Derrek Vaughn | The Valdosta Daily TimesJeannie Grow began taking boxing classes to help fight her Parkinson’s Disease.

VALDOSTA — Jeannie Grow was diagnosed with Parkinson’s a little more than a year ago. She knew something was wrong before that, though.

First, she began to feel depressed. Then, she began walking slower and feeling fatigued all day. It was a struggle just to get out of a chair, she said.

“It took me three tries,” Grow said. “Now, I’m on medication and that helps a lot, but the doctor recommended I keep exercising, as well. He said keep going, just keep going.” Grow has always been an active person. Her friends told her that boxing is a helpful sport for people with Parkinson’s. Around a million Americans suffer from the disease, which is a progressive movement disorder in which the brain slowly stops producing dopamine, a neurotransmitter that sends signals to areas of the brain that control movement.

Boxing is growing in popularity for people with the disease because of its over exaggerated movements. These movements help with walking and performing little tasks through out the day, such as getting out of chairs.

Every Tuesday morning, Grow fights her disease by throwing jabs, right hooks and kicks at Ringside Fitness with her trainer Jose Perez, gym manager. She is still pretty knew to boxing, but she can already tell it’s going to be great for her balance. 

“I’m never going to fight in the ring, no. But the boxing moves are great for my balance, and Parkinson’s really affects that,” Grow said.

Perez said the boxing classes were Grow’s idea. She stopped by his gym one day looking to learn how to box and he agreed to work with her, he said. He also has another lady with the disease who usually comes with Grow. 

Perez is a disabled veteran with severe asthma and works closely with wounded veterans.

He started Fit Fighters Fitness in Remerton, but decided to open another gym in north Valdosta at 3338-C Country Club Road, Unit 1, he said. It’s a smaller venue, so his classes are limited to 10 people. He said that is a good thing when it comes to helping people with disabilities.

“You know a lot of the people I train have some kind of disability,” Perez said. “Whether it’s PTSD or Parkinson’s, it’s just easier for them in a smaller space.”

Perez has a non-profit that mostly focuses on veterans, but since Grow stepped into his gym, he has been working with a boxing gym in Atlanta that focuses on those with Parkinson’s. That program is called PD Gladiators and is run by Paul Delgado, Perez said.

Last week, he went up to Atlanta to meet with Delgado about getting Ringside Fitness certified as a Parkinson’s boxing gym. With that, he will qualify for grants through non-profit organizations. Until then, Perez will continue training Grow and anyone else with Parkinson’s interested in fighting their disease.

He said the size of his classes doesn’t matter too much to him.

“I know the class is going to grow. I’m not worried about that,” Perez said. “It’s not about the number of people here, just how much I can help those who come.”

Thomas Lynn is a government and education reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times. He can be reached at (229)244-3400 ext. 1256