THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 13, 1996 TAG: 9606110138
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 15 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOAN C. STANUS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 74 lines
After a lifetime of physical therapy, 17-year-old Eric Grainger was bored.
At 13, Scott Kauffman was burned out after just a few years of his program. He felt he already had ``outgrown all that cutesy stuff'' his therapist used.
But, until recently, these Norfolk teens had few options other than traditional physical therapy programs to help them. Afflicted with disabling nerve diseases, they required special exercise regimens to maintain muscle strength and endurance. Neither wanted to be entirely dependent on braces or wheelchairs to get around.
Still, they yearned for a more challenging program of exercise, something that would give them a change of pace and provide them with a chance to improve their physical conditions.
``I'd been in physical therapy since I was 9 months old,'' explained Grainger, a Titustown resident born with cerebral palsy. ``I didn't even notice a difference anymore.''
In January, Grainger and Kauffman got their wish when United Cerebral Palsy of Southeastern Virginia initiated a pilot bodybuilding project designed especially for disabled adolescents and young adults. The program, the only one of its kind in the country, officials say, aims to offer these teens a ``fun'' exercise alternative to traditional physical therapy by using hydraulic gym equipment commonly found in community exercise facilities.
``This is an adjunct to their physical therapy . . . not a substitute,'' stressed Suzanne Buhner, program director for UCP. ``Most of these kids still get physical therapy in their schools. But after 14 or 15 years of doing it, they get bored. And then, they don't make progress. So what we're trying to do is to continue using those concepts they've learned to try and keep them active and maintain their muscle base.''
``We looked into it and found out that some studies show if you keep these kids exercising, you can maintain or even increase their muscle base,'' she said. ``Their condition won't get worse. They just need a management strategy so there is no backsliding. For some people with cerebral palsy, their muscles grow faster than their abilities. We want to keep their abilities up with their development.''
With the help of specialists at the Downtown Athletic Club, UCP physical therapists developed a basic conditioning program using hydraulic PACE Strengthening Equipment, similar to that found in health clubs.
At the center, however, each participant is evaluated so an individualized program can be developed according to particular needs and conditions. Nine types of machines, including a treadmill, stepper, recumbent bike, leg abductor and shoulder press, are incorporated under the watchful eye of a certified physical therapist.
Although programs are individualized, the teens participate as a group in 60 minute sessions twice a week at the Greenwich Road center in Virginia Beach.
``This is more fun than doing it by yourself,'' noted Grainger, a junior at Maury High School. ``You can interact more. I've made a lot of friends.''
For the pilot program, six teens, ages 10 to 17, are enrolled. The cost, which eventually may be reduced, Buhner said, is currently $200 for eight weeks.
By this summer, officials hope to add more sessions. They already have a waiting list.
``We want to find out what works first and then develop a model,'' Buhner said.
Eventually, the local UCP officials would like to see other chapters throughout the country develop similar programs. The ideal is to provide training for disabled teens so they can go into health clubs and community gyms and use equipment on their own. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by GARY C. KNAPP
Scott Kauffman exercises at the United Cerebral Palsy Center.
NEW PROGRAM
United Cerebral Palsy of Southeastern Virginia's new Strengthening
and Exercise Program for Adolescents and Young Adults is in Suite
100 at 5690 Greenwich Road, Virginia Beach. For more information,
call 497-7474. by CNB