The Effects of Physical Conditioning on Mental Performance

Abstract

This study was designed to determine the effects ofan aerobic physical conditioning program on the ability to perform selected mental performance tasks by normal healthy adults. Subjects were volunteers working as junior house staff at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. All subjects underwent a maximal graded exercise test to determine maximal oxygen consumption (V02max), an objective measure of aerobic fitness. The subjects then completed ten sessions of a mental Performance Assessment Battery ("PAB") which included both single and double-digit addition, a logical reasoning task, and a spatial pattern recognition task. The ten testing sessions were administered at randomized times of the day to allow separation of learning effects from time of day effects.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 04, 1984
Accession Number
AD1010707

Entities

People

  • Timothy J. Gawne

Organizations

  • Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Blood
  • Body Temperature
  • Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena
  • Cardiovascular System
  • Chemistry
  • Circadian Rhythms
  • Health Services
  • Heart Rate
  • Information Science
  • Medical Personnel
  • Motor Skills
  • Pattern Recognition
  • Performance Tests
  • Psychology
  • Psychophysiology
  • Therapy

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

  • Circadian Sleep-Wake Regulation and Chronobiology
  • Instructional Design and Training Evaluation.
  • Psychological Intervention/Treatment for Stress, Anxiety, PTSD, and Related Emotional and Cognitive Health Symptoms.

Technology Areas

  • AI & ML