Poster Presentation

Paper ID : 1233-SSRC

Huanggang Normal University,Hubei,China

Cognitive functions are very important in life. Each of the components of cognitive functions is influential in people's lives in different ways. These functions decrease with age, so maintaining them is important. One of the ways to maintain these functions is exercise. For this purpose, the present study was conducted in order to identify the possible difference in the effect of aerobic exercise on cognitive functions. For this purpose, 40 male badminton player in old age 40-60 years were randomly divided into two aerobic and control groups. The training program included 24 sessions, and each session was held for one hour. During this time, the control group only did their daily activities. Aerobic protocol with an intensity of 70-85% of maximum heart rate on a treadmill. After the implementation of the training protocol, cognitive measurements were performed on the subjects, including working memory performance through the n-Back test, visual attention through the trail making test, and cognitive flexibility through the CFI questionnaire. Data analysis was done with dependent t test and analysis of covariance at the significance level of p<0.05. The results show cognitive functions of working memory, visual attention and cognitive flexibility are significant in experimental group from pre-test to post-test, significant difference was found between the effect of resistance and aerobic exercise programs between control and experimental group in post test. Participants in this study trained for 8 weeks. The results of this research showed that aerobic activities can have a positive effect on the cognitive functions of the old people, so aerobic activities are recommended for the old people. Most of the studies in this field have investigated the effect of acute and short-term activity on cognitive functions, it is suggested that future research should be conducted with longer intervention duration.

Aerobic exercises; Working memory; Visual Attention; cognitive flexibility