Last week we talked about rounded posture and tucked pelvis that often results from Parkinson’s disease. What can we do about it? We fight with squats!!

Hip hinging (squatting with proper form) is a great way to counter act this.

With proper hip hinging, it allows the sacrum and tail bone to hinge outward like it is supposed to. The trick is to start early, before the bones of the lower back start to fuse in this stooped position. However, even people with advance stooped posture can benefit from this exercise. By sticking your “tail feathers” in the air as you squat back, it gives you access to your glute muscles and helps restore normal curves in your spine. It also reminds the leg bones where they are supposed to be in the pelvis, so walking can improve.

I start all my clients with or without Parkinson’s with hip hinging. This is the most important exercise to do for better posture, balance and fall prevention.

It is all about the base when teaching people with Parkinson’s to hinge at the hip, and by “base” I mean hips or your tail-end.  Hip hinge (proper squatting form) is probably the most important movement principle to train for balance and to maintain independence.

We need proper hip hinge and pelvic placement to bend, sit in a chair, walk, stand, etc.

It is the foundation of movement. With Parkinson’s, so often I see the pelvis tucked under in a posterior tilt. The person is basically “sitting” on their tail bone vs having it out and behind their body. This fixed tucked position is very dangerous for backward falling and serious injury to the low back. Very often the person complains of low back and hip pain because the lumbar curve (your shock absorber) is almost eliminated. This posture also creates a faulty gait pattern.

Therefore, I always start my clients out with hip hinging in my private practice. Turning on the glutes and getting that tail out is key to any training program. If this faulty pattern is allowed to continue, the knees will stay bent during all phases of walking (to maintain balance). The person’s weight would have completely shifted to the heels, making them a huge risk for falling backwards. To compound the problem even further, these individuals usually have a rounded upper back and forward head to counterbalance their weight being drawn backward.

It happens so gradually that the person isn’t even aware it’s happening until they have pain or balance issues. Some clients don’t know what I’m talking about until I show them a picture.

Quite often people ask me if excessive sweating is a symptom of Parkinson’s Disease. Women ask me the most, and not because this happens more frequently to women, but because women are more surprised by these mystery “hot flashes”. 

Sweating is controlled by the autonomic nervous system (ANS) which also controls other unconscious body actions, like heart and respiratory rate, digestion, urination etc. 

The ANS can be (and usually is) affected by Parkinson’s, causing people to suddenly sweat excessively which can cause blood pressure to drop. It can also cause one to sweat too little, or not at all. This leaves skin really dry, and puts people at risk for overheating. Both can really impact quality of life. 

I see this all the time, and it drives me crazy! People walking around with their hands in their pockets regardless of whether it’s cold out or not. What’s so bad about walking with your hands in your pockets? Two of my friends have fallen while their hands were in their pockets. One lady was hiking, one hand in her pocket, and fell and broke her nose. The other was walking in the dark after a basketball game, didn’t see the curb, and fell and broke his jaw and teeth. Both individuals were in their 20’s and did not have Parkinson’s disease.

If you are standing or sitting it’s not terrible to have a hand in your pocket, but once you start moving you should pull your hands out and swing them by your sides. 

People with Parkinson’s are more likely to put a hand or two in their pockets because of a tremor. They feel like it either conceals the tremor or quiets it down. I understand the temptation, but it’s dangerous.