Often sedentary and hard to motivate, this developmentally disabled population can benefit from reward and routine surrounding fitness goals
[Source: The Chicago Tribune]
For the typical adult, getting to the gym requires manipulation. You know it’s good for you, that you’ll feel better after you do it, and that you might actually lose weight and look great if you continue your daily sweat sessions.
But for some on the autism spectrum, it takes a lot more than some convincing words.
“They just don’t get it,” said Dr. Jim Ball, chairman of the Autism Society of America and author of “Early Intervention & Autism: Real-Life Questions, Real-life Answers” (Future Horizons, $16.47). “They don’t want to do it, so they won’t do it.”
Most autistic adults don’t understand why people exercise, Ball said. They can’t figure out why they should plan for future health, they don’t care about societal customs and they don’t get the fact that if they don’t work out, they stand a chance of dying at a younger age.
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