We’re all here to learn

Young adults with disability want to know more about how they can improve their health and exercise habits.

Engage, explore, and recommend new strategies to help them achieve their fitness goals.

Take the time to listen and ask what they want to achieve and how you can be the best exercise support for them.

Education

Receiving information about exercise and health

    • How to exercise safely in the gym with confidence

    • Correct exercise form and injury prevention

    • Specialist providing education on the benefits of exercise tailored to their individual needs

    • Specialist knowledge about their disease/disability and exercise

    • Healthy lifestyle choices (eating and drinking)

    • Expert knowledge of disability, disease and/or exercise

    • Specialist knowledge of the individual

    • Informal chats during exercise sessions

    • Ask specialists who are working with the young adult with disability

    • Handouts, brochures, health information videos, YouTube and diagrams are all useful but may not be specific to the individual.

Young adult, aged 27 years

“I think it’s more the informal, little things to help me with my particular form, or little tricks to progress exercises that maybe I didn’t know about that someone who is a real, proper exercise expert might know about. Or any particular questions I might have, where I go, this one exercise feels a little funny. What’s a good alternative, or what am I doing wrong?”

Young adult, aged 27 years

“…having that education that’s delivered one-to-one by someone that knows about your disability or your illness is important, that it’s not something that’s written down about general exercise things or whatever.”

Young adults with disability also value disability training and knowledge in the gym staff and people who support them.

Lived Experience

Our research could not happen without the individual and collective contributions of those with lived experience of neurodivergence, and those who love and care for them.

We acknowledge and value their unique expertise. Their perspectives are crucial to our mission to enrich the lives of Autistic people, their families and their carers through high-quality scientific research, innovation and translation and our vision for a world where Autistic people, their families and their carers thrive.

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge that we work on the unceded lands of many traditional Indigenous custodians in Victoria and across Australia.

We recognise their ongoing connection to the land and value their unique contribution to our research, and to wider Australian society.

We pay our respects to Elders past and present and thank them for their ongoing care of this beautiful country’s land, skies, and waterways.

Diversity

We are committed to embracing diversity and eliminating all forms of discrimination. We welcome all people irrespective of neurotype, ethnicity, lifestyle choice, faith, sexual orientation or gender identity.