A pilot study investigating changes in neural processing after mindfulness training in elite athletes

Lori Haase · April Chelsea May · Maryam Falahpour · Sara Isakovic · Alan N. Simmons · Steven D. Hickman +2 more

83 citations0/0 files storedFrontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience

No readable copy stored yet — this record is metadata only.

No open-access location is known for this record yet.

Literature note Cite in a project Citation map

Sport Psychology and Performance Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments

Abstract

The ability to pay close attention to the present moment can be a crucial factor for performing well in a competitive situation. Training mindfulness is one approach to potentially improve elite athletes' ability to focus their attention on the present moment. However, virtually nothing is known about whether these types of interventions alter neural systems that are important for optimal performance. This pilot study examined whether an intervention aimed at improving mindfulness [Mindful Performance Enhancement, Awareness and Knowledge (mPEAK)] changes neural activation patterns during an interoceptive challenge. Participants completed a task involving anticipation and experience of loaded breathing during functional magnetic resonance imaging recording. There were five main results following mPEAK training: (1) elite athletes self-reported higher levels of interoceptive awareness and mindfulness and lower levels of alexithymia; (2) greater insula and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) activation during anticipation and post-breathing load conditions; (3) increased ACC activation during the anticipation condition was associated with increased scores on the describing subscale of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire; (4) increased insula activation during the post-load condition was associated with decreases in the Toronto Alexithymia Scale identifying feelings subscale; (5) decreased resting state functional connectivity between the PCC and the right medial frontal cortex and the ACC. Taken together, this pilot study suggests that mPEAK training may lead to increased attention to bodily signals and greater neural processing during the anticipation and recovery from interoceptive perturbations. This association between attention to and processing of interoceptive afferents may result in greater adaptation during stressful situations in elite athletes.

Paper brief

Loading…

Cite this work

Citation unavailable for this work.

BibTeX RIS CSL-JSON

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Citations in this library

Citation map →

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 83 citations exist upstream.

References

2008How do you feel — now? The anterior insula and human awareness 2008Action anticipation and motor resonance in elite basketball players 2007Decision making, impulsivity and time perception 2001Financial time series prediction using least squares support vector machines within the evidence framework 2008Interoceptive awareness in experienced meditators 2014Modifying Resilience Mechanisms in At-Risk Individuals: A Controlled Study of Mindfulness Training in Marines Preparing for Deployment 2013Effortless awareness: using real time neurofeedback to investigate correlates of posterior cingulate cortex activity in meditators' self-report 2009A neuroscience approach to optimizing brain resources for human performance in extreme environments☆

Cited by

2017The Trauma Resiliency Model: A “Bottom-Up” Intervention for Trauma Psychotherapy 2018Mindfulness-based interventions and their effects on emotional clarity: A systematic review and meta-analysis 2017Altered interoceptive activation before, during, and after aversive breathing load in women remitted from anorexia nervosa 2020Mindfulness Training Enhances Endurance Performance and Executive Functions in Athletes: An Event-Related Potential Study

Explore the map →

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.

Imported from OpenAlex (CC0) — nothing here is generated.