Physical Exercise and Cognitive Enhancement
Henning Budde, Mirko Wegner in The Exercise Effect on Mental Health, 2018
This chapter reviews the evidence for the effect of physical exercise on cognition and the brain, discusses current trends of work exploring the potential of physical exercise – and particularly of complex motor activities – to enhance cognition and to remediate learning difficulties, and suggests promising directions for future research. Neurological conditions such as autism, attention deficit/hyperactive disorder, schizophrenia, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease all appear to be worsened by poor physical fitness, and to benefit from exercise interventions. Most of the neurobiological correlates of exercise-induced cognitive enhancement are well understood. In particular, the embodied cognition framework argues that the motor system is involved in most of our actions, and that motor processes influence cognitive function drastically. Situations that favor multi-sensory integration of motor and cognitive demands in the classroom should therefore be encouraged. The implementation of original pedagogical situations requires creativity, willingness, and effort, but can have tremendous impact on children's experience in the classroom.
Physical Activity, Exercise, and Stress
James H Humphrey in Childhood Stress in Contemporary Society, 2004
When used in connection with the human organism, the term physical means a concern for the body and its needs. The term activity derives from the word “active,” one meaning of which is the requirement of action. Thus, when the two words physical and activity are used together, the term implies body action. This is a broad term and could include any voluntary and/or involuntary body movement. When such body movement is practiced for the purpose of developing and maintaining physical fitness, it is ordinarily referred to as physical exercise. This chapter discusses both the broad area of physical activity and the more specific area of physical exercise, and takes into account how these factors are concerned with health and how they relate to stress.
The somatic self of some beefy and slim-muscular Japanese men
Genaro Castro-Vázquez in Masculinity and Body Weight in Japan, 2020
This chapter offers a reading of the embodied and embodying practices of the self of a group of Japanese men who have persistently tried to produce a somatic self that revolves around increasing muscle tissue and reducing body fat. It highlights, however, how the men are able to produce interpersonal and intrapsychic scripts to subvert structural limitations that prevent the realisation of a muscular somatic self. Official strategies and media reports concerning the aggravation of diseases related to obesity, and overweight have chiefly contributed to the social visibility of the somatic self of middle-aged men in contemporary Japan. The chapter explores the embodied and embodying practices of the self of a group of Japanese men fully engaged in producing a muscular subjectivity through specific practices that revolved around diets and physical exercise routines. It concludes by exploring the emotions embedded in the embodying and embodied practices of the Japanese men.
Predicting physical exercise changes in Chinese rural adolescents: the application of the health action process approach model
Published in Psychology, Health & Medicine, 2020
Huanyu Xu, Chang Su, Yuanyi Ji, Fei Yin, Yang Yang, Shujuan Yang, Ying Xu, Huan Zhou, Junmin Zhou, Xiao Ma, Qiaolan Liu
ABSTRACT The purposes of the current study were to explore the applicability of the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) model for interpreting changes in physical exercise behavior and to examine the key determinants of changes in physical exercise. The participants were 639 rural middle school students in Sichuan province, China, who did not perform physical exercise. Three surveys and two interventions were completed in the same participants within 1.5 years. The HAPA model elements and physical exercise were estimated by a self-reported questionnaire. The results showed that 158 students (24.7%) formed a habit of physical exercise. The structural equation model for the pre-intention stage and behavior stage showed acceptable goodness of fit. Outcome expectancies (β=0.136, P=0.014) and action self-efficacy (β=0.314, P=0.001) directly predicted intention of physical exercise, the latter directly predicted physical exerciseplanning (β=0.537, P<0.001), andplanning subsequently predicted physical exercise (β=0.324, P<0.001). Maintenance self-efficacy indirectly predicted physical exercise through planning (95%CI: 0.014, 0.053). The findings suggested that the HAPA model was a very useful tool for predicting changes in physical exercise behavior, as this model explains the process of changing physical exercise habits and reveals the weak link in such behavioral changes among Chinese rural adolescents.
The effectiveness of general physical exercise for individuals with chronic neck pain: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials
Published in European Journal of Physiotherapy, 2020
Rutger M. J. de Zoete, Lauren Brown, Katie Oliveira, Liam Penglaze, Rachelle Rex, Bronte Sawtell, Tegan Sullivan
Purpose: To investigate the effectiveness of general, whole-body, physical exercise interventions compared to usual care for individuals with chronic neck pain. Materials and methods: Systematic review of randomised controlled trials. Electronic databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PEDro were searched. Data were extracted using a standardised data extraction table. Methodological quality was determined using the Cochrane Handbook risk of bias assessment tool. Results: A total of 1601 unique records were identified and screened independently for eligibility by two reviewers. Nine randomised controlled trials were included in the review, reporting three types of physical exercise: individualised physical exercise, yoga and Pilates, and Tai Chi and Qigong. Overall, interventions utilising these modes of exercise delivery demonstrated significant improvements in neck pain intensity and neck disability. Conclusions: Despite currently limited evidence being available on the effectiveness of general physical exercise in individuals with chronic neck pain, this systematic review identified nine studies that support the use of physical exercise. All studies found improvements in pain outcomes, and six studies found physical exercise to be more successful than usual care interventions. Further evidence is needed to confirm the effectiveness of physical exercise interventions with long-term follow-up periods.
Older adults’ physical exercise and health-related quality of life: The mediating role of physical self-concept
Published in Educational Gerontology, 2018
ABSTRACT Building on previous self-concept and current physical self-concept (PSC) theories, this paper presents empirical results demonstrating the triad relationship among physical exercise, PSC, and quality of life (QoL) in older adults. Specifically, the results show how PSC mediates the relationship between physical exercise and health-related quality of life (HQoL). A total of 152 older adults participated in this study, completing the Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire, Physical Self-Concept Scale for Older Adults, and 12-Item Short-Form Survey. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to test the mediating effects. Older adults’ physical exercise, PSC, and QoL were all correlated. The components of older adults’ PSC (strength, flexibility, and independent functioning) fully mediated the relationship between physical exercise and the physical as well as mental aspects of HQoL. This study thus suggests that PSC plays an important explanatory role in the effect of older adults’ physical exercise on their QoL. Health-care professionals may use various strategies to enhance older adults’ self-perception during physical exercise in order to promote their global well-being.
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