Welcome back to Reading the Research, where I trawl
the Internet to find noteworthy research on autism and related subjects,
then discuss it in brief with bits from my own life, research, and
observations.
Today's article deals with exercise. Specifically, how to make exercise more a part of an autistic adult's lifestyle, successfully. The benefits of exercise and movement are well known, but as a rule, autistic adults get even less of it than neurotypical adults. And that's pretty bad, because neurotypical adults don't even get much, statistically.
The reasons for this lack of exercise in autistic adults' lives are manifold, but they include everything from poor motor skills (thus harming the autistic person's chances of joining and enjoying sports) to the increasing focus on academic achievement in schools (thus cutting out recess and breaks). Our difficulties with social skills also sabotage our chances of enjoying team sports and group activities.
Last year I participated in a study which was looking into exactly those factors, and what might be done to counter them. The researcher, a thoughtful soul, told me later that she spent some time being depressed about her findings... which admittedly, given the statistics I've seen, must have been really soul-crushing. Without exercise and movement, the body breaks down and doesn't function as well. Anxiety and depression gain stronger footholds. The aging process even speeds up. So research like hers is extremely important (and I told her so).
So what's to be done? Well, it seems direct, pointed praise has a strong effect on the exercise habits of autistic people. This is somewhat in keeping with the rule for teaching and communicating with autistic people: be direct, kind, and explicit. It seems that even pre-recorded praise, delivered through a headset, was motivating for the participants of this small study. This means that there could be specialized apps to help autistic adults (and really, anyone) learn to build exercise habits and keep them.
Reading all this reminded me of the app I use myself: Zombies, Run! I mainly was drawn to the game (and then drawn back to it) because of its storytelling aspects. While you exercise in the real world, the game invites your mind into a fictional, post-apocalyptic world, where you're the hero and are very important to the survival of humanity. You meet interesting characters, solve problems, handle crises, etc. All of this, in a single app designed around having you go running outdoors.
Well, I love stories, so even though I don't love zombies and post-apocalyptic things, I gave it a try. And I've come back again and again, despite hating exercise, because of it. Reading this article reminded me of something else the app does, though. Besides casting you as the hero, it also mixes in nonspecific praise from the other characters. Phrases like, "You're going (running) well, keep it up!" and "Good work keeping ahead of those zoms (zombies)" feature at least once per mission, likely much more than that. I don't consciously give that praise a lot of credibility, personally, because I'm often not running outside, but rather bicycling indoors. But I really doubt it hurts the experience.
I've commented on exercise and how I see it developing in the future, and while this sort of praise-focused thing is not exactly what I had in mind, I don't think they're mutually exclusive ideas.
Today's article deals with exercise. Specifically, how to make exercise more a part of an autistic adult's lifestyle, successfully. The benefits of exercise and movement are well known, but as a rule, autistic adults get even less of it than neurotypical adults. And that's pretty bad, because neurotypical adults don't even get much, statistically.
The reasons for this lack of exercise in autistic adults' lives are manifold, but they include everything from poor motor skills (thus harming the autistic person's chances of joining and enjoying sports) to the increasing focus on academic achievement in schools (thus cutting out recess and breaks). Our difficulties with social skills also sabotage our chances of enjoying team sports and group activities.
Last year I participated in a study which was looking into exactly those factors, and what might be done to counter them. The researcher, a thoughtful soul, told me later that she spent some time being depressed about her findings... which admittedly, given the statistics I've seen, must have been really soul-crushing. Without exercise and movement, the body breaks down and doesn't function as well. Anxiety and depression gain stronger footholds. The aging process even speeds up. So research like hers is extremely important (and I told her so).
So what's to be done? Well, it seems direct, pointed praise has a strong effect on the exercise habits of autistic people. This is somewhat in keeping with the rule for teaching and communicating with autistic people: be direct, kind, and explicit. It seems that even pre-recorded praise, delivered through a headset, was motivating for the participants of this small study. This means that there could be specialized apps to help autistic adults (and really, anyone) learn to build exercise habits and keep them.
Reading all this reminded me of the app I use myself: Zombies, Run! I mainly was drawn to the game (and then drawn back to it) because of its storytelling aspects. While you exercise in the real world, the game invites your mind into a fictional, post-apocalyptic world, where you're the hero and are very important to the survival of humanity. You meet interesting characters, solve problems, handle crises, etc. All of this, in a single app designed around having you go running outdoors.
Well, I love stories, so even though I don't love zombies and post-apocalyptic things, I gave it a try. And I've come back again and again, despite hating exercise, because of it. Reading this article reminded me of something else the app does, though. Besides casting you as the hero, it also mixes in nonspecific praise from the other characters. Phrases like, "You're going (running) well, keep it up!" and "Good work keeping ahead of those zoms (zombies)" feature at least once per mission, likely much more than that. I don't consciously give that praise a lot of credibility, personally, because I'm often not running outside, but rather bicycling indoors. But I really doubt it hurts the experience.
I've commented on exercise and how I see it developing in the future, and while this sort of praise-focused thing is not exactly what I had in mind, I don't think they're mutually exclusive ideas.
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