Results concerning the association of chronic physical activity and motor performance are mixed and seem to be influenced by the study design , kind of exercise , motor task , and exercise intensity .
Regarding motor learning , a high physical activity or cardiovascular fitness level seems to boost the initial phase of motor learning ; results differ with respect to motor retention .
Overall , ( motor-coordinative ) intervention studies seem to be more promising than cross-sectional studies
Upper extremity motor performance declines with increasing age .
However , older adults need to maintain , learn new and relearn known motor tasks .
Research with young adults indicated that regular and acute physical activity might facilitate motor performance and motor learning processes .
Therefore , this review aim ed to examine the association between chronic physical activity and acute bouts of exercise on motor performance and motor learning in upper extremity motor tasks in older adults .
High impact running improves learning
Regular physical exercise improves cognitive functions and lowers the risk for  age-related cognitive decline .  Since little is known about the nature and the timing of the underlying mechanisms , we probed whether exercise also has immediate beneficial effects on cognition . Learning performance was assessed directly after high impact anaerobic sprints , low impact aerobic running , or a period of rest in 27 healthy subjects in a r and omized cross-over design . Dependent variables comprised learning speed as well as immediate ( 1 week ) and long-term ( > 8 months ) overall success in acquiring a novel vocabulary . Peripheral levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor ( BDNF ) and catecholamines ( dopamine , epinephrine , norepinephrine ) were assessed prior to and after the interventions as well as after learning . We found that vocabulary learning was 20 percent faster after intense physical exercise as compared to the other two conditions . This condition also elicited the strongest increases in BDNF and catecholamine levels . More sustained BDNF levels during learning after intense exercise were related to better short-term learning success , whereas absolute dopamine and epinephrine levels were related to better intermediate ( dopamine ) and long-term ( epinephrine ) retentions of the novel vocabulary . Thus , BDNF and two of the catecholamines seem to be mediators by which physical exercise improves learning
Results concerning the association of chronic physical activity and motor performance are mixed and seem to be influenced by the study design , kind of exercise , motor task , and exercise intensity .
Regarding motor learning , a high physical activity or cardiovascular fitness level seems to boost the initial phase of motor learning ; results differ with respect to motor retention .
Overall , ( motor-coordinative ) intervention studies seem to be more promising than cross-sectional studies
Upper extremity motor performance declines with increasing age .
However , older adults need to maintain , learn new and relearn known motor tasks .
Research with young adults indicated that regular and acute physical activity might facilitate motor performance and motor learning processes .
Therefore , this review aim ed to examine the association between chronic physical activity and acute bouts of exercise on motor performance and motor learning in upper extremity motor tasks in older adults .