Our Classes

YOGA

Yoga class offers a program of relaxation and movement to promote balance, improve motor control, ease stress and anxiety and improve cognitive function. Breathing exercises combined with controlled movement challenge the nervous system resulting in improved function.

Tuesday 12:30 pm to 1:15 pm In gym and on Zoom

NUTRITION

Eating the right foods will optimize your medications, keep your bones strong, fight constipation and weight loss and maintain general health and fitness. While there is no prescription for a PD-specific diet, to maintain overall good health most people living with Parkinson’s disease should eat a variety of whole grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy products, and protein-rich foods such as meat and beans. Also, you should consider including nuts, olive oil, fish and eggs to your diet, for their beneficial fats. In these sessions you can learn about your options for eating healthy with PD and get all your nutritional questions answered.

Scheduled twice monthly. Send an email to empowerparkinson@gmail.com to be put on our email distribution list to get up to date scheduling information

DANCE

A dancing program designed to help promote balance, movement, agility and endurance. Recent studies have shown that people with PD who participate in a dancing program improve multiple parameters of gait, increase strength, improves the ability to dual task and overall improves the quality of life.

Days and Times TBA.

TAI CHI

Tai Chi class offers varied movements of the legs while moving the arms and hands and maintaining deep relaxing breathing challenges for both the cognitive and motor systems. Tai Chi emphasizes specific movement patterns and controlled weight shifting sequences to improve both static and dynamic balance.

Thursday 2:00 pm – 2:45 pm thru November 17th. Send an email to empowerparkinson@gmail.com to be put on our email distribution list to get up to date scheduling information

BIG FOR LIFE

BIG for LIFE trains people with Parkinson’s disease to use their body more normally. People living with PD or other neurological conditions often move differently, with gestures and actions that become smaller and slower. They may have difficulty getting around, getting dressed or have trouble with activities of daily living. BIG effectively improves movement for any activities, whether “small motor” (buttoning a shirt) or “large motor” tasks (getting off the couch, going up stairs). BIG for LIFE helps maintain an exercise program that improves walking, self-care and other tasks by helping people to “re-calibrate” their movement to produce bigger motions when needed and more precise movements at other times.

Monday, Wednesday and Friday 9:00 am – 10:00 am  Zoom only.

SUPPORT GROUPS

Facing and living with Parkinson’s not only brings physical challenges — It brings mental, emotional, and sometimes spiritual shifts too. It is normal to feel challenged by these changes–stresses, worry, sadness and frustration can become daily companions.

Our group is like a family–ever changing, growing, laughing, crying, and supporting each other. Weekly, we get together to talk about the hard stuff. Parkinson’s can bring depression; anxiety; isolation; and many other challenges. Once a month on Monday nights we have a brief presentation on a topic chosen by the group, followed by separate simultaneous group meetings for our boxers and their significant others, facilitated by mental health professionals.

Participants can get together to get and give support on any concern they have. No one is immune to the emotional, mental, and spiritual effects of Parkinson’s disease on themselves and on their family members. Attend the next meeting and discover for yourself a new level of support and connection.

BOXING FITNESS

A boxing fitness program to help fight back against Parkinson’s disease. Our program has been helping people with Parkinson’s disease maintain their independence and function since 2017. The program is a group exercise fitness program consisting of fitness stations that address all the problems associated with Parkinson’s disease — balance, coordination, motor control, strength, power, endurance, flexibility, voice modulation, hand-eye coordination and agility.

Monday through Thursday at 11:00 am to 12:00 noon  In gym and on Zoom
Monday and Wednesday evening 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm.  In gym
Saturday morning 11:00 am to 12:00 noon