‘It’s not just about the shakes’: Ninja Warrior Jimmy Choi on living with Parkinson’s disease

As awareness grows, more people with Parkinson’s are seeking help earlier, leading to a drop in the average age of diagnosis from 67.3 years in 2008 to around 63.5 years in 2024, said Tay Kay Yaw, a senior consultant at the National Neuroscience Institute.

“This is encouraging, yet we can do more to understand the disease and seek better ways to keep it under control for longer,” he said.

Roughly 10% of the patients are under 50, and no single factor leads to the development of young-onset Parkinson’s.

“Among movement disorders specialists, we tend to pay particular attention to family history, which may suggest some genetic susceptibility,” Tay said.

Adapting to a changing body 

When people ask Choi where his disease is at, he says medication keeps him at stage one – where symptoms are mild and generally do not interfere with daily activities. When he is off them, he is at stage four – where symptoms are severely disabling – and has difficulty moving. 

The condition progresses differently for each person, with symptoms appearing at varying speeds and intensities. Those with young-onset Parkinson’s disease often experience slower symptom progression and fewer cognitive issues.

Choi plans his days around periods of good movement, which can be six to eight hours or sometimes, just two. 

In between, he rests and takes naps.

He has shifted from high-impact endurance challenges to preserving his joints and body for the long haul of living with the disease. His last marathon was in 2019; he has completed 16 marathons, more than 100 half-marathons and one 80.5km ultra-marathon.

“In the beginning, when I started my transformation, it was all about go go go… But I’m realising more and more that I need to rely on this body to work for much longer, so now it’s more about preservation,” Choi said. 

“That’s one of the reasons why I needed to stop American Ninja Warrior, because the training has a very high impact on my joints. If your muscles fail, you can fix that. When your joints fail, you’re done.”

His last Ninja Warrior race was filmed in 2024 and aired in 2025.

Research has consistently demonstrated that regular exercise can play a significant role in slowing motor decline in Parkinson’s, Tay said. 

Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) senior principal physiotherapist Chloe Chung Lau Ha pointed out that a common misconception is that everyday activities such as walking the dog or grocery shopping provide enough exercise to manage the condition.

“People living with Parkinson’s benefit from structured exercise programmes that incorporate aerobic conditioning, strength training, balance exercises and mobility training tailored to their individual needs,” she said. 

With early multidisciplinary care, they and their families can adapt successfully, and many continue to maintain their independence and lead fulfilling lives for decades after diagnosis, she added.

Tay said that many people living with Parkinson’s disease may not be aware of the locally developed community rehabilitation programme KEEP (Kickstart Exercises and Empower Parkinson’s). It provides not only structured exercise, strength and fitness training, gait and balance rehabilitation and functional optimisation, but also early detection of mood-related issues.

The programme helps reduce fall risk while enabling participants to maintain function, independence, and overall well-being. It is co-developed by the Lien Foundation, Parkinson Society Singapore, TTSH and the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI).

The first eight years

Choi and his wife, Cherryl, a senior project manager at a non-profit hospital, reflected on the early years after his diagnosis. They said that keeping his symptoms private led to a communication breakdown. 

“One of the biggest Parkinson’s non-motor symptoms is apathy. So for him, he wasn’t involved with the kids… It felt like he wasn’t sharing the time with us, like he’s just there. That was difficult,” said Cherryl. 

Choi’s diagnosis had shocked him into silence, denial and defeat. In 2010, when he was 35, he walked with a cane.

Then he fell down the stairs while holding his son Mason, who was 10 months old.

Although neither was harmed, the fall became a catalyst for Jimmy to begin his exercise regimen.

“When I look back, I realise that I was self-isolating. I thought I was protecting my family from the burdens of Parkinson’s,” said Choi. 

“But in reality, I was pushing more of it onto them because they didn’t know what was going on, and they had to figure it out themselves. They didn’t know where to look, and I wasn’t helping.”

Cherryl has learnt to support him with planning and logistics. She emphasises that caregivers should also ask themselves what they want because they often neglect themselves.

Son diagnosed with functional neurological disorder

In 2025, their son Mason, now 17, was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder, a condition where there is a problem with how the brain’s network receives and sends signals to the rest of the body.

Mason used to hit the gym with Choi, but his symptoms have progressed to the point where he has to use a wheelchair.

“I blame myself because the one person that I need to motivate the most I can’t, and it’s hard,” Choi said. 

“But he’s getting there. I have to realise that it took me eight years to make that realisation. People need time. That’s why I say, allow yourself to grieve (if you have been recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s). So I’m allowing him more space to go through that process himself.”

Cherryl said it feels like they are rewinding the clock.

“But I have to stop and think. It took us eight years to accept where (Jimmy) was, and I know that we can come out of it,” she said.

“What’s difficult for anyone who’s got a movement disorder is you keep thinking back to what you were doing before, but you need to look at what you have in front of you, meet your body where it’s at and then push forward.”

For Choi, preparing for the future means making sure that his family is going to be okay and living for today. The couple also have a 19-year-old daughter, Karina.

“We’re not guaranteed the future… I don’t know a year from now what my body is going to be like, and I can’t worry about that. What I can still do is things for my kids, be with my family, and I know I can do that today.”