SAB Pick:

Home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability

Home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability allows someone with Alzheimer's disease or similar to lead a physically active life.

  • Do you like this article?

Quality Services

Where do you need services?

Where do you need services?

Featured in

Home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability. Photo by Greg Balzer on Flickr.Leading a physically active life helps a person with a learning disability to cope with the condition. Aside from helping to improve general cardiovascular health, exercise can also help improve the physical functioning of an elderly person. Home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability allows a family member to work out in the comfort of your own home.

Find professional contractors! Get free quotes for home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability!

You need to make certain residential renovations to make your fitness center more accessible to family members with cognition disabilities.

Most people with cognition disabilities are approaching an age at which they have physical limitations and thus cannot perform strenuous exercises and tasks. It's important to choose fitness equipment that allows for moderate-intensity exercises that are designed and customized for stimulation and have less to do with using muscles and being highly active.

A recumbent bike, for example, provides back support and is easier to use than an upright bike. Most recumbent bikes have an easy step-through design and come with preset programs.

Hydraulic fitness equipment is the safest equipment for the elderly, as it is easy on the joints and only requires gentle pushing and lifting to operate.

When you're doing home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability, choose equipment that has swing-away seats and can exercise both arms and legs. Perform research on manufacturers of adaptive fitness equipment, and try to make a well-balanced gym where all members of the family can exercise together without experiencing physical and communication barriers. 

People with disabilities such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease may also benefit from seated exercises. A regular and customized sitting exercise can help build and maintain the muscles without straining the body of an elderly person. Sitting exercises may include:

    • Bending of the arms and legs.
    • Making circles with the arms.
    • Raising the toes and heels.
    • Stretching.
    • Sitting marches.
    • Upper body twists.
    • Tilting head backwards and forwards.

You may need to free up an appropriate space when you're remodeling a home gym for a cognitive disability to accommodate a family member who is using a wheelchair. Building a family changing room can help a person with a disability to change clothes and access the toilet conveniently.

A universal family changing room also allows you to assist a person who has a disability without causing inconvenience or discomfort.

People with cognition disabilities require more time to learn and master new tasks. Repetition is also important for learning. Consult a fitness trainer who is experienced in handling people with dementia or disabilities before starting an exercise program to make sure that the task is suitable for your family member.

When planning home gym remodeling for a cognitive disability, it's important to focus on the individual needs of the disabled person without inconveniencing your other family members. If possible, adapt a universal design to expand the usability of the fitness center to a broader age group. Consult with a contractor and receive free quotes.

Get your 4 free additions and remodels estimates!

Photo credit: Greg Balzer via Compfight CC.