This Friday, May 17^th is National Bike to Work Day. Here in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area there are 70 pit stops throughout DC, Maryland, and Virginia. In 2001, only a few hundred participated, but over 12,000 participated last year. I was one of those participants and I had a blast!

Last year, I saw lots of people on bikes and many who typically don’t ride. Bikes, bikes, bikes, everywhere I looked I saw bikes! What a joy!  I met one lady while riding along, asked where she was going and it turned out we were both riding to NIH that day. We chatted the last few miles of our commute together and time just flew by! The commute felt shorter than usual and I really enjoyed getting to know someone new. When we arrived at the NIH campus, we were greeted with coffee, some light snacks, prizes, and music. I can’t think of a better way to start the work day.

Above: NIH Bike to Work Day

One of my friends asked me why I participated in Bike to Work Day, especially if I ride my bike to work every day anyway. So what makes Bike to Work Day special? That is a great question. Although I am committed to riding on most days of the week, not everyone else has the “know how” or the skills yet to try it out. Bike to Work Day is a great way to bring awareness to active commuting. It provides a great way for people to start thinking about alternate modes of transportation. People who are a new cyclists, new to bike commuting, or just want to learn more can check out DC’s Bike to Work website. The website includes some great information on all of the pit stops available in the DC Metro area as well as some ideas about how to get involved. For information on Bike to Work Day in your area, or to arrange your own group, visit the  League of American Bicyclists National Bike Month page.

Riding to work can cause fitness to sneak up on you too! Without even really thinking so much about exercising, commuting by bike, even just a couple days of the week will slowly start to build your fitness. It is a great way to get two things done at once – commute to work and get your physical activity in! Also, riding a bike either for recreation or for commuting automatically engages you in a community no matter where you live, work, or play.

Above: To Bike or Ride?

But beyond all of that, it is just plain fun. Riding bikes is fun. You get to see all sorts of things on your ride that you might not see from your car. What a joy! Once you have your route mapped out and ride it a few times, the bike commute can be as easy as hopping in your car.

Above: My friend and I getting ready for a long ride.

Imagine a commute that includes more bikes than cars. If you can’t imagine it, check out what a morning rush hour in the 4^th largest city in the Netherlands looks like: Bicycle Rush Hour.

Above: You never know what  you will see or who you will meet while out riding your bike.

What are you doing for Bike to Work Day tomorrow? Share your stories!

Did you get in your “Instant Recess” today?  Don’t worry, it will only take 10 minutes and no special equipment or shoes are required. 

Antronette (Toni) Yancey, researcher and professor at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health was the founder of “Instant Recess” – a “MOVEment of ACTIVE-ists dedicated to making America healthier 10 minutes at a time.”  She believed that exercise could be done in short bursts in workplaces, schools and places of worship and wrote a book about the movement, "Instant Recess: Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time." 

Sadly, with her recent passing, the physical activity community lost a tremendous leader.  This week, individuals and communities decided to celebrate Toni’s work by promoting Instant Recess at 4 pm ET on Tuesday, May 7^th.  Individuals were encouraged to rally their colleagues to do a short activity break.  And to make it even easier, Toni and Los Angeles Sparks created an easy, 10 minute session video you can follow.

I was at a President's Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition meeting on Tuesday and President’s Council member Donna Richardson Joyner led the Council and the audience in Instant Recess during the meeting.  It was a great way to get up and move and I definitely felt better when the next presentation started.  Toni was also honored at this meeting with a Lifetime Achievement Award, celebrating her commitment and dedication to the promotion of physical activity.

Even if you missed the movement on Tuesday, add it to the calendar today (and every day)!  10 minutes is an easy way to improve your health and productivity.  And, did you know, short bouts of physical activity 10 minutes or longer count toward meeting the Physical Activity Guidelines, which recommend 2.5 hours (150 minutes) of moderate-vigorous physical activity each week.

What are YOU doing to add small amounts of physical activity into your day?   

Blog post written by: Donna B Bainbridge, PT, EdD, ATC; James Michael Gleason, PT, MS; and Victoria S T Tilley, PT, GCS

People with intellectual disability are at risk for poorer health and earlier death than the general population. People with intellectual disability may have more difficulty understanding advertisements and media messages intended to enhance or promote health, and they often depend on family or caregivers to provide support and guidance in daily decision making. Many people with intellectual disability are underemployed or unemployed with limited financial resources, especially discretionary income to allow them to participate in recreational and physical activity programs. Many coaches and volunteers who work with sports teams in local communities may be reluctant to include children, youth, and adults with disabilities, or do not have the knowledge to teach sports-related skills to those who have difficulty learning or need extra time to learn or practice basic skills. As a result, people with intellectual disability may not have access to the many programs available to the nondisabled population that are extremely important to staying active and avoiding many chronic health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, overweight, and other health problems. 

In response to these needs, physical therapists (PTs) have become important contributors to the Special Olympics Healthy Athletes screening and other healthy lifestyle initiatives. In 2000, a fitness screening protocol called FUNFitness was developed by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in collaboration with Special Olympics to evaluate flexibility, strength, balance, and aerobic fitness in Special Olympics athletes. FUNfitness volunteers have screened over 160,000 Special Olympics athletes, collected data on physical performance, and provided individual instruction and referrals to physicians and to physical therapists as needed as a result of these screenings. The screening tests reveal that most Special Olympics athletes with intellectual disabilities have limitations in flexibility and poor balance skills. Much also needs to be done to improve their athletic skills, promote better daily function and health, prevent falls, and enlist more health care providers to provide needed services. Special Olympics has trained thousands of PTs and PT students to conduct the screenings and provide meaningful information and advice to athletes. FUNfitness has developed close collaborative ties with APTA in the United States and has developed a network through the World Confederation for Physical Therapy to expand these discussions and efforts globally .

These screening efforts have become a routine part of Special Olympics activities in many states and in countries around the globe. In addition, FUNfitness has developed a range of fitness materials and protocols for Special Olympics coaches to use for promotion of fitness with their athletes. Currently, FUNfitness and Special Olympics programs are developing and pilot testing a variety of community-based year-round fitness programs for athletes, such as the Special Olympics Get Fit for Sport designed for the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award, or PALA+. These resources will be posted on the Get Fit for Sport Special Olympics webpage so that Special Olympics programs, families, and physical therapists can use them to encourage individual and group fitness activities.

People with intellectual disabilities need access to knowledgeable health and fitness resources and to practitioners who can provide information and programs that are barrier free, can be easily understood, and encourage participation in physical activity and fitness. PTs are ideally suited to help make this happen. We challenge PTs to become more involved in their communities and to include people with intellectual disability who are frequently underserved by health promotion efforts. 

What is your experience with working with people with intellectual disability? How can we promote improved fitness and physical activity for this population?