A multi-skill Approach using the Autism Fitness PAC Profile
If you’ve been following Autism Fitness for a bit, you’re familiar with some of our core practices; the PAC Profile for assessing and addressing, Best practices in programming, Meeting the athlete ‘where they’re at,’ and functional coaching/communication strategies.
Effective programming with clear outcomes requires not only sound concepts, but the actual implementation across individuals and environments. For the autism and neurodivergent population, there are additional considerations. Essentially, given the challenges of physical, adaptive/behavioral, and cognitive capabilities, fitness programming must embrace a multidisciplinary approach. A clear understanding and working knowledge of physiology and exercise programming, positive behavior support, communication, and coaching are necessities.
A chief misconception regarding exercise for the autism population is that randomized movement selection and/or complex “balance” or “sensory” activities are needed. This approach is unlikely to yield measurable outcomes; fundamental movement skills that generalize beyond the fitness/adapted PE session. Regardless of the population (autism/neurodivergent or neurotypical), movement quality must be regarded as a goal within fitness programs. While seemingly obvious, there is often little emphasis placed on technically sound, controlled movement in said fitness programs.
There are 3 essential skill sets to assess and address in fitness programs for the autistic individual. Depending on presentation, levels of capability will take priority over others both in general and within the scope of a particular session.
Physical skills: Refer to the individual’s ability to perform a particular exercise independently. This means the athlete demonstrates motor control through a healthy range of motion for a given number of repetitions or set duration of time.
Adaptive skills: Refer to the level of motivation and engagement with a particular exercise at a particular time. While motivation and engagement levels may vary session to session, a coach/instructor will develop a sense of that athlete’s general range and ability to focus and meaningfully participate.
Cognitive skills: Refer to neurological (communication, memory, and information processing) and kinesthetic (body positioning, motor imitation)
Assessing adaptive and cognitive skills across a range of appropriate exercises provides a starting point for individualized programs. Additionally, the scope and robustness of a program will vary depending on these factors, the most prominent (physical, adaptive, and/or cognitive) being the determining factor in program design.
An individual with a predictably high level of engagement is unlikely to require complex strategies (excessive secondary reinforcers, long breaks, or elaborate contingencies) to complete each exercise. In this case, the primary focus of the program will be on the exercises themselves and providing enough volume (sets, reps) of each exercise to result in a training effect.
For many autistic and neurodivergent children, teens, and adults, dysregulated behavior (internally or externally governed) can inhibit the capacity to meaningfully and predictably engage in the fitness session. For these individuals, at least initially, increasing engagement will take precedence over variety of exercises included. A coach/instructor focused on increasing adaptive skills for an individual may opt to repeat a particular exercise for 5, 6, or 7 sets as the athlete becomes more familiar and comfortable. Additionally, these first few sets, even when modified or supported, may lack the physical control and movement mastery to actually initiate a physical benefit.
Assessing cognitive skills with respect to fitness abilities serves two purposes; identifying the prominent communication hallmarks (both productive and receptive/processing) and discovering the level of support needed for a given exercise. Individuals with autism often require short, minimally descriptive terms and visual demonstrations of the target exercise. While this does parallel best practices for nearly all populations, the autistic individual often requires additional or ongoing/repetitive prompting.
The most common reasons for providing exercise modifications (including motor imitation and physical guidance) include
- Addressing compensatory movement or breakdown in techniqe
- Intervening on movement that is too fast/uncontrolled (speed vs. control)
- Insufficient range of motion during exercises requiring extension/flexion (squats, presses, pulls)
Assessing the current level of physical ability with each exercise along with the current/present level of engagement and understanding of expectation provides a coach or instructor with the information necessary to tailor the program to individual needs. When assessing, or when coaching an athlete from an already implemented program, the ‘coaching eye’ and ‘coaching brain’ make decisions about what and when to provide guidance or maintain the current situation.
The Autism Fitness ‘Tuesday Training’ video below highlights the importance, reasoning, and practical strategies for assessing exercise skills for the the autism and neurodivergent athlete. In this example, we analyze an Autism Fitness athlete performing squats (click the picture).
