Effects of a 6-week Progressive and Combined Training Program on Strength and Cardiovascular Endurance in Young Adults with Moderate Intellectual Global Delay

Many individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) do not participate in regular physical activity and exhibit a sedentary lifestyle leading to obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and muscular atrophy, among others. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a 6-week progressive and combined training program on muscular strength and cardiovascular endurance of young adults with moderate global delay. Three, one-hour sessions per week, for 6 weeks, involved full body resistance and cardiorespiratory training. A 10 maximum-repetition (RM) seated chest and leg press performance, as well as Legers 20m shuttle run were administered at the pre-, mid- and post-times. The progressive training principle was applied after the mid-test. The results showed significant improvements in muscular strength and cardiorespiratory endurance confirming that combined and progressive training protocol resulted in faster gains as compared to past approaches that involved programs that were less intense but longer in duration.