Exercise drumming for Parkinson's: The beat goes on
While recovering from a heart attack and a broken ankle, Jo Holland accidentally discovered her new passion: exercise drumming. Now she's on a mission to bring it to more people with Parkinson's.
Within minutes of starting her first class, she was hooked: "I fell in love with drumming straight away," she says. "It’s just so me. All of your frustrations disappear because you’ve beaten them all away. The feeling of satisfaction afterwards is amazing."
And it didn’t take long for Jo to start noticing other benefits too.
"After my third live drumming session, I found myself at the bottom of a set of stairs that I had previously been unable to use due to the pain in my knees and hips. I couldn’t believe it! I hadn’t been in pain, I hadn’t been unbalanced or shaky at all. I was just on a high."
An international stage
The class, later renamed Parkinson’s Beats, soon attracted the attention of researcher Dr Julie Jones. She was curious about the results Jo and the other class members were seeing in their mood and symptoms.
Jo laughs: "Julie and I seem to have grabbed the attention of the rest of the world! Julie submitted a poster about Parkinson’s Beats to the World Parkinson’s Congress in Barcelona, and we were invited to present it on stage.
"Unlike everyone else standing there talking about their statistics, we did a live presentation. It was basically me, my drum, and Status Quo."
When I asked the head of security if I could blow up my ball, the look on his face was priceless!
Julie remembers it well: "I have been writing and speaking about the benefits of exercise for years. As researchers, we measure it using clinical measures and scales that don’t always capture the impact at a personal level.
"I remember the day that we presented at World Parkinson’s Congress. Jo seemed a bit low and uncomfortable from sitting all day.
"But after drumming, she was animated, buzzing, speaking to people as they were going by. And you can’t capture that in a single scale. She was a different person."
The benefits
Jo and her classmates have noticed improvements in their muscle tone, strength, balance and coordination. And it even seems to help their brains to think more clearly, by giving them practice in matching rhythm to movement, and learning and repeating patterns.
"People tell me that their handwriting has got better, they feel more flexible, and that they’ve lost some of their inhibitions," Jo says.
Perhaps the most important bonus is the feeling of community, whether people are joining in person or online.
I really believe it aids emotional health by reducing stress. People always leave with a smile on their face.
So what are the best tracks to drum along to? "My favourite tracks keep changing," admits Jo. "Initially it was ‘I Love To Boogie’ by T-Rex because it was the first one I learned and it is fast and fun.
"Then it was ‘Rockin’ All Over The World’ by the mighty Status Quo.
"Today it is ‘Highland Girl’ by Nathan Evans, because it makes me think about summer days at a Highland Games somewhere."
Try it yourself
Jo and Julie have applied for National Lottery funding to train more people as instructors in drumming for Parkinson’s.
"But until then," Jo says, "all you need to get started is a yoga ball, a cushion or a laundry basket, and 2 drumsticks or wooden spoons."
Join classes online, or practise on your own, using your favourite music. "If the music makes you want to dance then it is probably a good drumming track," Jo says.