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\u201cAwesome. Yes, you can definitely do farmers carries right after this set of squats, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n\u201cKettlebell and the sandbag,\u201d Nico states as I\u2019m preparing for him to do squats.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to do farmers carries?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d he says in a soft voice but with an assurance that tells me he\u2019s not just randomly calling out an object in the room.<\/p>\n
\u201cAwesome. Yes, you can definitely do farmers carries right after this set of squats, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d he says, in the same low but definitive tone. I\u2019m thrilled. Farmers carries involve roughly 3 steps; Pick something(s) heavy up, carry them while maintaining an upright, healthy posture, and put them down with control, sometimes with less control than other times. Farmers carries have fantastic generalization to other life skills, yes, carrying things of course, in addition to maintaining trunk stability and gait pattern (think climbing two or three flights of steps).<\/p>\n
When we consider fitness as a life skill rather than something individuals with ASD and related special needs either \u201clike\u201d or \u201cdon\u2019t like\u201d the focus becomes less on \u201cif\/should\u201d and more on \u201chow\/what.\u201d We\u2019re not just talking about young populations either. Fitness over the lifetime has immense benefits for both short- and long-term development, both proactive and reactive qualities.<\/p>\n
That fitness and physical activity are only for young populations disregards the true value of progressive movement programs. As we age, the importance of strength, stability, and motor planning increases, as these are skills that degenerate with age and dis- or non-use. The result is costly, both in quality of life and financially. Consider the healthcare costs for a 55 year old individual with pervasive Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), diabetes, and compromised mobility. Two out of these three complications are entirely avoidable. They are also, with the proper fitness and nutritional interventions, reversible.<\/p>\n
Quality of life can be a general, not-certain-what-we-mean-by-this-but-sounds-good term unless we consider it with respect to what those in our care can do and what skills will allow them to be more independent, healthier (physically and emotionally), and enable them to connect with others (building community) in meaningful ways. We also want to consider stress levels and longevity. What does life look like and feel like for a non-verbal individual in his\/her 20\u2019s? 30\u2019s? 60\u2019s? How can we ensure the best possible present and future for them?<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s take away \u201cDoesn\u2019t like to exercise.\u201d Let\u2019s get rid of that. In fact, I don\u2019t even know what that means. Our definitions and perspectives on exercise programs<\/a> may a \u201clittle\u201d different. I get this interaction a lot;<\/p>\n \u201cKevin hates exercise.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean by exercise?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cOh, well we had him run on the treadmill for five minutes and he hated it and doesn\u2019t want to do it again.\u201d \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The fault isn\u2019t in the trying. There is no fault. There is, however, a lack of information about the components of an appropriate fitness program. So here are the rules;<\/p>\n What do we do? What do we doooooooooooooo? What exercises do our athletes need? What\u2019s age appropriate? Are there super special special needs exercise?<\/p>\n The thing about fitness is that we\u2019re doing it with human beings (goat yoga being a hideous exception). Since we\u2019re doing it with human beings, we\u2019re looking at human movement patterns and our individuals with ASD and related special needs are no exception.<\/p>\n The key is learning to what degree an exercise or movement needs to be simplified (regressed) or made more challenging (progressed). This is where baseline comes into play. If where know where our athlete is starting with an overhead Sandbell press, we can decide on an appropriate course of progression, maybe increasing the weight by 4lbs once they can complete 10 repetitions independently.<\/p>\n Understanding how each movement relates to quality of life is helpful. So let\u2019s review that.<\/p>\n Squatting:<\/strong><\/p>\n Pushing:<\/strong><\/p>\n Pulling:<\/strong><\/p>\n Carrying:<\/strong><\/p>\n Locomotion:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
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The reasons why our