Mean (SE) performance of walking, standing, and arm curl exercises as a function of group (BET, exercise, control), test (pre-, mid-, post-, follow-up), and condition (pre Stroop, after Stroop). T tests: B = different from the BET group, E = different from the Exercise group. Credit: Sports and exercise psychology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2024.102757
Cerebral endurance training (BET), a combined method of cognitive and physical training developed for athletes, strengthens the cognitive and physical abilities of older adults.
According to a new study led by researchers at the Universities of Birmingham, UK, and Extremadura, Spain, cerebral endurance training (BET) can improve attention and executive function (cognition), as well as physical endurance and performance during resistance exercises. BET is a combined exercise and cognitive training method that was initially developed to increase the endurance of elite athletes.
The research has implications for healthy aging. Previous studies have shown that mental fatigue can impair cognitive and physical performance, including poorer balance control, leading to an increased risk of falls and accidents. This study, published in Sports and exercise psychologyis the first to examine the benefits of BET for cognitive and physical performance in older adults.
Corresponding author Professor Chris Ring said: “We have shown that BET could be an effective intervention to improve cognitive and physical performance in older people, even when they are tired. This could have significant implications for improving the health of this population, particularly by reducing the risk of falls and accidents.”
In the experiment, 24 healthy sedentary women aged 65 to 78 were divided into one of three training groups: cerebral endurance training (BET), exercise training and no training (control group). . The first two groups each completed three 45-minute exercise sessions per week over an eight-week period. Each session included 20 minutes of resistance training and 25 minutes of endurance training. Although the exercise sessions were the same for each of these groups, the BET group also completed a 20-minute cognitive task before exercising.
All three groups completed a series of cognitive (reaction time and color matching tests) and physical tests (walking, standing and arm flexion tests) to assess performance at the beginning and end of the course. ‘study. Participants in the BET group outperformed the exercise-only group in cognitive tasks, with a 7.8% increase in cognitive performance after exercise, compared to a 4.5% increase in the exercise-only group. In terms of physical performance, the BET group achieved a 29.9% improvement, compared to 22.4% for the exercise-only group.
“BET is an effective countermeasure against mental fatigue and its detrimental effects on performance in older people,” added Professor Ring. “While we still need to expand our research to include larger samples including both men and women, these promising early results show that we should do more to encourage older people to engage in BET in order to improve their brain and body activities.”
More information:
Jesús Díaz-García et al, Cerebral endurance training improves cognitive and physical performance of sedentary older adults when they are fresh and tired, Sports and exercise psychology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2024.102757
Provided by the University of Birmingham
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