Measuring Physical Fitness in Older Adults with Intellectual Disabilities: moving towards practice

Abstract

Physical fitness is “a set of attributes or characteristics individuals have or achieve that relates to their ability to perform physical activity”. This definition shows that physical fitness is a multidimensional concept. There are different opinions about the exact components of this concept, but usually the components are divided into health-related components and skill-related components (Table 1). The health-related components are strongly related to overall health, and a low score on these components is a risk factor for all-cause mortality and developing disabling medical conditions and chronic diseases, such as metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular diseases, and musculoskeletal conditions [1-4]. Skill-related components represent athletic ability and are related with enhanced performance in sports and motor skills. Being physically fit on both aspects is also a prerequisite to perform activities of daily living, for which both health-related and skill-related components are important , although not all are equally relevant. This thesis is about measuring the physical fitness of older adults with intellectual disabilities. Suitable physical fitness tests for this population are needed in clinical practice. Before outlining the contents of this chapter, we will start by providing some background information about why physical fitness should be a focus in the care for this population and why fitness tests are needed.