Therapeutic Boxing & Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease is a multifaceted neurodegenerative disease that impairs movement, coordination, and cognitive function over time. 

Physical therapy-led exercise is a critical component of managing Parkinson’s disease, helping to manage symptoms, and even slowing progression of the disease. 

Therapeutic boxing is a unique targeted exercise therapy, requiring full-body movement, combining upper-body punching sequences with lower-body footwork to build strength, counter rigidity, and improve hand-eye coordination, balance, posture, and agility.

What is Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that impairs movement, coordination, and cognitive function over time. Parkinson’s disease predominantly affects the dopamine-producing neurons in a specific part of the brain; dopamine is a chemical that coordinates movement in the body. The lack of dopamine in those with Parkinson’s contributes to unintended or uncontrollable movements, like shaking or tremors, stiffness, and balance and coordination issues.

How Therapeutic Boxing Works for Parkinson’s  

Therapeutic boxing requires full-body movement, combining upper-body punching sequences with lower-body footwork to build strength, counter rigidity, and improve hand-eye coordination, balance, posture, and agility. 

At Mangiarelli Rehabilitation, the physical therapist first works with the patient to master a set stable position and boxing stance to establish basic balance and practice a specific posture. 

Once that is mastered, the patient can move on to incorporating boxing footwork involving forward, side, and backward steps that are made with increased speed based on the set position. 

The physical therapist then teaches the patient a series of punches against focus mitts (worn by the therapist). The punches are timed to maximize force based on balance, posture, and footwork. 

The therapist calls out various instructions to hit the focus mitts in a certain sequence using a number system (right cross, left hook). The patient is forced to translate the numbers called out to punches, which stimulates cognitive processing while also demanding balance, strength, coordination, and agility, and challenges patients to box using their strong and weak sides.