By rich
The exercise prescription. There’s no Parkinson’s cure, but there is a way to slow the progression of symptoms. To the dismay of pharmaceutical companies, the prescription is exercise. The earlier you begin an exercise plan, the better your outcome. Great minds differ in how much exercise is required for Parkinson’s patients. Neuroscientist Michael Jakowec recommends a minimum of 150 minutes a week (25 minutes a day) of medium to heavy exercise. The yardstick for determining this exercise level is heart rate. You want to sustain a speeded-up heart rate during your workout. There are different ways to measure this. Some say you’ve achieved the correct level of exertion if you’re working out at 60-80% of your maximum heart rate. Others measure it by breaking into a sweat, or by the inability to converse. There are plenty of VR programs that can help you do that. (Check the article, Is VR Right for You?)
Parkinson’s Foundation recommendations. The Parkinson’s Foundation established some minimum standards for exercise and we’ve included them below, along with some suggested VR games:
| Type of Exercise | Duration | Suggested VR program |
| Aerobics – cycling, running, vigorous walking, swimming, or taking an aerobics class | 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three times a week. | FitXR, Supernatural, Beat Saber, Litesport |
| Strength Training – weights, resistance bands, resistance machines | 30 minutes of reps for major muscle groups two or three nonconsecutive days a week. | Litesport, XPonential – both offer augmented reality weight training) |
| Balance, Agility and Multitasking – yoga, qigong, tai chi, dance, boxing | two or three days a week | Xponential, Dance Central, FitXR, Supernatural, Beat Saber, Litesport, Les Mills Body Combat |
| Stretching/Breathing | two or three days a week | Xponential |
My Journey: Diagnosis > Exercise> VR
I was diagnosed at Halloween. It seemed a strange time to learn I had an incurable degenerative disease. To alleviate the burden of her diagnosis, the new Kaiser neurologist suggested I read a book by John Pepper. Pepper’s book led me to other research on exercise and Parkinson’s (especially the landmark research by Jay Albert). I joined a gym, bought a heart rate monitor, and connected with PD-Connect. Then came Covid, which led me to home-bound solutions for exercise. And that led to virtual reality.
PD-Connect’s Daily Dose of Vitality
If you’d like a preview of what a daily dose of Parkinson’s exercise looks like, check out PD-Connect’s free live Zoom classes, available five days a week. The award-winning PD-Connect program, hosted by Lisa and SteF, provides current Parkinson’s exercise techniques in a one-hour class format. Participants from around the world participate in aerobic, balance, strength training, vocal, and agility exercises. Check out PD-Connect’s website or YouTube channel.
Parkinson’s Exercise Resources
- Michael J. Fox Foundation Exercise Resources
- Parkinson Wellness Recovery (PWR! Moves)
- Delay The Disease
- Dance For PD
- Brian Grant Foundation
- YogaReach
- For exercise classes in your area, call the Parkinson’s Foundation Helpline at 1-800-4PD-INFO (473-4636).