Rock Steady Boxing finds stable home at Hermantown CrossFit

People living with Parkinson’s in St. Louis County now have a more stable place to train, learn and lean on one another. Rock Steady Boxing has settled into Black Spruce CrossFit in Hermantown, with first classes at the new site beginning April 1 and an open house and fundraiser set for April 11, World Parkinson’s Day.

The move matters because Rock Steady has bounced between locations over the years. At Black Spruce, the program can keep both morning and afternoon sessions on the schedule, which gives participants more flexibility and reduces the burden of traveling farther for a therapy-based exercise class that combines fitness with disease management.

Diane Boese, the head coach, said Parkinson’s is not curable but activity can slow symptoms dramatically, and that is the core of the program’s approach. Rock Steady’s non-contact curriculum uses boxing drills, footwork, stretching, resistance exercises and aerobic training, all structured around the kind of consistent exercise that the Parkinson’s Foundation says is vital to managing the disease. The foundation recommends at least 2.5 hours of exercise a week and recognizes Rock Steady Boxing as an Accredited Exercise Education Program.

The Hermantown move also brings the program back toward its roots. Rock Steady Boxing was founded in 2006 by Scott C. Newman after his Parkinson’s diagnosis at age 40, and the organization now says it has more than 800 locations in the United States and 14 countries. In that growth, the model has become one of the most visible examples of exercise-based support for people with a chronic neurological disease.

At Black Spruce CrossFit, co-owner Tiffany Schubitzke said the gym already has an adaptive program and an inclusive culture, making it a natural fit for Rock Steady members who may later branch into broader fitness work for strength and support. The gym is across from Skyline Social and Lanes, a familiar Hermantown landmark that now also serves as a marker for a program aimed at helping people stay steadier on their feet.

The afternoon classes carry extra help from St. Scholastica students, who volunteer when participants may need more assistance. Sandy Marden-Lokken, one of the coaches, also lives with Parkinson’s, giving the classes lived experience as well as instruction. During the open house, participants worked through a puzzle-style activity, and coach Polsfut said that when people concentrate on solving it, visible tremors can temporarily ease as attention shifts away from the tremor itself.

For families in the Duluth area and across St. Louis County, the new home means more than a new address. It means a nearby place where exercise, education and social support come together for people facing a disease that demands daily adaptation.