In this corner, we have Parkinson’s disease, a debilitating condition that affects over 1 million people in the United States. The Parkinson’s Disease Foundation estimates there are more than 60,000 people diagnosed annually. And in the opposite corner, believe it or not, is boxing — a sport we’d never believe to be beneficial in the fight for those suffering from PD symptoms.

Experts say that boxing has proven to be extremely beneficial for those suffering from the debilitating disease of Parkinson’s. PD is a degenerative movement disorder that causes deterioration of motor skills, balance, speech and sensory function. Boxing movements address these issues head on.

The late, great Muhammad Ali, a professional boxer who was one of the most significant and celebrated sports figure of the 20th Century, died in 2016. He suffered from Parkinson’s for decades, although his physician, Dr. Abraham Lieberman, tells Newsmax that he doesn’t believe boxing caused his disease.

“I first met Ali in 1984 when he was just diagnosed with Parkinson’s and treated him for 32 years,” he reveals. Lieberman was instrumental in building the Muhammed Ali Parkinson’s center at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. He believes that non-contact boxing is an excellent way to improve motor skills, hand eye coordination, endurance, strength, power, speed and aerobic training — all of which are useful for people with Parkinson’s.

“I doubt Ali’s Parkinson’s was caused by boxing,” Lieberman says. “It progressed very slowly unlike Joe Lewis. We didn’t do an autopsy but his MRI’s were always normal. He introduced boxing into our center and actually help teach classes for our patients.”

Rock Steady Boxing is a nonprofit organization founded in 2006 by former Marion County prosecutor Scott C. Newman who was diagnosed with PD in his 40s. He began intense, one-one-one boxing training and saw dramatic improvement in his physical health, agility and daily functioning through high energy workouts.

Today, Rock Steady Boxing has over 741 international affiliates and is dedicated to helping Parkinson’s patients “fight back.”

Ruth Burr, an RSB client, says:

“When I started going to the boxing program, it made a dramatic difference! My balance gradually got better and I stopped stumbling and falling. At first, these improvements were slow and awkward but my abilities improved a great deal. I went from a walker to a cane—and now I use neither.”

Trainer Fotis Papamichael, of Michael’s Body Scene fitness facility in Boca Raton, Fla. says that besides the physical benefits, boxing improves mental well-being.

“I have two clients that I work with, both with different stages of Parkinson’s. When we finish our sessions, I see smiles and an overall good feeling of accomplishment. They tell me that boxing gives them the motivation and excitement to take on the rest of their day,” he tells Newsmax.

“They also tell me that boxing helps reduce their anxiety and increases their ability to focus on the one two punch combinations.”

According to RSB, clients also say that the camaraderie and fun gives them more confidence to battle this disease.

George Stoner, a Parkinson’s patient from Old Forge, Pa., experienced such profound and immediate benefits from RSB classes, that he actually became certified to coach.

“Having PD and embracing Rock Steady Boxing has given me the honor of helping others, in a way that is more profound and meaningful than I could have imagined, and for that, I am grateful.”