Group Differences in Balance Between Individuals with and Without Intellectual Disabilities Following a Progressive Overload Powerlifting Program

Abstract

This presentation is a graduate thesis on Group differences in balance between individuals with and without intellectual disabilities following a progressive overload powerlifting program. Adults with intellectual disabilities have higher incidence of falls with some estimates placing fall risks at 34 %. This value is consistent with older adults from the general population and supports the notion that adults with intellectual disabilities age faster than the general population (Cox, Stancliffe, Durvasula, & Sherrington, 2010). This study attempts to show that when a group of individuals with intellectual disabilities and a group of typically developing individuals participate in an 8 week powerlifting program, balance will also improve from pretest to posttest.