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Fitness and People with Mental Disabilities

By Larry Johnston

Since working with people with disabilities, a few questions come to my mind.

How do the fitness levels of people with mental retardation compare to the general population?

It is important to note that most of the research on the fitness levels of people with mental retardation is for individuals with mild or moderate mental retardation. There is very little research on people with severe mental retardation. Several studies have shown that the fitness levels of people with mental retardation are significantly lower than the general population. Most people with mental retardation lead an inactive lifestyle, and are, therefore, more likely to develop hypokinetic diseases. Some experts consider physical inactivity a major health risk among people with mental retardation.

Most people with mental retardation have much lower strength levels than the general population, which may limit their employment opportunities in work settings that require a high level of muscular fitness. A low level of muscle strength and endurance also makes it difficult to perform activities such as lifting or carrying objects or walking up a flight of stairs. Researchers have shown that: body strength is valuable for recreation activities and activities of daily living; good upper body muscles increase vocational opportunities; and there is a relationship between good muscle strength and good performance of people with mental retardation in industrial work settings.

Cardiovascular endurance is considered by most exercise experts to be the most important indicator of fitness. The majority of researchers who have tested the cardiovascular fitness levels of people with mental retardation have reported fitness levels similar to those of the most inactive people in the general population. In one study it was shown that the cardiovascular endurance of adults with mental retardation was as low as people with heart problems.

A large number of adults with mental retardation are overweight. Whereas one-third of all Americans are overweight, close to one-half of all people with mental retardation are overweight. Women with mental retardation are more overweight than men with mental retardation, and people with mild mental retardation are more overweight than people with severe mental retardation. The high levels of obesity (excess fat) reported in a large number of people with mental retardation can create barriers to successful employment, participation in leisure activities, performance of daily living activities and negatively affect other quality of life areas.

Studies have shown that after several weeks of training, people with mental retardation can make significant gains in fitness. In one study it was found that after a nine week strength training program, participants with mental retardation showed a dramatic improvement in strength, ranging from 25 percent to over 100 percent in several different muscle groups. In another study, participants made a lot of improvements in cardiovascular endurance by training on stationary cycles.

Two major barriers to improving the fitness levels of someone with mental retardation are motivation and opportunity. Many adults with mental retardation are not encouraged by others to join health clubs or to exercise on their own. In addition, most instructors in health clubs and other fitness programs do not understand how to develop an appropriate exercise program for someone with mental retardation, and are often reluctant to work with special populations because of this lack of knowledge.

Another problem is that most direct service staff who work with people who have mental retardation have little physical fitness training and, therefore, do not know how to develop or modify fitness programs to keep them challenging, injury-free and successful. Furthermore, if staff are inactive and uninterested in fitness, more than likely the person with mental retardation will mimic this behavior and have little interest in improving his or her own fitness.

Recently published guidelines by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention state that all Americans should have a minimum of 30 minutes a day of physical activity, preferably every day of the week. This includes people with mental retardation. A good starting point would be to have fifteen minutes in the morning and fifteen minutes in the evening of some type of physical activity such as walking, stationary cycling, or climbing stairs. This should be done five to seven days a week.

Other good fitness routines include:

People with mental retardation should also be encouraged to participate in community exercise programs. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) states that recreational buildings and programs should be accessible to people with disabilities. Therefore, health clubs and other fitness centers must offer programs that are appropriate for people with mental retardation, and they cannot add a surcharge to that person's fees.

About the Author:

Larry Johnston is a certified personal trainer and owner of Fitness Together in Dallas Texas.Visit him at www.fitnesstogether.com