Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Getting assessed for your dyspraxia, getting help, disability allowance etc.

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JohanMidas
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Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by JohanMidas »

In theory, the reason for choosing a higher power speaker over a lower power speaker isn't to make as much noise as possible, but that the higher power speaker is able to reproduce a sound with less distortion at a given power level. (Distortion occurs the closer the volume the sound is played at gets to the maximum volume of the speakers.)

Is there any evidence - even anecdotal - that something similar occurs in people, and that stronger people tend to be less clumsy when doing things requiring normal levels of strength than less strong people?

Does anyone have any experience of doing strength training and then finding their gross motor skills improving; or doing hand grip exercises and finding their fine motor skills improving?
Tom fod
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by Tom fod »

I'm not aware of any such clinical? studies. It does seem logical to a certain extent but believe there are likely to be other variables such as level of fatigue/frustration.

No harm in trying as long as you don't plan to do something crazily dangerous like walking a tightrope across the Grand Canyon to try and master your gross motor skills/balance or sewing up the mouth of a King Cobra to try and improve those fine motor skills!

I've been to Go Ape three times and I don't mind some DIY like assembling flat packs. It's good to learn from experience although Bismarck said it was better to learn from the experience of others.
Tom
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With a foot full of bullets I tried to run faster but I just hobbled on to the next disaster.
(from Peter and the Test Tube Babies, Foot Full of Bullets)
JohanMidas
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by JohanMidas »

I think I've just found that there's some pretty good academic research supporting the idea that strength training substantially reduces dyspraxic symptoms.
Geoff Platt's PhD was on the subject. He ran a trial with 500 school age children with positive results, which replicated an Australian study, in which an eight week strength training course was found to reduce dyspraxic symptoms by over 70%.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B006OY56KU/r ... 161_M1T1DP

However, he states that the Australian programme was considered too costly to be adopted, despite being so effective. (Which I think suggests treatments for dyspraxia seem to be severely undervalued.)

One of the exercises in the book is simply to regularly squeeze tennis balls (ten times per session). Perhaps that's the Tesco Value version of the exercise programme?!
Tom fod
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by Tom fod »

Interesting. I can't really judge as haven't read the book. Wonder what Mr Gove's solution would be?

I'm sure there are benefits if recognised early and the programme implemented if you can motivate the affected person. I must admit I found my 'special treatment' at school an embarrassment and a source of ammunition for the jibes my classmates used.

I do wonder how effective this programme is for older cynics.

Drifting off and looking at the books they have on dyspraxia .

I've read Caged in Chaos (Victoria Biggs) and found it to be well written but 20 years too late for me. An adult version of that would be really good.

I didn't really find Jill Eckersley's book helpful so was glad I'd found it in the library rather than paying £8 or even best part of £5 on Amazon.

I sadly find a that too often these sort of books come across to me as condescending.

On a brighter note I quite liked the look of Don't call me Stupid (Ross Patrick) and possibly That's The Way I think (David Grant) I think but I'm not really too enamoured with the idea of paying so will have to see if the library has any of them.

When I'm motivated I will persist.
Tom
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With a foot full of bullets I tried to run faster but I just hobbled on to the next disaster.
(from Peter and the Test Tube Babies, Foot Full of Bullets)
JohanMidas
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by JohanMidas »

I ordered the book on Kindle. I don't like it, but it does seem to show that strength training is an under-researched as an avenue for treating dyspraxia. However the research there has been has been positive.

I get concerned & fascinated by positive feedback loops, and the way they could turn small disadvantages into large ones. Being slightly worse at physical activities than peers at outset can lead to becoming discouraged, and so becoming less physically active, meaning that the small initial disadvantage becomes multiplied, leading to even worse performance, even more discouragement, and the disadvantage growing larger and larger. The cycle can be broken by learning to compare your performance only with your earlier performance, but that's something easier said than done.

I ordered and now have some hand exercise equipment. One thing I was quite surprised by was that my right hand is quite a bit weaker than my left hand, despite me writing with my right hand. This is interesting for me as my left hand also scored higher on the pegboard test of dexterity. So, there does seem to be a correlation, meaning perhaps increasing the strength of the right hand will also increase its dexterity.
screengreen
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by screengreen »

I wonder if it could be related to sensory integration, which is basically the organization of senses for use ...if you have stronger muscles then maybe the stretch receptors in the muscles are more easily activated so you know where your arms and legs are helpful for coordinating. But I am biased I have studied sensory integration.

Tom both the books you mention are worth a read ... David Grants is especially good if tad expensive, I paid a couple of quid for Don`t call me stupid for a kindle version not sure I would have paid more though.
Mr_Tom_one
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by Mr_Tom_one »

Such a late reply but think this is such an interesting thread. From a layperson's perspective a couple of things that came to mind.

1. The more you perform movements I think the better you'll get at doing them. So if you go from doing little exercise to doing regular strength training the very fact you're using the muscles means you're improving your co-ordination. Something like lifting a barbell is using all sorts of balance and co-ordination.

2. Something I think is really interesting which I learned from doing Pilates for a bit is that the body has stabilising muscles. So as well as the muscles which might move your forearm when you do a bicep curl, there are all the muscles which work to make this a smooth movement, so things in your shoulders, your back and so on. So in a way maybe these are the muscles which make you like a higher volume speaker, they stop you vibrating / wobbling. This is why it's better to do free weights than machines, as long as you can manage, because the body has to work to keep the motion clean, rather than the machine doing it for you.

I'm sure my co-ordination has improved since I started exercising more as I got into my 20s. I'm now 35. As a kid I hated sport as I couldn't catch or hit a ball. As I got older I found things like Tai Chi and circuit training which I could do at my own pace.

Or maybe I've got that all wrong! I'm not an expert. Somehow the use of a speaker as an analogy for a dyspraxic person seems like such a dyspraxic way to think (In a good way :)
Tomtom
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by Tomtom »

I couldn't be bothered to read the paper because it's 2am, but the abstract of this paper seems to suggest a link (at least in children):
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23542203
ListingVictoria
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Re: Half-baked idea: strength and clumsiness

Post by ListingVictoria »

I am above average at hand-eye coordination and and spatial awareness for objects, I struggle with balance, proprioception and coordination between my upper and lower limbs.

I got fed up of spraining my ankle once a month so I started doing tai chi about 5 years ago and would definitely say it has helped my balance big-time and my proprioception a bit, I also bought little wobble cushion things to stand on to help my balance, still not good at that! As far as strength exercises, I hold small weights when I do exercises (like flexibility, resistance and pilates) and have done tai chi holding the weights as well, and I use an indoor rowing machine to help core strength. I go through phases of swimming as well, and I love swimming and have been swimming since I was a baby but I still can't get breathing, arms, and legs all at the same time.

Compared to other women I seem to be freakishly strong without really trying (even before I was using weights) and I am good with my hands, perhaps because I have practiced so much because I love to draw, paint, sew, bake, and even DIY, (except I still can't tie a shoelace without doing bunny-ears) and I would say I am right handed because that's the one that has been trained to write and draw - but I don't favour either hand aside from that, and I am just as strong in my left and right arms, and I can actually write and draw fairly well with the left, whether I have to use a screwdriver with my left or right hand makes no odds to me.

With all of that, I don't sprain my ankles as often (which is nice) but it's not like the clumsiness has gone away altogether. I find that when I am concentrating I can do something in a reasonably non-clumsy way but if I am distracted for even a split second mid-action I will drop it/fall over/bang into it, or if the thing is made more complicated like sing AND dance simultaneously.
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