The Effect Of An Acute Bout Of Exercise On Movement Time

Abstract

Movement time (MT) is one of the most important variables influencing the way we control our movements. A few previous studies have generally found that MT improves with reaction time testing during exercise. However, limited evidence exists concerning change in MT following an acute bout of exercise. PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of an acute bout of aerobic exercise on movement time and index of difficulty (ID) as assessed by a Fitts’ Law task. METHODS: Twelve male and seven female volunteers (19-28 yrs) completed a computerized Fitts’ Law task before and after two interventions, rest (R) and exercise (E) using a within subjects crossover design. Prior to and following each intervention, participants completed two consecutive blocks of 40 Fitts’ trials, where E1-2 and E3-4 represent pre and post exercise blocks of trials and R1-R2 and R3-R4 represent pre and post rest blocks of trials respectively. The acute bout of exercise consisted of walking or jogging at 65% of each participant’s maximal aerobic capacity for 30 minutes. During rest, participants were allowed to read or listen to music for 30 minutes. Time between interventions was approximately seven days. Statistical analysis was performed using a three factor (intervention, pre-post, ID) repeated measures ANOVA. RESULTS: No statistically significant difference in MT was found between the first pre-rest block of trials (R1) compared to the first pre-exercise block of trials (E1). Exercise significantly improved MT compared to rest when comparing block 1 to block 4, P = 0.010, η2p= .314. Movement time improved by an average of 208 ± 128 ms following exercise compared to 108 ±173 ms following rest. There was no interaction between task difficulty as measured by ID and intervention. CONCLUSION: An acute bout of aerobic exercise improved MT compared to rest using a Fitts’ Law task. Exercise appeared to improve MT across all levels of task difficulty as assessed by ID. These results suggest that aerobic exercise exerts a large effect size in influencing an important component of motor control, although further studies are required to determine the duration of the effect.