Mindfulness Training, Mental Fatigue, Endurance Performance and Neurocognitive Functions

Not Applicable

Completed

Conditions: Sports Performance
Neurocognitive Function
Mindfulness Training
Mental Fatigue

Interventions: Behavioral: Mindfulness intervention

Registration Number: NCT05452460

Lead Sponsor: National Taiwan Normal University

Brief Summary: Mental fatigue has been suggested that would impair neurocognitive functions and sports performance. On the other hand, mindfulness training (MT) seems to as a promising approach to attenuate mental fatigue and counteract its detrimental effect on cognitive functions and sports performance. The purpose of the present study is to examine the effect of MT on behavioral and neuroelectric indices of inhibitory control, and endurance performance in mentally fatigued athletes.

Detailed Description: Accumulating research indicates that mental fatigue induced by prolonged cognitive tasks would impair neurocognitive functions and sports performance. Additionally, recent studies demonstrate that inhibitory control and endurance performance are significantly susceptible to detrimental effects of mental fatigue. On the other hand, mindfulness training (MT) has been widely been used to enhance cognitive functions and sports performance in neurocognitive and sports research, which has been considered a promising approach for attenuating mental fatigue and counteracting the detrimental effect of mental fatigue. However, the effect of MT on inhibitory control, endurance performance, and underlying mechanisms in mentally fatigued athletes remain unclear.

Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to examine the effect of MT on behavioral and neuroelectric indices of inhibitory control, and endurance performance in mentally fatigued athletes.

Specifically, the targeted primary outcomes are neurocognitive functions (i.e., reaction time, accuracy and ERPs in Flanker task) and endurance performance (i.e., VO2max \& time to exhaustion); The secondary outcomes are changes in dispositional mindfulness, subjective (i.e., scores in visual analog scale)/objective (i.e., reaction time, accuracy in Stroop task) mental fatigue, motivation in tasks, and changes in mood state (i.e., BRUMS-C).

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: COMPLETED

Sex: All

Target Recruitment: 53

Inclusion Criteria

Regular sports training at least 4 hours weekly
Normal or corrected-to-normal vision
Right-handed

Exclusion Criteria

Physical limitation or injury in lower limbs before and during the study
Diagnosed or self-reported neurological disorders (e.g., epilepsy)
Diagnosed or self-reported major psychiatric illness (e.g., major depression, schizophrenia)
Major previous experience with mindfulness training

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Mindfulness training group	Mindfulness intervention	Participants in the mindfulness training (MT) group will engage in a 60-min session of mindfulness program per week for 8 weeks.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Inhibitory Control: Reaction Time	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Followed by the manipulation conditions, inhibitory control will be evaluated by a Flanker task (i.e., either mental fatigue condition or control condition). In the Flanker task, participants will be presented with five arrows and will be instructed to respond as quickly and accurately as possible to the direction where the middle arrow is pointing (i.e., left or right). Types of trials are the congruent (i.e., \> \> \> \> \>) and incongruent (i.e., \< \< \> \< \<). The reaction time (RT) and accuracy (ACC) of the incongruent trials were calculated as inhibitory control performance, and the difference between conditions was further calculated to represent a mental fatigue-related impairment of inhibitory control in pre-test and post-test.
Inhibitory Control: Accuracy	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Followed by the manipulation conditions, inhibitory control will be evaluated by a Flanker task (i.e., either mental fatigue condition or control condition). In the Flanker task, participants will be presented with five arrows and will be instructed to respond as quickly and accurately as possible to the direction where the middle arrow is pointing (i.e., left or right). Types of trials are the congruent (i.e., \> \> \> \> \>) and incongruent (i.e., \< \< \> \< \<). The reaction time (RT) and accuracy (ACC) of the incongruent trials were calculated as inhibitory control performance, and the difference between conditions was further calculated to represent a mental fatigue-related impairment of inhibitory control in pre-test and post-test.
ERP: N2	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	The neuroelectrical activities (i.e., N2, P3) during the Flanker task were recorded and analyzed using the Neuroscan system. The difference in neuroelectrical activities between conditions (i.e., mental fatigue condition \& control condition) were calculated as mental fatigue-related impairment in neuroelectrical markers of inhibitory control.
ERP: P3	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	The neuroelectrical activities (i.e., N2, P3) during the Flanker task were recorded and analyzed using the Neuroscan system. The difference in neuroelectrical activities between conditions (i.e., mental fatigue condition \& control condition) were calculated as mental fatigue-related impairment in neuroelectrical markers of inhibitory control.
Endurance Performance: Time to Exhaustion	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	The graded exercise test (GXT) on treadmill was used to assess participant's endurance performance. Bruce protocol will be adopted in the test. The initial speed and grade of the GXT will be set at 2.74 km/hr with a grade of 10% and increase speed and grade every 3 min until participants are voluntarily exhausted. The time to exhaustion (TTE) was recorded as the endurance performance. The difference in TTE between conditions was further calculated (i.e., control condition minus mental fatigue condition) for both the pre-test and post-test.
Endurance Performance: VO2max	After 30-minute mental fatigue and control conditions at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	The graded exercise test (GXT) on treadmill was used to assess participant's endurance performance. Bruce protocol will be adopted in the test. The initial speed and grade of the GXT will be set at 2.74 km/hr with a grade of 10% and increase speed and grade every 3 min until participants are voluntarily exhausted. The maximum oxygen consumption (VO2 max) was recorded as the endurance performance. The difference in VO2max between conditions was further calculated (i.e., control condition minus mental fatigue condition) for both the pre-test and post-test.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Objective Mental Fatigue	Post 30-minute mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Both at baseline and post-intervention, participants completed either a 30-min 100% incongruent version Stroop task (i.e., mental fatigue condition) or a 30-min 100% congruent version Stroop task (i.e., control condition). In the Stroop task, accuracy (ACC) was calculated as an index of objective mental fatigue. It is expressed as a percentage, determined by dividing the number of correct responses by the total number of responses.
Mood State: Confusion	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher confusion mood.
Subjective Mental Fatigue	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task and after Flanker task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Both in the baseline and post-intervention, the visual analog scale for mental fatigue (VAS-MF) was used to assess changes in subjective mental fatigue before and after experimental manipulation. The scale ranges from 0 (not at all mentally fatigued) to 100 (extremely mentally fatigued).
Mood State: Anger	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher anger mood.
Dispositional Mindfulness	Baseline (pre-test) and 8 weeks (post-test)	The change in dispositional mindfulness was assessed using the 16-item (5-Likert scale) athlete mindfulness questionnaire (AMQ). The mean score range is between 1-5. Higher mean scores indicate a higher level of dispositional mindfulness.
Mood State: Depression	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher depression mood.
Mood State: Fatigue	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher fatigue mood.
Mood State: Tension	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher tension mood.
Mood State: Vigour	Before, after 30-minute Stroop task in the mental fatigue and control condition at pre-test and post-test (8 weeks)	Mood state change was determined by the difference in scores on the Brunel Mood Scale-Chinese (BRUMS-C) between before and after manipulation. The BRUMS-C contains 23 item (5-Likert scale) and is divided into six sub-scales: anger, confusion, depression, fatigue, tension, and vigour. The mean score range is between 0-4. Higher mean scores indicate a higher vigor mood.
Perception of Effort	every 2.5 minutes during graded exercise test	During the graded exercise test, the perception of effort will be asked at beginning and every 2.5-min using Borg 6 to 20 scale, until the participant comes to voluntary exhaustion.