Educational exercise program affects to physical fitness and gross motor function differently in the severity of autism spectrum disorder

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of participating in an educational exercise program on physical fitness and gross motor function (GMF) in adults with varying degrees of autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). The subjects consisted of 35 voluntary male participants between 20 and 29 years of age who were allocated to one of two groups: mild ASD (n=17) group and severe ASD (n=18) group. All selected tests for physical fitness, including body composition and GMF, have been used in previous studies. The results were as follows: first, with the exception of the basal metabolic rate, there were significant differences in the interaction of all other body composition variables. Second, there were significant differences in the interaction of almost all physical fitness variables, except for muscle strength. Finally, although there were significant differences in the interaction of all variables, except the locomotion skill for hopping, there were significant differences in the interaction of all variables of object control skill. Specifically, although the Δ% in the sum of locomotion skill in mild ASD group increased ~19.81%, that of severe ASD group decreased ~4.78%. The Δ% in the sum of object control skill in mild ASD group improved ~29.96%, while that of severe ASD group reduced ~15.2%. In conclusion, it is thought that these results are due to the better understanding of educational exercise and better performance of educational exercise in adults with mild ASD compared to adults with severe ASD.

Keywords: Autistic spectrum disorder; Gross motor function; Physical fitness.