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Any exericse undertaken by a PWP (Person With Patkinsons - a term to emphasise the Person, with the Parkinsons taking second place) should take into account the serious strain that the muscles may already be under due to bradykinesia (abnormally slow movement) and/or dystonia (abnormal muscle tone). These two muscular affectants are, in Parkinson's Disease, a cause, not of muscle weakness, as their names may imply, but of muscle exertion. With bradykinesia, what appears to be slow movement of weak muscles is, in fact, a fight to overcome seriously cramped muscles that are unresponsive to normal nerve signals. With dystonia, the problem is how to overcome random movements which often directly act against the wishes of their owner. All exercise regimens for PWPs should take the above into account, as to the untrained eye, there seems to be nothing much happening, while in reality there is quite a battle going on, the equivalent of a hard exercise session, both isotonic (a body part moving against a force) and isometric (a body part holding against a force). In Isometric exercises, the joint angle and muscle length do not change during contraction. In an isotonic contraction, tension remains unchanged and the muscle's length changes. Of course, all this activity requires fuel in the form of calories, and protein to build and maintain muscle mass. Calorie restriction, or caloric restriction (CR), is a dietary regimen that can, so some say, improve age related health and slow the aging process, but imagine what effect it might have on someone already deficient in essential nutrients, especially fat-soluble vitamins, which require fat for proper absorption, and others nutrients generally associated with high calorie foods such as oils, nuts, meat and dairy products.(sadly deficient in many nursing home dietary regimins.). To sum up, as with all other facets of their lives, "parkies ain't yer average critter", and heed must be taken of this when devising diet, exercise, and other regimens that "normals" take for granted. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I am not a doctor of medicine; the above is not medical advice, only the personal opinion of the writer. Any contemplated change in treatment or medication must be referred to your treating medical practioner. Dr James F. Slattery PhD Soc Sc ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn