I know what you are thinking, “Oh my gosh! What’s wrong with socks?” It’s not socks in general; it’s wearing socks without shoes. If you exercise in my classes (either in the gym or virtually) you know I’m always saying “Put on your shoes!”.

Now that we all are spending more time at home, it’s more than likely you kick off those shoes and walk around your house in socks. I’d rather have you go barefoot than wear just socks. In the short video below, you’ll hear me talk about a gentleman that broke his hip during a research study because he was doing Tai Chi in only socks. This is a common mistake people make!

Most often when people experience knee pain, I find the underlying cause is weak glutes. Even avid exercisers often cannot fire their glutes properly.

Strong glutes are vital for everyone, especially if you have Parkinson’s. The glutes are an incredibly important muscle group for many reasons. They balance out gait, assist in fall prevention, improve posture, and prevent back, hip and knee pain and injury.

Why is it that the glutes can be so difficult to activate?

Gardening can certainly cause a host of aches and pains. Why? Because gardening puts us in precarious positions by twisting, bending, reaching, and often spending too much time in those positions that are not healthy for our bodies. This is all compounded by a time constraint of fair-weather opportunities.

Let’s start by thinking of gardening as a workout. First, you need a warm-up. You could walk, march in place, or maybe take a Parkinson’s Boxing-bootcamp class… anything you can do to raise your heart rate and increase your core temperature. Jumping right into gardening with cold muscles is never a good idea. It may save you time in beginning, but it will result in pain and may set you back for several days.

After you’ve warmed up you should do several extension exercises. Gardening and yard work are almost always forward flexing of the spine, which is particularly bad if you have Parkinson’s disease.

You have to keep your glutes and back muscles strong to maintain your balance and prevent falls.  Here is another great way to workout in your home with the safety of using a wall. We all have access to a wall! Just make sure it doesn’t have any windows or pictures to hit your head on.

Statistics show most falls happen sideways, and in your own home. This is a great way to practice walking sideways safely and work the muscles that help with balance… your glutes!

See video below:

One of my followers reached out to me saying her hamstrings have been tight due to Parkinson’s. Working in the garden bent over has made them worse, and now her back hurts too. Another fighter said that they’re having issues with plantar fasciitis. Luckily, I have an answer to help them both… ADDRESS YOUR FEET!

Fascia is a band or layer of connective tissue (primarily collagen) under the skin that attaches and separates muscles and encases internal organs. Fascia can get very tight and knotted up, causing pain and stiffness. People with Parkinson’s disease get even more tight. This tightness compounds every day if it’s not addressed. Therefore, it’s very important to release it so the underlying muscles can glide and function properly.

This myofascial release technique is great for treating tight hamstrings, back aches, foot and calf pain.