Temporal Dynamics of Cognitive Change following Acute Aerobic Physical Activity in Emerging Adults

Existing research underscores the positive influence of acute physical activity (PA) on cognition, including executive functions and episodic memory. However, it remains unclear whether the timing of assessment influences the extent and the patterns of cognitive improvements following acute PA, particularly in emerging adults. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of acute PA across different cognitive domains (episodic memory, working memory, and inhibitory control) at different time windows in emerging adults. Using a within-participants cross-over design, thirty emerging adults ( n  = 30; 22.4  ±  1.6 years; 21 females) visited the lab on two separate days engaging in either 30-minutes of moderate-intensity PA or seated rest. Participants completed a battery of cognitive tasks at pre- and post-acute PA and seated rest including a word recognition task (encoding phase completed 5–8 minutes post PA and rest; recall phase completed 29–33 minutes post PA and rest), a change detection dot task (completed 9–28 minutes post PA and rest), and a modified flanker task (34–38 minutes post PA and rest). Results revealed improved memory recall performance, specifically for primacy and recency accuracy. However, results for the change detection and the flanker task revealed no change after acute PA compared to seated rest. Together, these results reveal temporal specific effects and suggest that the timing of cognitive assessment following is critical for capturing cognitive benefits of acute PA, especially in emerging adults.