Abstract
Muscular strength is a critical component of physical health. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine age- and sex-based differences in functional strength and rates of referral for education in a large international sample of Special Olympics athletes. A total of 30,358 (male = 19,661) adult (20–69 years old) athlete functional strength records were utilized from the Special Olympics Healthy Athletes database. Descriptive statistics were computed for the following tests: timed sit to stand, partial sit-up, grip strength, and seated push-up. Analyses of variance with Fisher-Hayter pairwise comparisons generally supported age-related decreases in strength among both males and females in this study. Overall, male participants were stronger than the female participants. However, significantly fewer women were referred for education based on their grip strength scores. The rates of referral for education are a concern regarding core- and leg strength for more than one-third of athletes over the age of 30. These findings suggest that a substantial proportion of Special Olympics athletes would benefit from additional strength and conditioning training.
Highlights
According to the World Health Organization, muscular strength is a critical component of physical health (World Health Organization, 2020)
Special Olympics athletes are referred for education for their performance on the timed sit to stand test when their time is greater than 20 seconds or they are unable to complete 10 stands (Special Olympics, 2020b)
It is evident that grip strength was significantly lower among women in each age band, as was the seated push-up time except for Special Olympics athletes in the oldest age band (60 – 69-years-old)
Summary
According to the World Health Organization, muscular strength is a critical component of physical health (World Health Organization, 2020). Activities of daily living such as toileting and dressing, and instrumental activities of daily living such as shopping and cooking, depend on physical strength in both the general population and individuals with an intellectual disability (ID) (Oppewal et al, 2014a, 2015; Taekema et al, 2010). Muscular strength among adults with an intellectual disability. Among individuals with an ID, there is some evidence that strength decreases with age (Lahtinen et al, 2007; Oppewal et al, 2014b) and that females have lower
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