TY - JOUR
T1 - ‘I found comfort in exercising’: Exploring Experiences with Exercise for Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
AU - Ramji, Anusha V.
AU - Dommett, Eleanor
AU - Runswick, Oliver
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 Human Kinetics, Inc.
PY - 2024/5/9
Y1 - 2024/5/9
N2 - Little is known about how adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience exercise, resulting in a lack of recommendations for supporting this population. We aimed to explore how adults with ADHD experience exercise as a management tool before and after diagnosis and how and why individuals experience issues related to exercise dependence. Fifteen active adults with a diagnosis of ADHD participated in semistructured interviews. Three overarching themes were identified: (a) exercise as a necessity for ADHD, reflecting the need to exercise before a formal ADHD diagnosis, and use of exercise as a management tool postdiagnosis; (b) goals and achievements to live by, reflecting how exercise patterns revolved around a need to make progress toward targets; and (c) activity or exercise: a roller coaster journey, covering the ups and downs of exercise journeys. This article highlights the importance of exercise for adults to manage ADHD and how this can be encouraged and supported.
AB - Little is known about how adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience exercise, resulting in a lack of recommendations for supporting this population. We aimed to explore how adults with ADHD experience exercise as a management tool before and after diagnosis and how and why individuals experience issues related to exercise dependence. Fifteen active adults with a diagnosis of ADHD participated in semistructured interviews. Three overarching themes were identified: (a) exercise as a necessity for ADHD, reflecting the need to exercise before a formal ADHD diagnosis, and use of exercise as a management tool postdiagnosis; (b) goals and achievements to live by, reflecting how exercise patterns revolved around a need to make progress toward targets; and (c) activity or exercise: a roller coaster journey, covering the ups and downs of exercise journeys. This article highlights the importance of exercise for adults to manage ADHD and how this can be encouraged and supported.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85214320518&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1123/apaq.2023-0175
DO - 10.1123/apaq.2023-0175
M3 - Article
SN - 0736-5829
VL - 42
SP - 1
EP - 18
JO - ADAPTED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY QUARTERLY
JF - ADAPTED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY QUARTERLY
IS - 1
ER -