Rock Climbing for Parkinson’s Disease
How one rock-climbing enthusiast started a movement that has touched the lives of hundreds of people living with Parkinson’s Disease.
In 2012, Molly Cupka at Sportrock Alexandria was approached by a doctor recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (PD) who had been told by his physical therapist to try rock climbing. His PT said rock climbing may help slow the progression of his disease and improve his mobility. For years, it has been recognized that strenuous activity, large movements and exercise including fine and gross motor movements are good forms of exercise for anyone living with PD. Rock climbing gave this new climber increased strength and coordination, improving his quality of life. It also created a great social outlet as the number of climbers with PD increased as word spread that rock climbing was improving strength and coordination for people with PD at Sportrock. Seeing first-hand how climbing was improving the lives of so many people living with PD, Molly started UpENDing Parkinson’s (UEP). Her non-profit focused on providing funding for research on rock climbing and expanding access to climbing across the country for people living with PD. UpENDing Parkinson’s has become a life-giving organization for changing the course of Parkinson’s disease for many people.
Twelve years later, in spring 2024, I was attending a rock climbing meet at Sportrock Rio, an indoor climbing gym, for my daughter, Maddie, who is on her high school’s climbing team. A flyer at the meet caught my eye. It said - “Wanted: CLIMBERS AND VOLUNTEERS. JOIN OUR FREE CLIMBING SESSIONS DEDICATED TO THOSE WITH PARKINSON’S DISEASE. CLIMBING REQUIRES BIG MOVEMENTS, BALANCE, AND MENTAL MAPPING OF A PATH AND MUCH MORE. CLIMBING HAS HELPED OUR CLIMBERS WITH PD FOR OVER 12 YEARS.” As a Pilates professional trained by The Neuro Studio® and specializing in exercise for neurological conditions, I wanted to know more. I had become belay-certified to help my daughter practice her climbing. Over the past two years, I started climbing more on my own and have seen the gains in balance, agility, mental acuity and increased energy first-hand, so it made sense to me that rock climbing could be a great fit for people with PD. I was excited to see more first-hand and spend time with my daughter volunteering together.
This fall, I headed up to Sportrock Rio in Gaithersburg to be a belayer for the climbing group I had read about. I met John Rosiak, who had joined the group in January and completed participation in a 3-month study of UEP’s efforts, which documented the effects of climbing on people who have PD. John has seen improvement of his PD symptoms over the 9 months and attributes it to climbing. He has been able to remain medication-free and reverse the progression of his symptoms, improving his balance, coordination, strength and quality of life. John says he just feels better every time he leaves the gym after climbing. He climbs three times a week and has even become an advocate for rock climbing and research study design.
Curious to find out more or volunteer?
The climbing program born at Sportrock gained the attention of the Today Show, and since then, the program has expanded to 20 gyms in 13 states. www.sportrock.com/up-ending-parkinsons
Amazing right?
If this sounds like something you would like to try or recommend to someone else, check out UEP’s over 20 locations and more information at: upendparkinsons.com . The videos here will give you a good feel for what to expect if you check out a climbing group yourself or you can forward the link to a friend.
If you are belay-certified or have Parkinson’s disease, you can join Rebecca to belay climbers or climb on Wednesdays at 11:00am-12:00 pm or Sundays 12:30-1:30pm at Sportrock Rio in Gaithersburg. Sportrock Rio’s three local gyms in Alexandria and Springfield, VA and Gaithersburg, MD offer climbing opportunities every day of the week.
Check out this link for more times and information:
https://www.sportrock.com/up-ending-
parkinsons#:~:text=Join%20our%20robust%20community,Sterling%2C%20Alexandria%2C%20and%20Gaithersburg!
Alexandria
5308 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA 22304
M/W/F 7:30-8:30am
Tu/Th 9:00-10:00am
Sterling
45935 Maries Rd, Sterling, VA 20166
Tues 7:30-8:30am and 10:00-11:00am
Sat 9:00-10:00am
Rio/Gaithersburg
9811 Washingtonian Blvd, Suite 300, Gaithersburg, MD, 20878
Wed 11:00am-12:00pm
Sun 12:30-1:30pm
Exercise is the best kind of medicine!
Rebecca Grady
Pilates Instructor & Sportrock Volunteer
