Although playing active sports such as video games or chess doesn’t require physical fitness, a new documentary has established that exercising can enhance the performance levels of players. According to scientists, working out will help in boosting the brain’s ability to work, thus increasing players’ scores.
Physical activity can enhance brain performance
In order to study the relationship between physical activity and brain performance, researchers tracked 77 mentally active e-sports and chess (competitive gaming) players from 21 different nations. At the same time, they went through a training plan. As a result, the study discovered that after 4 months, their brains had “considerably sharpened,” and improved their ability to execute.
The cognitive ability of the players rose by a mean of 10%, with problem-solving skills increasing by 9%, short attention span by 12%, and computational power and alertness increasing by 10%. Sportswear company ASICS hired Andrew Kastor, the study’s “head coach,” to create the training plans for the players.
Kastor said that the results were astonishing and demonstrated the power of physical activity. he explained that several participants couldn’t run for more than one minute at the beginning of the trial. Thus their exercise regimens were moderate. Although 150 minutes per week seems like a lot, it might be divided into five sessions of 30 minutes. The psychological advantages of exercising are available to everyone, regardless of fitness level.
Exercise increases the concentration and awareness of gamers
During the study, the subjects went from doing less than 30 minutes of physical activity to 150 minutes focusing on strength training and cardio. In addition, the researchers used a battery of computerized mental assessments and cognitive tests to gauge how an exercise program affected long-term and short-term memory awareness, planning abilities, and concentration levels.
The international gaming ratings of the participants rose by 75%, while their confidence levels were up by 44%. On the other hand, concentration improved by 33%, while anxiety dropped by 43%. Besides showing that exercise improves gaming abilities and cognitive function, it also shows that it can uplift mental well-being.
