Effect of Physical Exercise on Motor Learning Acquired With Physical or Mental Practice

Summary

Motor learning is crucial for human daily routine, involving the acquisition of new movements. It consists of an online acquisition phase followed by offline consolidation, where motor memory is organized into stable representations. Acquisition can be achieved through physical practice (PP, overt repetition of movement) or mental rehearsal using motor imagery (MI). Recent studies suggest that high-intensity interval physical exercise (HIIE) enhances motor learning, particularly during consolidation, by promoting neural plasticity mediated by brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). However, the impact of HIIE on sequential motor consolidation with PP or MI remains poorly understood.

In contrast, sleep deprivation (SD) reduces BDNF release and neural plasticity. Limited research has explored the effects of SD on motor acquisition, especially sequential motor learning. Considering the opposing effects of HIIE and SD, performing HIIE after SD may protect motor consolidation processes.

This study aims to examine the influence of HIIE on sequential motor learning using PP or MI under both sleep-deprived and normal sleep conditions. Six groups, each comprising 12 participants, will learn an 8-item bimanual sequence.

* MI group: acquired the motor sequence mentally during training
* MI+HIIE group: acquired the motor sequence mentally and achieve a HIIE before the consolidation
* PP: acquired the motor sequence physically
* PP+HIIE group: acquired the motor sequence physically and achieve a HIIE before the consolidation
* SD+PP group: one night of sleep deprivation prior physical motor acquisition with PP and consolidation
* SD+PP+HIIE group: one night of sleep deprivation prior physical motor acquisition and HIIE before consolidation.

All groups will be tested on the sequence at the beginning and the end of the acquisition phase (pre- and post-acquisition), and after the physical exercise (i.e. HIIE) or the rest period (post-exercise).

Hypothesis of this study are :

* Acute physical exercise (HIIE) would enhance the consolidation of motor memory (post-exercise) after physical and mental acquisition (PP,MI) compared to conditions without exercise.
* One night of sleep deprivation would affect the acquisition and consolidation of motor learning.

Physical exercise would compensate for the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation on the consolidation of motor learning.

Conditions

• Physical Exercise
• Motor Learning

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Sleep Deprivation (SD)

Participants in the sleep deprivation group will spend a night awake, under the supervision of an investigator, at Croix-Rousse Hospital. The investigator will provide a list of activities to maintain the participant awake.

BEHAVIORAL

Normal Night (Night)

Participants in the normal night group will spend one night sleeping in their own home.

BEHAVIORAL

Physical Exercise (HIIE)

Participants in the physical exercise group (i.e. IM+HIIE, PP+HIIE, SD+PP+HIIE) will start with a 2-minute warm-up on an ergometer cycle. After the warm-up, they will perform 3 minutes of exercise at a workload customized to their maximal aerobic power (MAP) corresponding to 80 % their MAP and then rest actively for 2 minutes at 40 % of MAP. This cycle of 5 minutes will be repeated 3 times in row, resulting in a total of 17 minutes of physical exercise including the warm-up.

BEHAVIORAL

Rest control

Participants will watch a documentary during an equivalent time as the physical exercise (i.e. 17 minutes).

BEHAVIORAL

Motor imagery

On the bimanual finger tapping task composed of 8 elements, the participant will be required to repeat the motor sequence mentally using MI (mental rehearsal of movement) during twelve blocks of 30 seconds. Participant will imagine performing the sequence as fast and accurately as possible without overt movement.

BEHAVIORAL

Physical Practice (PP)

Participants will practice a bimanual sequential finger tapping task composed of 8 movements. Participant will be required to perform the sequence as fast and as accurately as possible during blocs of 30 s (i.e. twelve blocs during training).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Hospices Civils de Lyon

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Maxime PINGON, MD · EFR-Médecine du sport et de l'activité physique, HCL

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

35 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-06-16

Primary Completion

2024-09-20

Completion

2024-09-20

Countries

• France

Study Locations