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There are a lot of medication options for Parkinson’s disease. Whether it’s Parkinson’s medication like Carbidopa/levodopa or dopamine agonists, you’ve probably encountered many treatments each claiming to be “the best.” But what is the best treatment for Parkinson disease?

While everyone’s Parkinson’s disease treatment experience will look a bit different, one of the most universally accepted Parkinson’s medications comes from a forced exercise regiment. Your Parkinson’s medication list is probably long, and each treatment on its own serves a specific purpose, but when it comes to improving your quality of life, then you need to include a forced exercise bike in your lifestyle.

The Benefits of Forced Exercise

“PD impacts movement ability, function, cognition, and quality of life (QOL), all to varying degrees on an individual patient basis,” a study in Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews says. While “Traditional medical and surgical approaches to managing PD are expensive and associated with a variety of side effects that may further compromise QOL,” a drug-free exercise routine can improve motor functions, your overall mood, and restore your quality of life without any difficult side-effects.

This isn’t to say that your Parkinson’s medication list should be discarded, but rather, that it shouldn’t start and stop with traditional treatment and medication. Instead, forced exercise can exemplify the benefits of those treatments and provide a noticeable improvement to body control and quality of life.

For example, in 2011, Dr. Jay L. Alberts—who currently holds an endowed research chair at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio—performed a study that specifically focused on forced exercise bikes and the way they help people control their Parkinson’s symptoms. The New York Times reported on this study, and explained how “After eight weeks of hourlong sessions of forced riding, most of the patients in Dr. Alberts’s study showed significant lessening of tremors and better body control, improvements that lingered for up to four weeks after they stopped riding.”

There may not be a single, all-inclusive answer to “what is the best treatment for Parkinson disease?” but if you’re looking for a way to better control your Parkinson’s symptoms and reclaim your quality of life, then you should look into the unique benefits a forced exercise bike like the Theracycle can offer.

How to Include Forced Exercise on Your Parkinson’s Medication List

If you haven’t been using forced exercise as part of your Parkinson’s medication, but want to start, then Theracycle is here to help. Our forced exercise bike is designed to work with your body, not against it. Our built-in motor ensures that no matter your physical abilities, you can still get in a solid exercise that gets your body moving in healthy and productive ways.

USNews.com, also reporting on Dr. Alberts’ research, says “that Parkinson’s patients who can pedal at a speed of 80 revolutions per minute or more, in three 40-minute sessions per week, can improve brain connections, boost dexterity, reduce or eliminate tremors, improve walking speed and heighten their sense of smell.”

With Theracycle, you can experience all of these benefits without overextending yourself. Including forced exercise in your Parkinson’s medication list no longer has to feel out of reach. If you want to learn more, then don’t hesitate to contact us at 1.800.367.6712 or visit our website, theracycle.com.