The Impact of Physical Exercise on Working Memory in Elderly People With Mild Cognitive Impairment

Summary

Age-related cognitive decline has evolved into a global public health concern, with deteriorated executive function serving as its predominant manifestation. Working memory, a vital component of executive function, refers to a capacity-limited system that temporarily stores and manipulates information during sophisticated cognitive processes such as language comprehension, learning, and reasoning. It constitutes the core of general cognitive functioning and underpins daily functional performance.

The prefrontal cortex is a pivotal brain region subserving working memory and is highly vulnerable to pathological aging. Advancing age triggers prefrontal cortical atrophy and reduced synaptic density, which in turn induces working memory impairment. Consistently, existing evidence identifies working memory as one of the cognitive domains most susceptible to aging and among the first functions compromised in neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease.

As a non-pharmacological strategy, physical exercise intervention has been validated to exert favorable effects on cognitive improvement. Both aerobic and resistance training effectively ameliorate working memory; nevertheless, head-to-head evidence comparing their intervention efficacy among older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) remains scarce, particularly regarding underlying neurophysiological mechanisms. This study aims to explore the impacts of physical training on working memory in older women living with MCI.

Accordingly, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of both a single exercise session and a 12-week intervention on upper- and lower-limb muscle strength and working memory in older women with MCI. In addition, we sought to examine the statistical associations between changes in muscle strength and working memory, with particular attention to the potential mediating role of muscle strength changes. Previous studies have suggested that interventions targeting muscle strength and physical function in middle-aged and older adults are commonly implemented over 12-52 weeks at a frequency of two to three sessions per week, whereas exercise interventions targeting cognitive function in older adults are often conducted over 12-24 weeks at a similar frequency. Based on this evidence, together with feasibility considerations in residential care settings, we adopted a 12-week intervention delivered three times per week. This study contributes to the literature by integrating both acute and chronic effects within a single randomized controlled framework and by exploring the muscle strength-cognition pathway as a potential explanatory mechanism for exercise-related cognitive benefits.

Conditions

• Mild Cognitive Impairment

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Resistance band exercise intervention

Perform resistance training using Thera-Band resistance bands. Warm up for 5 minutes; proceed to the main workout, which consists of 10 exercises. Perform 2 sets of each exercise, with 8 to 12 repetitions per set, resting for 1 minute between sets. The session lasts approximately 25 to 30 minutes; finish with a cool-down and stretching.

BEHAVIORAL

Brisk walking intervention

Warm up for 5 minutes, then walk briskly for 25 to 30 minutes once you reach your target heart rate for moderate intensity (65%-75% of HRmax); finish with a cool-down.

BEHAVIORAL

Eight-Section brocade exercise intervention

A 5-minute warm-up and stretching session; followed by two sets of the 'Eight Brocades' fitness qigong routine compiled by the General Administration of Sport, lasting approximately 24 minutes in total; and finally, a cool-down and relaxation session.

BEHAVIORAL

Control

Maintain current routine.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Shanghai University of Sport

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Xing Wang · Shanghai University of Sport

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Max Age

95 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-03-04

Primary Completion

2026-08-31

Completion

2026-08-31

Countries

• China

Study Locations