Cited by 119Physical Activity and HealthCognitive Functions and MemoryBehavioral Health and Interventions

Improvements to executive function during exercise training predict maintenance of physical activity over the following year

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Best, John R., Nagamatsu, Lindsay S., Liu-Ambrose, Teresa·2014·Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that exercise training benefits cognitive, neural, and physical health markers in older adults. It is likely that these positive effects will diminish if participants return to sedentary lifestyles following training cessation. Theory posits that that the neurocognitive processes underlying self-regulation, namely executive function (EF), are important to maintaining positive health behaviors. Therefore, we examined whether better EF performance in older women would predict greater adherence to routine physical activity (PA) over 1 year following a 12-month resistance exercise training randomized controlled trial. The study sample consisted of 125 community-dwelling women aged 65-75 years old. Our primary outcome measure was self-reported PA, as measured by the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE), assessed on a monthly basis from month 13 to month 25. Executive function was assessed using the Stroop Test at baseline (month 0) and post-training (month 12). Latent growth curve analyses showed that, on average, PA decreased during the follow-up period but at a decelerating rate. Women who made greater improvements to EF during the training period showed better adherence to PA during the 1-year follow-up period (β = -0.36, p < 0.05); this association was unmitigated by the addition of covariates (β = -0.44, p < 0.05). As expected, EF did not predict changes in PA during the training period (p > 0.10). Overall, these findings suggest that improving EF plays an important role in whether older women maintain higher levels of PA following exercise training and that this association is only apparent after training when environmental support for PA is low.

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  • Poorer cognitive control is a robust predictor of inadequate PA maintenance.

    “Notably, poorer cognitive control is also a robust predictor of inadequate PA maintenance (28, 93), suggesting that poorer cognitive control is likely to present barriers both for initial acquisition of self-regulatory skills for PA engagement and utilization of these skills for maintenance over time.”

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Authors
Best, J. R., Nagamatsu, L. S., & Liu-Ambrose, T.
Affiliations
University of British Columbia (CA)
Corresponding author
Liu-Ambrose, Teresa
Venue
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Published
2014-05-27
Volume
8
Pages
353-353
ISSN
1662-5161 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2010988458
Cited by
119
References
45
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 4
FWCI
7.76
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
  • Vancouver Foundation
  • Michael Smith Health Research BC
  • University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  • Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Functions and Memory
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
Keywords
executive function, physical activity adherence, resistance training, older women, self-regulation, Stroop task, Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, detraining, sedentary lifestyle, cognitive aging

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