Cliffnotes: Just 15 minutes of moderate running produced increases in subjective energy and focus.

Takeways: A short run can go a long way

The main objective of this study was to test whether the effects of acute exercise on cognition were mediated by changes in feelings of energy.

Perceptual speed, visual attentional control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility were assessed pre- and post-intervention in both groups via the Trail Making Test. 

Details on the trail making test

Participants’ speed of processing was evaluated using the Trail Making Test Part A (TMT-A; Reitan & Wolfson, 1985). This test is administered in the form of a A4-size sheet of paper with circled numbers (from 1 to 25) randomly distributed across the page. Participants were instructed to connect numbers in sequential order (i.e., 1, 2, 3, etc.) as fast as possible (without compromising accuracy). Completion time (in seconds) was recorded to the nearest 0.1 s using a digital stopwatch. The TMT-A assesses visual attentional control and perceptual speed (Sanchez-Cubillo et al., 2009).

The Trail Making Test Part B (TMT-B) was also completed. In Part B, both letters (A to L) and numbers (1 to 13) are presented on the paper sheet, and respondents have to draw connecting lines in ascending order while alternating between the numbers and the letters (1, A, 2, B, 3, C, etc.). The TMT-B is a multifaceted test but completion time for this task primarily assesses working memory (Sanchez-Cubillo et al., 2009).

The TMT B-A score (which was calculated as the difference between the TMT-B and the TMT-A completion times) is thought to provide a relatively pure indicator of cognitive flexibility (Sanchez-Cubillo et al., 2009), which is a fundamental component of executive control and refers to one’s ability to efficiently switch between tasks (Cañas, Antoli, Fajardo, & Salmeron, 2005).

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691817301336?via%3Dihub