The Effects of Mental and Physical Fatigue to Force Production in Adults

The primary objective is to investigate the correlation between physical and mental fatigue to lower extremity force production in adults to determine if there is an association of performance output that is inhibited by mental and physical stressors that mimic sport environments that can be further investigated to determine the importance of not only physical training and exercise for athletes, but also mental and cognitive exercises with physical task to enhance performance training and rehabilitation of individuals.

In adults, how does physical and mental fatigue in combination compared to those who are just physically fatigued affect average peak height in performance of five CMJ with hands on hips.

In terms of injury prevention mental or cognitive fatigue and altered biomechanics play a large role in risk of injury or reinjury. This can lead to disturbances in gait, balance or even It is known that there are decreases in rate of force production in a physically fatigued state.

However, this does not show if a mentally fatigued and physically fatigued individual have any negative implications towards a more dynamic and reactive test and conditions that mimic sport more than static balancing or linear walking. It is even noted in reactive times of post ACLr (one of the most common sports related injuries) have lower reactive times in agility test With ACLr having a high level or rate or reinjury on surgical side and nonsurgical side as well as known alterations of the cerebellum and specifically the primary sensory cortex.Understanding how much a mental and physical fatigue can impact reactive cognition and force production can be vital key in not only sports performance and management, but also risk or injury and be associated in the plan of returning an athlete to sport as power and force production is a key determinant of performance in many individual and team sports. It is noted that physical activities directly enhance mental fatigue significantly, but it is widely unresearched objectively how much or when physical fatigue directly impacts mental cognition and decision making properties to an individual. In sport it is crucial to act and react to be able to be successful. Multidirectional and team sports involve constant mental cognition in terms of visual, auditory interpretation and cognition, ability to recognize patterns and to finally physically perform tasks in a highly efficient manner.

The goal of an athlete is to be conditioned to play their best whether that is the first minute of the game or its last. That means making the correct decision and physically performing it. However, in a fatigued state can the athlete properly perform what is needed to be done in a safe and effective manner that is comparable to a not fatigued state.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

Current students at Parker University from the ages of 21 to 65 years for safety concerns Children were not considered for this study Elderly were not considered for this study Current students who are currently physically active at least once a week

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Anyone with who self reports previous history of cardiovascular issues or hospitalizations Rationale: Participants will be doing aerobic/ anaerobic efforts that will increase their heart rate Source: Redcap Questionnaire, Baseline visit
2. Lower extremity surgery within the last two years Rationale: Puts participant more at risk of injury since inducing fatigue and a maximal power effort Source: Redcap Questionnaire, Baseline visit
3. Medical restrictions for full activity Rationale: Puts participant more at risk of injury since inducing fatigue and a maximal power effort Source: Redcap Questionnaire, Baseline visit