Exercise Program Specially Fit to Needs of Mentally Ill People

latimes.com
In Shape, a year old project, is designed to provide regular structured exercise for people with mental illness. The project also includes education in nutrition, weight loss and behavior modification. Each participant works with a mentor, and all classes and training take place in mixed settings among people who are not mentally ill.

The unusual, community-based effort targets a population that has been largely overlooked by a physical fitness boom that caters to an array of groups — from older people to babies to the physically disabled — but typically not to people with mental illness. Experts view In Shape as a model to improve the lives and life spans of millions of people with mental illness.