'Fighting back': Boxing program offers Parkinson's patients a place to keep active

Trickles of sweat poured down Richard Meth's face as he threw jabs and hooks into a punching bag at Rock Steady Boxing in Northeast Albuquerque. 

The Guess Who's "No Time" played in the background as he pounded the bag.

After a few minutes, Meth, 76, heard a whistle then moved onto the next part of his routine where he walked through an obstacle course that tested his balance. Moments later, the whistle blew again. He scooted over to the next station and bounced an exercise ball to another participant several times before returning to the punching bag.

Meth was not training for a fight. He was giving his body a workout as he battles Parkinson's disease, which he said he was diagnosed with 21 years ago.

"I feel like I'm accomplishing something," he said about participating in Rock Steady Boxing. "I feel like I'm fighting this illness. That's why you see 'Fighting Back Against Parkinson's' (on people's shirts). The concept is what's important because they are not sitting around and just being passive. (They're) fighting back. And fighting back is what I've been doing for 21 years."

Meth is one of the 138 fighters at the Rock Steady Boxing Albuquerque location where people with varying stages of Parkinson’s participate in one-hour exercise sessions three times a week. This marks a 2,660% increase from 2016, five fighters, when the Albuquerque gym opened, said Patrick Strosnider, founder, coach and director of the Duke City chapter of Rock Steady Boxing.

'I just admire their tenacity'

Rock Steady Boxing was founded in 2006 to improve the lives of people diagnosed with Parkinson's. 

Parkinson's is a lifelong and progressive disease that occurs when brain cells that make dopamine, a chemical that coordinates movement, stop working or die, according to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

While the disease can cause tremors, slowness, stiffness, and walking and balance problems, depression and other non-movement symptoms can also be part of Parkinson’s, according to the foundation.

"... Things like Rock Steady Boxing are very, very helpful in terms of being sort of fun, giving you exercise and making you balance," said Dr. Chris Calder, Presbyterian Healthcare Services neurologist.

There are over 800 Rock Steady Boxing locations around the world, including three in New Mexico: Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Santa Fe.

Strosnider said he opened the Duke City location in 2016 to honor his dad who was battling Parkinson's disease and because he was inspired by watching Lesley Stahl's 2015 CBS report about the organization.

"When I saw that video," he said, "I knew I was going to bring that program to Albuquerque."

Before being accepted into the classes, each “fighter” undergoes a thorough assessment of balance, fitness and strength. The fighters are then assigned to one of four fitness levels. Those whose disease is more advanced usually have a partner — either a spouse or volunteer — to help them through the stations, Strosnider said.

"The classes are geared toward their ability or mobility," he said. "We deal with balance, range of motion, all the types of things that Parkinson's affects as it progresses with that fighter."

Strosnider added, "There's not a day that goes by that I say to myself, 'Boy, I am having a good day,' when I see the fighters out here, just struggling to get from workout station to workout station and I just admire their tenacity. That's why we call them 'fighters.'"

The fighters range from their 50s to their 80s, he said. The average age of people diagnosed with Parkinson's disease is 60 years old, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Michael J. Fox is an unusual case because he has had it since he was 29, Meth said.

"He's a real hero for many people because he tries to stay positive, and that's been my motto, 'To try and stay positive.' The more negative you get, the more anxiety you have," he said.

Meth's fellow fighter, Lax Minarayan, 72, said Rock Steady Boxing has helped improve his outlook on life.

"When you're diagnosed, you deal with depression," he said. "'Why me? Why is it happening?' All that stuff."

But after Minarayan came to his first class in September, he said people were energetic and willing to share their experiences and useful information.

"(After every class), you come home with a smile on your face," he said. 

For family members of fighters like Diana Hutchins, the program has served as a beacon of hope. 

After she was diagnosed with Parkinson's a few years ago, her husband, Dan Hutchins, said he felt "helpless" and wondered, "What can I do?" When they learned about Rock Steady Boxing, however, he said they were "really quick to grasp what they were doing."

While getting ready for the classes can be tough, Dan Hutchins said as he watched her hit a punching bag, "I think there is some hope (because she is) doing something."

Gregory R.C. Hasman is a general assignment reporter and the road warrior. He can be reached at ghasman@abqjournal.com or 505-823-3820