Effects of complex whole-body movements on EEG activity: a scoping review

The influence of movements on brain activity has been part of research for decades. Recent advancements in electroencephalography (EEG) coupled with a shift in focus towards the effects of complex whole-body movements provided additional inspirations in this area. Besides the metabolic load, the amount of information to be processed in parallel provides rough indications of its influence on central nervous activity. Accordingly, this scoping review aimed to synthesize studies investigating the acute effects of complex whole-body movements with increased parallel information processing on electrical brain activity. A comprehensive search across five scientific databases resulted in thirteen studies meeting the inclusion criteria. The results showed increased theta and alpha activity in frontal, central and parietal areas in most studies during and after movement. However, in other frequency bands the findings were not consistent. Comparisons between complex movements with varying parallel demands revealed a trend towards higher theta for movements with more parallel actions. Based on a consistent EEG methodology, future research should consider movement complexity not only related to the length of sequences but rather in terms of parallel motor activities as a moderator of brain activity to obtain more consistent results in the context of neural effects of movement exercise.