The acute effects of yoga and high intensity interval training on cognition

Background: Although there is growing evidence for the impact of exercise on cognition, a disproportionately higher amount of literature exists in the field of aerobic exercise. Despite the well-established positive effects of yoga on brain health and cognition, it remains one of the more understudied modalities of exercise. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the immediate and delayed effects of yoga and high intensity interval training (HIIT) on cognitive performance. Methods: 52 participants (M age: 25.38) completed 5 appointments: baseline and 4 counterbalanced exercise visits where they performed 20 minutes of either Yoga or HIIT, followed by a 5- or 20-minute rest period. Participants then completed three cognitive tasks - flanker, Sternberg, and word recall. Results: Superior cognitive performance was noted after both the yoga conditions for flanker task. For Sternberg task, reaction time was faster after all exercise conditions. Surprisingly, cognitive outcomes after both the HIIT conditions were comparable to the baseline cognitive performance. Significantly higher number of words were recalled five minutes after the yoga condition. Conclusion: We offer promising evidence which supports both immediate and delayed beneficial effects of yoga on inhibitory control and memory when compared to HIIT. Future research should examine the physiological underpinnings of this acute yoga-cognition relationship.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Kinesiology

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2023

Author dc:creator

• Malani, Revati Nandkishor

Contributors dc:contributor

• Gothe, Neha P

• Yoga
• Hiit
• Cognition

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2023 Revati Malani

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/120341

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F120341