson's related tumble in the kitchen and shattered my shoulder in eight places. I lay in the hospital, new fake shoulder firmly in place reminding me that the old shattered one was all dug out with knife and forceps. There was no one around, as Covid protocols called for no visitors. It was just me and my God. After the "why me" prayer and "what else can happen to me" outcry I looke
Read more

The Great Escape

Image
Scripture Memory When I was in college, I memorized the entire book of Philippians in the Bible. A scripture came back to me from that well of memorization that helped me change my attitude. I had been battling the May 16, 2023 surgery dysphagia and seemed to be losing. In the third chapter of that book, the author Paul, who is in prison for preaching Jesus, finds repose in the thought of his future resurrection. Jesus promises all who believe in Him a resurrection. My Parkinson’s-ridden body will become brand new in heaven. Just before July 4 in 2023, and in my second rehab facility I was starting to think of this Bible chapter. Paul says, “I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it [his resurrection body] yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” As an English teacher most of my life, that verse has an abundance of action words. It was time fo
Read more

Change

Image
 Change. It's been over a year since my last blog post and I guess for good reason. On May 16 last year, things really changed in my life. I underwent deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery. Yes, it sounds sort of Frankensteinish, but actually tens of thousands of people in the US reap great benefits from this surgery each year. It helps bring back or maintain some physical functionality that is taken away by various neurological diseases. I've been battling Parkinson's Disease (PD) for 15 years and this surgery was to return to me new physical abilities lost to PD. Shock. So I awoke from surgery on May 18, 2023 (alarms should be going off) and I experienced shock, of a scary kind. I was fully aware (as I still am!!) but I couldn't speak. As a matter of fact, I couldn't chew, swallow or speak. I was a prisoner in my own body. Maybe like those movies where someone has been in a coma for days or weeks and then wakes up and tells their loved ones that they heard everythi
Read more