Parkinson’s and Exercise: Your #1 Strategy for Living Well (Parkinson's Awareness Month Series – Week 1) - Live Parkinson's - Live an Exceptional Life!

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
Hello and welcome to Live Parkinson's Live an
Exceptional Life, where weexplore real strategies for
living well with Parkinson's.
I'm your host, chrisKustenbader, and I've been
living with Parkinson's for 15years, and the mission of this
podcast is to help as manypeople as possible living with
Parkinson's to lead a greatquality of life.
This is the first episode ofour special four-part series for

(00:31):
Parkinson's Awareness Month.
Each week this April, we'lldive into one powerful strategy
that can help you not justmanage Parkinson's but thrive
with it.
Today's episode is all aboutone of the most powerful tools
in our Parkinson's toolkitexercise, or, as I like to say,

(00:52):
move to improve.
Now I know what some of youmight be thinking Exercise.
Are you kidding me, chris?
I have trouble just getting outof the chair some days, and I
certainly get it.
There's days that I felt likethat as well.
Parkinson's can make movementchallenging, but that's exactly

(01:12):
why it's important to keepmoving.
Now here's the truth.
Exercise isn't just good forpeople with Parkinson's, it's
essential.
Research continues to show thatregular physical activity can
slow the progression of motorsymptoms, boost our mood,
improve our balance and strengthand even enhance our brain

(01:35):
health.
Let me say that again Exercisehelps your brain.
It boosts dopamine, which weneed for movement.
It supports neuroplasticity,that's, the brain's ability to
adapt and rewire or form newneural pathways, especially when
we're learning something new,and it gives you a real sense of

(01:57):
control in a situation that cansometimes feel unpredictable.
So what does this look like inreal life?
It doesn't mean you have to runmarathons or become a gym rat
or swim the English Channel.
It means finding ways to movethat work for you, and that
could be a 20-minute walk aroundthe neighborhood with your

(02:18):
family and friends.
It could be aParkinson's-specific boxing
class like Rock Steady Boxing.
It could be stretching or yogain your living room.
It could be riding a stationarybike or taking a Parkinson's
cycling class.
It could be dancing to yourfavorite music, or maybe Tai Chi

(02:41):
with one of your friends.
The goal you want to get movingat least 30 minutes a day, five
days a week.
Let me say that again you wantto get moving at least 30
minutes a day, five days a week,and if that sounds like a lot,
start with five minutes andbuild from there.
It's always important to startslowly and then build, rather
than going out and trying tooverdo it the first day and then

(03:02):
you don't want to do it again.
So start slowly and then build,rather than going out and
trying to overdo it the firstday and then you don't want to
do it again.
So start slowly and then build.
That's a great way to approachit.
Now let me share somethingpersonal.
When I was diagnosed over 15years ago, exercise became my
lifeline.
Now I was always a person thatliked to exercise, or I did

(03:23):
exercise, but with Parkinson's,I thought am I still going to be
able to exercise the way I didbefore?
And to my surprise, I was.
So exercise didn't help me justphysically, but mentally as
well, because, like most of us,there were days that I didn't
feel like lacing up my shoes, mybalance was off or I was having

(03:43):
trouble with my walking.
But I did it anyway, and evenafter a short walk or a light
strength workout, I always feltbetter.
I felt stronger and I felt morehopeful.
Now, one of the biggestbenefits, it boosted my
confidence.
With each workout, I reclaimedthat little piece of
independence and I was able toshow myself yes, I can still

(04:06):
continue to do a lot of thethings that I used to do.
Now let's give you a quick tiptime.
I want to get started today.
Here's a real simple routineyou can do right now, starting
off with marching in place fortwo minutes.
Then do 10 chair squats, justsit and stand using your legs,

(04:28):
and if you need support, likeholding on to a wall or a
support person, I highly suggestand recommend that you do that.
And then next is stretch yourarms wide and hold for 10
seconds.
You want to open up your chestand then repeat that sequence
twice and guess whatCongratulations?

(04:49):
You just moved your body,boosted your brain and invested
in your future.
All right, parkinson's maychange how we move, but it can't
stop us from moving forward.
Whether you're newly diagnosedor have been living with
Parkinson's for years, exerciseis going to be your ally.
It gives you the energy, thestrength and the hope to keep

(05:12):
pushing forward.
So this week I challenge youcommit to moving every day.
Keep a simple logbook andnotice how it impacts your
symptoms, your mood and youroutlook.
I bet you'll really besurprised.
You'll notice that how exercisereally does change all three of
those Now coming up.

(05:33):
Next week we're going to diveinto another powerful strategy
nutrition and how what you eatcan either support or sabotage
your progress.
Until then keep moving, keepsmiling and remember you're not
just living with Parkinson's,you're living an exceptional
life.
If you found today's episodehelpful, please subscribe and

(05:55):
share it with someone you love.
If today's episode helpful,please subscribe and share it
with someone you love, andplease check out
liveparkinsonscom for freeresources and community support,
as well as subscribe to thefree monthly newsletter.
We'd love to have you as partof the community, and you can

(06:20):
also support us in this podcaston the Ko-fi page, which is
ko-ficom slash liveparkinsons.
Every little bit helps us reachmore people with Parkinson's
around the world.
So thanks for listening andwe'll see you next week.
And until then, stay healthy,stay strong and continue to live
your best life with Parkinson's.
Thanks again for listening andI hope to see you soon.

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Parkinson’s and Exercise: Your #1 Strategy for Living Well (Parkinson's Awareness Month Series – Week 1)

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