Author: Landtiser

The answer to that question is YES!

Research shows that sitting too much is one of the biggest potential threats to our health, and it makes Parkinson’s progress faster.

I’m giving my readers a little tough love with this series. We must break this habit of sitting most of the day! Last winter, many people with PD saw their health decline rapidly and their symptoms progress because they were sitting for long periods watching TV, on the computer, or reading. With PD, you just cannot do this.

Here is an easy exercise to do, if you do it the right way. It’s actually two exercises in one that you should be doing throughout the day.

To get started, you can do this exercise seated or standing. Doing this exercise takes some imagination, which is really great for your brain!

Watch the “Do This, Not This To Treat Parkinson’s Stooped Posture” video here:

As we finish up another round of Posture School, I am reminding my students that they have to do their extension exercises daily to continue to get the benefits and not slide back into their stooped posture.

With Parkinson’s, your chest muscles tighten, creating a flexed-forward posture. This creates a host of problems, including back pain. You can use a 45-centimeter yoga ball to facilitate some great extension in your muscles, improving pain and your posture.

Tight hip flexors are a huge problem for people with Parkinson’s disease. Many of my fighters complain of hip and back issues that stem from a tight psoas muscle. It’s a hard muscle to stretch, and oftentimes you can strain your back while trying to stretch it.

The psoas is a major hip flexor muscle that performs several complex actions, like lifting your legs and bending forward. It attaches at the bottom of the thoracic spine, runs along the lumbar spine, then threads through the pelvis, over the front of the hip joint, and attaches at the top of the femur (thigh bone). Wow!!

It is the only muscle that connects the spine to the leg. You can see why when this muscle gets tight it causes so many balance, posture, and gait issues.

The Cat-Cow stretch originated in yoga, although it’s often incorporated into Pilates and general exercise classes as a great way to warm up and stretch the spine or relieve stress and pain. It’s beneficial for everyone and can be done on the floor or in a chair. It’s especially great for people with Parkinson’s, who tend to get very tight through the neck and back.

Many of our fighters have a stooped posture or rounded upper back, so I am demonstrating a way to target the lower back when the upper back tends to take over as the only part that wants to flex. This slight modification feels so good to those of us who need that little extra lumbar stretch!