Exercise Guide

Before you begin our individual exercises and workouts, please read this guide, so that you will get the most out of our program.

Exercise Types

You’ve probably heard terms such as anaerobic, aerobic, cardio, strengthening, interval training, and possibly slow-twitch muscle fibers and fast-twitch muscle fibers. This all sounds complicated, but in reality, for most of us, it is sufficient to classify exercises into two broad (and overlapping) categories: strengthening and cardio (cardiovascular activity). As the name suggests, strengthening is referring to exercises which are designed to increase the muscle capacity of specific muscles… simply making them stronger! Cardio on the other hand is all about increasing your heart-rate (remember your heart is a very important muscle). During moderately intense activities, your heart rate should be about 50-70% of your maximum heart rate. As a general rule, your maximum heart rate is 220 minus your age. You can check your heart rate by simply checking your pulse (using your index and third finger, on the thumb-side of your wrist, gently press and count the beats you feel). We always recommend stretching after exercising as part of a cool-down process. You also may feel better stretching before strengthening and cardiovascular exercises.

Muscle Groups

All muscles connect to bone via tendons. With at least 650 skeletal muscles in the human body, it may seem daunting to know what muscles do what. But, if you remember that a muscle can ONLY shorten when you use it, and that these muscle shortenings pull on a tendon which in turn pulls on bone to exert movement at a joint, you can make very educated guesses as to what action a muscle performs. You must remember that the tendon typically will extend PAST a joint, which creates movement at a join. For an example, think about your quadriceps, which is a group of four muscles located at the front of your thigh. Contracting (and thus shortening this muscle group) will pull on tendons at your hip and knee, straightening (extending) your knee and bending (flexing) your hip. 

Instead of thinking of specific muscles, we think about muscle groups/compartments which perform similar actions. These main groups are:

• Intrinsic foot muscles
• Calves (back of lower leg
• Shin (front of lower leg
• Lateral lower leg (outside of lower leg
• Front of thighs (quadriceps)
• Back of thighs (hamstrings)
• Inner thighs
• Glutes and other hip-stabilizing muscles
• Back
• Core (abdominals and obliques)
• Shoulders, chest and neck
• Arms (which can be further categorized)

This may seem like a lot, but you’ll quickly see how intuitive this way of thinking about your body is!

Muscle Stiffness due to PD

One common symptom of PD is muscle stiffness, or rigidity. Although your muscles may hurt and feel tight, one of the best ways to combat muscle stiffness due to PD is actually to exercise and use those muscles. Based on dealing with muscle stiffness due to PD personally, we think that the stiffness and associated pain may be due to non-uniform muscle contraction within a muscle due to inconsistencies in neurotransmission. We think that working that muscle through our strengthening exercises, to create more uniformity within the muscle, followed by stretching may be one way to feel better. 

How to begin

You hopefully have a better idea of what types of exercise you should do and what muscles you should work. But actually beginning is the hardest step.

Our program is designed for you to be able to select exercises which work with your current condition, and is completely customizable to what you need. If you are unsure where to begin, simply contact us for personal consultation. What is most important is to listen to your body. If you feel your muscles working during the exercises, and you are a bit sore the following day, then you’re on the right track. If anything is painful do NOT do the exercise. This is particularly true if you have any injuries.

We recommend starting 1 exercise from each of our main categories every day: 

• Lower body (strength)
• Core (strength)
• Upper body (strength)
• Stretching 

The most important thing is to get into the habit of exercising every day. To keep it simple for you, there is a menu and distinct blocks with the main categories on the lying down, sitting, and standing exercise pages. Remember, by exercising every day, you are getting into the habit. Once you reach your goal of doing one exercise from each category (4 total), you may find yourself motivated to keep going. Anything extra you do will make you that much stronger. For best results, you will need to exercise daily for 20-30 minutes or more.

When you feel ready to workout for 20-30 minutes straight, go to our workouts. If you are starting with a good amount of strength, you may want to go to our workouts in the first few days. Experiment with different routines, and see what works for you. Just remember to work your whole body (remember our muscle groups)!

Here’s an example of an exercise schedule to begin with:

If you experience faintness, dizziness, pain or shortness of breath at any time while exercising, you should stop immediately. If you have any concerns or questions about your health, you should always consult with a physician or other healthcare professional.

If you have any questions about our exercises, please contact us.