Acute Effects of Fitlight Training on Cognitive-Motor Processes in Young Basketball Players

Abstract: Cognitive-motor training could be used to improve open-skill sport performances, increasing
cognitive demands to stimulate executive function (EF) development. Nevertheless, a distributed
training proposal for the improvement of EFs is increasingly difficult to combine with seasonal sport
commitments. This study aimed to investigate whether a massed basketball training program enriched
with Fitlight training can improve EFs and motor performance. Forty-nine players (age = 15.0
1.5 yrs) were assigned to the control and Fitlight-trained (FITL) groups, which performed 3 weeks
of massed basketball practice, including 25 min per day of shooting sessions or Fitlight training,
respectively. All athletes were tested in cognitive tasks (Flanker/Reverse Flanker; Digit Span) and
fitness tests (Agility T-test; Yo-Yo IR1). During the intervention, exercise/session perceived effort
(eRPE/sRPE) and enjoyment were collected. RM-ANOVA showed significant EFs scores increased
in both groups over time, without differences between the groups. Moreover, an increased sRPE
and eRPE appeared in the FITL group (p = 0.0001; p = 0.01), with no group differences in activity
enjoyment and fitness tests. Three weeks of massed basketball training improved EFs and motor
performance in young players. The additional Fitlight training increased the perceived cognitive
effort without decreasing enjoyment, even if it seems unable to induce additional improvements
in EFs.