Acute and chronic effects of exercise intensity on cognitive functions of fastball athletes

Exercise induced Cognitive Function is an area needed in competitive fast ball sports that has stimulated interests of researchers due to its promising applicability in the field. It was noticed that although previous studies have suggested a role of exercise in facilitating cognitive performance, little is known regarding how to maximize these benefits. The study is undertaken to understand the effects of two types of aerobic training i.e., High Intensity Interval Exercise (HIIE) and Moderate Intensity Continuous Exercise (MCE) on executive function. For the assessment of cognition, after a four-week protocol, the Vienna Test System, a computerized assessment tool developed by Schuhfried GmbH (Moedling, Austria) is used for a defined universe of selected 20 athletes from various fast ball sports such as cricket, football, handball and volleyball. Statistical Analysis of Repeated Measured ANOVA along with post hoc test was done using SPSS version 21. Level of significance was kept at 5% with 95% study power. Collectively three variables, namely Sum of correct reactions, Sum of incorrect reactions and Sum of incorrect non-reactions; revealed improvement in attention, inhibitory function as well as executive function (p < 0.05). For fast ball athletes, the present study is suggestive of including MCE or HIIE programme in their training for 3 sessions/week; in order to optimize the improvement in cognitive level. The study can potentially guide every sports medicine team member, in order to develop an effective exercise protocol to improve the physiological as well as psychological capabilities of the athletes.