In my earlier article titled “Parkinson’s and Exercise” I provided information about the importance of exercise in managing the disease. The purpose of this article is to provide a comprehensive overview with respect to resistance training from a physiological perspective and its resulting impact on power for Parkinson’s patients.
Parkinson’s is a central nervous system disease. It often impedes people’s ability to perform daily tasks due to a slowness of muscle contractions. In order to reverse our slow the progression of this and other limitations, it is advisable for people with Parkinson’s to be involved in an exercise program. In order to achieve the best result, an understanding how the body functions would be advantageous.
The goal for many individuals with Parkinson’s is to maintain and or improve mobility, improve quality of life and to limit their risk of incurring a significant injury as a result of falling. In order to increase mobility, the individual needs to increase power. Power is the ability to perform movements such as standing up and is established by the ability to contract muscles at a fast pace. Since one of the main issues associated with Parkinson’s is slow movement, increases in the ability to produce power should be considered.
Often overlooked is the importance of strength and its impact on increases in power. In order to maximize power, a foundation of strength is required. The purpose of strength training from a physiological perspective is to recruit the highest number of fast-twitch muscle fibers, to call into action the major muscles involved in the action, to remove inhibition and to increase the thickness of the protein filaments. Once a foundation of strength has been established, gains in strength need to be converted into power.
Reference:
Periodization Training for Sports 2nd Edition, Bompa T.O. and Carrera Michael C., 2005.