Participation in sport competition is at an all time high. Whether professional, amateur, or recreational, there is no absence of opportunities to compete and perform. Accompanying this trend is the enthusiastic exploration into performance enhancement. Coaches, athletes and researchers alike are investigating different methods to enhance athletic performance. Though much is to be gained from the physical aspect of performance, strength, power, speed, there is even more growth potential when we tap into the mind.
While interest in Meditation practices and Mindfulness Training is an emerging trend, Neuroscience Research is exploring the application of Neuro Cognitive training to optimize Sport Performance.
One of the leading researchers in Neuro Cognitive Training and Sport Performance is Dr. Samuele Marcora, from the University of Kent. In 2009, Dr. Marcora identified that Mental Fatigue decreases an athletes time to exhaustion and limits an athletes’s exercise tolerance as a result of heightened perceived exertion (RPE).
Since 2009, over 30 additional studies specifically focused on Mental Fatigue (MF), Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) and Sports Performance, have been published. Though the methodology and demographics of the research varied, common conclusions were found, Mental Fatigue:
Deteriorates athletic performance
Increases the incidence of mental mistakes
Accelerates fatigue
Reduces technical skill dexterity
Inspired by the data collected from these studies, a renewed interest in the area of Brain Endurance Training (BET) has emerged. BET is not “mindset” training; it’s not visualization or meditation. BET is the deliberate application of cognitive training loads to induce mental fatigue. Not unlike training to push the Lactate Threshold to extend cardiovascular endurance, BET seeks to push the cognitive fatigue threshold to extend mental endurance. This is accomplished, overtime, through consistent, programmed neuro cognitive training.
An interesting training adaptation of BET is that pushing the cognitive fatigue threshold simultaneously pushes the physical fatigue threshold. In other words, as you build mental stamina, you also build physical stamina.
Additionally, the benefits of BET is not limited to Sports Performance, it permeates into other areas of life. Research demonstrates such favorable training adaptations as:
Reduction in mental errors
Expedited decision making skills
Prolonged focus
Heightened awareness
The advancements made by Neuroscientists support the inclusion of Neuro Cognitive training to enhance athletic performance. And as any dedicated athlete can attest; efforts extended toward your sport, often diffuses into other aspects of life. As we push the mental capacity of our minds, we, by proxy, expand the capacity for high performance; in sport and in life.
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