The physical and psychosocial impact of a school‐based running programme for adolescents with disabilities

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundAdolescents with disabilities have fewer opportunities to participate in community‐based fitness programmes. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a school‐based running programme at a local middle school in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, on fitness and quality of life (QoL) in children with physical and cognitive disabilities in a life‐skills classroom.MethodsNineteen adolescents with diagnosed disabilities including intellectual disability (ID), autism spectrum disorder and Down syndrome were recruited from three life‐skills classrooms to participate in a school‐based running programme. The programme was designed to be implemented two times/week for 6 weeks by classroom teachers/aides. Physical therapy faculty and students developed the programme and assisted with implementation. Each session lasted 30 min, consisting of a warm‐up and cooldown, relay races, games and timed runs. Pre‐ and post‐test measures included physiological cost index (PCI) and Paediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ (PedsQL™). Pre‐ and post‐test data were compared using Wilcoxon signed rank tests. Each week participants also completed a training log to reflect on the activity for the day.ResultsParticipants demonstrated significant improvements in PCI (P = 0.028) and the PedsQL™ (P = 0.008) following the running programme.ConclusionsResults of this study suggest that participation in a 6‐week school‐based running programme may improve fitness and QoL in adolescents with disabilities.