The effect of eight-week single-leg squat exercises on balance, lower limb strength and quality of life in mentally retarded students

People with mentally retarded are inactive due to the specific mental and physical problems and they have motor function impairments. Therefore, this study aimed to study the effect of eight-week combined single-leg squat exercises on balance, lower limb strength and quality of life in mentally retarded students

In this quasi-experimental study, thirty 7-to-11-year-old male estudents of with IQ=50 to 70 were selected by purposive and convenience sampling and matched in two experimental and control groups. Bruininks-Oseretsky Mobility Test was used to assess the balance and strength of lower limbs of the subjects and Cummins Quality of Life Questionnaire was used to assess the quality of life. The experimental group performed single-leg squat exercises for 8 weeks (three 60-min sessions). During this time, the control group had no specific exercise program. At the end, post-test was performed for both groups. To determine the effectiveness of the exercises, statistical analysis of variance with repeated measures was used using SPSS-19 software. Significance level was considered 0.05 in all analyzes.

The results showed that single-leg squat exercises have a significant effect on static and dynamic balance, lower limb strength and quality of life in mentally retarded children.

Single-leg squat exercises can be used to improve static, dynamic balance, lower limb strength, and quality of life in mentally retarded children.