PORT ORANGE — The countdown began shortly after 10 a.m. in an out of the way boxing gym on Lemon Street.
The fighters came prepared with hand wraps and a cornerman. The trainers went over the day’s workout. But no one is here to fight or even spar with another person.
Their only foe is Parkinson’s disease.
The group of 13 people stretched to limber up. Squeezing into the front section of the Pete White Boxing gym they were ready to begin the day’s circuit which included push-ups, jumping jacks and a round with the heavy bag.
Altogether, they cried out in unison at the start: “Five, four, three, two, one.” In careful movements, they willed their bodies through rigorous exercise at each of the eight stations. Research has shown that the intense workout could be the difference in improving their condition.
In the time since Marianne Chapin started the program earlier this year it has already gained a loyal following. The class is called Rock Steady Boxing and it’s the first local affiliate of a program that originated in Indianapolis.
It takes cues from the sport of boxing and reworks it to help people coping with Parkinson’s, which cripples the body’s motor functions. Tremors and difficulty walking are both common symptoms. There no cure and the cause of the disease and how to treat some its symptoms is still relatively unknown.
Chapin, who has run support programs for Parkinson's patients in the past, partnered with three people who each serve as trainers to offer the class every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the gym in Port Orange. Anyone with a Parkinson’s diagnosis can participate although the program does require each person to sign a medical release.
Since Rock Steady is still new, Chapin said they’re holding joint classes. Although their disease stage might be different, the goal for every one is the same.
“Here, they know everybody is dealing with the same symptoms,” Chapin said. “The more we can confuse them and get them comfortable with that confusion the faster they’re going to learn to react to the confusion that they’re going to be dealing with.”
The boxing themed class is one of three programs Mark Johnson, 57, of Edgewater, attends. He takes part in programs for yoga and dancing, as well. (Johnson formerly worked as a reporter for The News-Journal.)
“This one is the most strenuous,” said Beverly Johnson, his wife. “This is good because it works your whole body and it makes you move and it makes you think while you’re doing it.”
Betsy Vierck, 73, who splits her time between New Smyrna Beach and Denver, Colorado, wasn’t sure the class was for her.
She first started seeing symptoms in 2000. A physician said it was just a central tremor at first but in 2004 Vierck was diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
“At the time, they didn’t realize that you have a lot of symptoms that are quiet, they’re kind of smoldering until you get to the point where you have a tremor or you’re falling a lot,” she said.
Over time she became prone to falls that on at least one occasion landed her in the emergency room.
“I almost didn’t do this. I was quite apprehensive because I fall,” Vierck said. “I’ve had a lot of bad falls and I’m not athletic. I had a lot of fear surrounding it.”
Now, Vierck is a true believer.
“I really believe that it’s the only thing that is going to (help) some of our symptoms that are particularly bad, which are the rigidity and the stiffness that we all get,” she said. “They don’t have a cure for that (and) there’s no pill for that.”