Parkinson's patients can't walk--but they can bicycle for miles

Parkinson's, a neurological disorder in which some of the brain cells that control movement die, had made him unable to walk. He trembled and could walk only a few steps before falling. He froze in place, his feet feeling as if they were bolted to the floor.

But the man told Bloem something amazing: He said he was a regular exerciser — a cyclist, in fact — something that should not be possible for patients at his stage of the disease, Bloem thought.

"He said, 'Just yesterday I rode my bicycle for 10 kilometers' — six miles," Bloem said. "He said he rides his bicycle for miles and miles every day. Yet the moment the man got off the bike, his symptoms returned. He froze immediately, unable to take a step. . .  

 After seeing that man, Bloem asked 20 other severely affected patients about riding a bike. It turned out that all could do it, though it is not clear why.

Another article talks about the benefits of riding on tandem bicycles for Parkinson's patients.