Rock Steady Boxing West Sac

Rest in Peace, Beverlyn Walton Draper. Beverlyn was a fighter in my Rock Steady Boxing group as well as a friend of mine. I found out about her passing on Friday but wanted to wait until I had some time to really express my feelings about this wonderful human being. As with all of my fighters, there are certain memories that they bring to mind and this is one of them. I'll never forget the first time I was working the punch mitts with Beverlyn. Because of tremors due to Park...insons, she had difficulty coordinating her punches and so trying to sync up the mitts with her gloves was really hard and something I hadn't experienced before. I kept missing her gloves and apologizing as she swung at thin air. I remember being so stressed-out and embarrassed as the rest of the class watched us when Bev started laughing hysterically, which took me by surprise. When we were through, she looked at me and said, "it looks like this is going to be good for both of us." She was right. I came to understand that the work we did in Rock Steady isn't just mental and physical exercise, but an exercise in unpredictability. There were going to be falls, "low days," and frustration. Things weren't always going to go according to my best-laid plans; they were going to be messy sometimes and if I was going to understand what Parkinson's was all about then I was going to have to accept this fact and treat the fighters as I would anyone else. They had a battle to fight and I had to be there with them the entire way. What a magnificent human being Beverlyn was. She was sweet, articulate and polite but boy. did she have an absolute fierceness when it came to fighting against Parkinson's Disease. I learned that whenever she took a spill in class or was struggling with floor exercises that you DID NOT jump in to help her unless she asked you to. She never let Parkinsons get the best of her but instead faced it with courage, grace and perfectly-timed humor. I'll miss seeing her and Audrey (her home care assistant and corner person) come into the gym way ahead of start time with music coming from Audrey's phone, both of them singing along. I'll miss hearing her say, "I'm doing great, thank you." every time I greeted her. I'll miss her color-coordinated fashion sense. Most of all, I'll just miss Beverlyn. God bless you my friend.

Sandbag deadlifts!

Capped off some barbell and sandbag work with bag circuit training!

Great day! We ran our classes back to back in the afternoon and then met next door at Bike Dog Brewing Company to celebrate our imminent return to in-person classes!

Great day at Rock Steady Boxing West Sacramento! Lots of energy in the gym, culminating with a birthday song!

"It's hard work but it's necessary work." -Judy Juggernaut, after a tough Wednesday workout.

Happy Veterans Day to all of my fellow Rock Steady vets! This was me in Iraq in 1991!

In honor of the great Glenn Tipton of Judas Priest fame who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease two years ago and recently had a birthday!!

Funny Rock Steady moment. One of my fighters couldn't stand up from a sitting position. We tried using some techniques (lifting his feet up and rolling up to a stand, placing a chair in front of him and using it to help pull him up) but nothing worked. I finally suggested that he try putting a throw pillow on the seat of the chair so that it would give him another two inches of height and thus make it easier to stand. He liked the idea and quickly stood up, grabbed a throw p...illow from the couch and then put it on the chair! After he sat back down, he said, "this should help." The class broke into laughter and it took him a second to realize that he didn't need help after all; he just needed to stop thinking and just do it. See more

To my Rocksteady Family, This has been quite the year. Covid-19 forced us into remote training and while everyone has made a relatively smooth adjustment, I think we can all agree that there is no substitute for seeing each other in person. A big part of Rock Steady is the social aspect of the program: sharing stories from the weekend with one another before class, listening to music while we work out, having some laughs (many of them at my expense) and cheering each other on... during the tough workouts are sorely missed. I can’t tell you how great it was seeing your faces when I was dropping off equipment a few weeks ago and on Thursdays when some of us were meeting at the park (before the fires). There’s so much personality that gets lost on a screen. But we are making the very best of the situation. We still laugh and take time to talk and everyone continues to push themselves and that makes me happy. And there’s also some things about Zoom that I have come to appreciate: We’ve been given a peek inside each other’s homes and our personal lives. You’ve all seen my kids at their best and worst, Amy and I razzing one another and I’ve heard your dogs barking and chewing on squeaky toys, seen the décor of your living rooms (Alan, the tiger striped theme is golden), watched handymen fixing things in the background and caught glimpses of your grandchildren, husbands, wives and roommates moving past. But maybe more importantly is that because of the nature of video communication where voices can easily get crossed up and make them unintelligible, we tend to wait until someone finishes speaking before replying. In effect, it’s making us better listeners. At least that’s the way I see it and I’m sure Amy would say that I need the practice. And we can’t forget the new faces that have joined us and brought their own wonderful personalities with them. Anyways, I just wanted to tell you all that I miss you guys a bunch and really look forward to getting the band back together. It can’t come soon enough. One! Two! Three! ROCK STEADY! See more

It's been a rough few months for our Rock Steady family. Rest in peace, Terry. We will miss you very much! https://legcy.co/3k2TMNX

Off to deliver my Rock Steady fighters a workout fun pack for them to use at home!

A little peek-a-boo exercise I like to do with the Rock Steady group. We used to do these with the mitts in the gym, but now have to improvise. Still a lot of fun!

1030 am class was rife with hard work and kids that wanted to get involved! A big thanks to everyone for bearing with my wife Amy and I while we get through this hectic parenting period!

Our Rock Steady family is growing! A huge thanks to my wife, Amy for helping me demonstrate each move and providing another angle to ensure that there is no confusion. If you have PD or know someone who has PD, please feel free to contact us and we'll give you access to watch or join a class!

Rock Steady West Sac on Zoom! It's like we're all astronauts communicating from our space stations!

Everyone getting ready for the workout, via Zoom!

Creativity is a big part of what we do here. This exercise came to me one day while I was working with a private client. I happened to be standing on a sled that we were going to use later in the workout and began twisting back and forth (you know, just for fun) and really felt my obliques working hard to get the motion going. As you can see, the sled has a bar that comes straight up to accomodate the plates we add for resistance. I set down cones as a marker for how far to turn before heading back in the other direction. The class loved it!

Modified pullups! Big Doug knockin' them out like a champ!

Rowing exercises improve posture! Improved posture means a more efficient gait! A more efficient gait means reduced risk of falls!