Acute Effects of Moderate Aerobic Exercise On Specific Aspects of Executive Function in Different Age and Fitness Groups: A Meta-Analysis

Psychophysiology, 00 (2016), 0000. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Printed in the USA.
C 2016 Society for Psychophysiological Research

Copyright V
DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12736
REVIEW
Acute effects of moderate aerobic exercise on specific aspects

of executive function in different age and fitness groups:
A meta-analysis
SEBASTIAN LUDYGA,a MARKUS GERBER,a SERGE BRAND,a,b EDITH HOLSBOER-TRACHSLER,b

a
UWE PUHSE
a
AND
Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, Sport Science Section, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Psychiatric Clinics of the University of Basel, Center for Affective, Stress and Sleep Disorders, Basel, Switzerland
Abstract
Whereas a wealth of studies have investigated acute effects of moderate aerobic exercise on executive function, the
roles of age, fitness, and the component of executive function in this relationship still remain unclear. Therefore, the
present meta-analysis investigates exercise-induced benefits on specific aspects of executive function in different age
and aerobic fitness subgroups. Based on data from 40 experimental studies, a small effect of aerobic exercise on timedependent measures (g 5 .35) and accuracy (g 5 .22) in executive function tasks was confirmed. The results further
suggest that preadolescent children (g 5 .54) and older adults (g 5 .67) compared to other age groups benefit more
from aerobic exercise when reaction time is considered as dependent variable. In contrast to age, aerobic fitness and
the executive function component had no influence on the obtained effect sizes. Consequently, high aerobic fitness is
no prerequisite for temporary improvements of the executive control system, and low- as well as high-fit individuals
seem to benefit from exercise in a similar way. However, a higher sensitivity of executive function to acute aerobic
exercise was found in individuals undergoing developmental changes. Therefore, preadolescent children and older
adults in particular might strategically use a single aerobic exercise session to prepare for a situation demanding high
executive control.
Descriptors: Cognitive performance, Physical activity, Structured review, Inhibitory control, Brain plasticity
temporarily be altered by a single exercise session (Chang, Labban,

Gapin, & Etnier, 2012; Verburgh, Konigs, Scherder, & Oosterlaan,
2014). Among different exercise modes, aerobic activity in particular has come to the fore, because it is suggested to create a nutritive
environment by a favorable facilitation of cortical activity, hemodynamics, and metabolism at moderate intensity (Kashihara,
Maruyama, Murota, & Nakahara, 2009; Ludyga, Hottenrott, &
Gronwald, 2015; Secher, Seifert, & Van Lieshout, 2008).
Previous studies have reported improved performance on a variety of cognitive task categories, including attention, information
processing, memory, and executive function, after a single bout of
aerobic exercise (Audiffren, Tomporowski, & Zagrodnik, 2008;
Coles & Tomporowski, 2008; Hillman et al., 2009). However, the
positive influence of acute exercise on executive function in particular has been replicated several times (Verburgh et al., 2014). Such
benefits on higher order cognitive processes are highly desirable,
because executive functions cover cognitive processes responsible
for organizing and controlling goal-directed behavior, especially in
nonroutine situations (Banich, 2009). In this respect, aerobic exercise is considered as an efficient strategy to positively influence
executive control during (McMorris & Hale, 2012) and after
Aerobic Exercise and Brain Plasticity

The brain is considered to be one of the most adaptable structures
found in the human organism. Brain plasticity refers to its capacity
for morphological and functional changes, which have an impact
on cognition and behavior (Park & Friston, 2013). As the range of
brain plasticity depends on experience (Feldman, 2009), specific
external stimuli may be used to elicit favorable changes of brain
function and structure. Taking advantage of this sensitivity to experiences, scientists of different research fields have investigated the
potential of physical activity for producing multiple and dissociable
changes in the brain (Erickson, Hillman, & Kramer, 2015). With
regard to brain function, especially cognitive abilities have been
targets of previous studies as evidence suggests that they can
The authors thank Flora Colledge (University of Basel, Department of

Sport, Exercise and Health, Switzerland) for proofreading the
manuscript.
Address correspondence to: Dr. Sebastian Ludyga, Department of
Sport, Exercise and Health, Sport Science Section, University of Basel,
Birsstrasse 320 B, CH-4052 Basel, Switzerland. E-mail: sebastian.
ludyga@unibas.ch
1
S. Ludyga et al.
2
exercise (Chang et al., 2012). Findings from experimental studies
investigating executive function 20 to 60 min postexercise further
suggest that benefits are maintained at least temporarily after the
cessation of aerobic exercise (Barella, Etnier, & Chang, 2010;
Chen, Yan, Yin, Pan, & Chang, 2014; Hillman et al., 2009; Joyce,
Graydon, McMorris, & Davranche, 2009). Consequently, acute
benefits of exercise may be useful to prepare for situations demanding high executive control (e.g., complex tasks in everyday work or
important examinations in educational settings). The present
review and meta-analysis will therefore focus on transient changes
in participants performance on executive function tasks after a single aerobic exercise session.
Executive Function Component
Executive functions have been frequently used targets for exercise
interventions, because they are relevant to many aspects of life,
including mental and physical health (Miller, Barnes, & Beaver,
2011; Taylor et al., 2007), success in school and later life (Bailey,
2007; Borella, Carretti, & Pelegrina, 2010), as well as social, cognitive, and psychological development (Diamond, 2009). Due to
the multidimensionality of executive function, there are many different viewpoints on the basic cognitive abilities and functions
underlying this construct. Nonetheless, inhibition, updating of
working memory, as well as task switching are consistently
reported to be foundational components of executive function
(Alvarez & Emory, 2006; Pennington & Ozonoff, 1996).
Depending on the nature of the task, these components are
employed differently, but they share some common underlying processes (Diamond, 2013). Etnier and Chang (2009) suggest that the
sensitivity to aerobic exercise differs between the core components
of executive function. However, the majority of previous studies
addressed acute effects of aerobic exercise on inhibitory control
with the result that temporary improvements of this subcomponent
after a single exercise bout were replicated several times (Verburgh
et al., 2014). In contrast, changes in shifting and working memory
in response to an aerobic exercise session of similar intensity were
less frequently reported (Coles & Tomporowski, 2008; Li et al.,
2014; Pontifex, Hillman, Fernhall, Thompson, & Valentini, 2009).
This heterogeneity might also be due to a limited comparability
between studies, because only few authors have examined
exercise-induced benefits on more than one core component of
executive function (Chen et al., 2014; Gothe, Pontifex, Hillman, &
McAuley, 2013; Jager, Schmidt, Conzelmann, & Roebers, 2014; Li
et al., 2014). Consequently, meta-analytical techniques are necessary to advance our understanding of the specific influence of exercise on different subcomponents of executive function.
Executive Function and Age
Previous studies have found that the influence of exercise on higher
order cognitive functions is affected by ceiling effects, so that participants with low performance on executive function tasks can
expect the greatest benefits from a single aerobic exercise session
(Drollette et al., 2014; Sibley & Beilock, 2007). Executive functioning is known to differ between age groups as there are improvements from childhood into adolescence (Zelazo & Miller, 2002),
followed by a decline from early to late adulthood (Mayr, Spieler,
& Kliegl, 2001). This specific development of executive functioning across the life span resembles an inverted U-shaped curve
(Bedard et al., 2002; Cepeda, Kramer, & Gonzalez de Sather,
2001; Zelazo, Craik, & Booth, 2004), which indicates lower performance on executive function tasks in children and older adults
compared to young adults. Given that low performers benefit most
from aerobic exercise (Drollette et al., 2014; Sibley & Beilock,
2007), it remains to be elucidated whether or not acute exercise
elicits greater benefits on executive control in participants undergoing developmental changes in either direction.
It is well known that the brains capability to adapt to contextual
and experiential influences is maintained throughout life (Li,
Brehmer, Shing, Werkle-Bergner, & Lindenberger, 2006), but the
role of age in exercise-induced changes in executive control
remains unclear. However, improvements in this cognitive domain
after a single aerobic exercise session are consistently found in
children (Hillman, Kamijo, & Scudder, 2011; Tomporowski, 2003;
Verburgh et al., 2014) and older adults (Alves et al., 2012; Barella
et al., 2010; Hyodo et al., 2012), whereas a lack of changes in reaction time or accuracy on executive function tasks is more frequently reported in studies with young adults (Gothe et al., 2013; Li
et al., 2014; Themanson & Hillman, 2006; Wang et al., 2015).
Although it cannot be ruled out that this observation is due to publication bias, the results of a recent meta-analysis support the moderating effect of age on the effects of acute exercise on cognition
(Chang et al., 2012). The authors reported that young adolescents
in particular and older adults improved more on cognitive tasks
than other age groups. In contrast, Verburgh et al. (2014) found no
age-related differences in effect size after summarizing the results
of 19 studies investigating acute benefits of exercise on executive
function in children, adolescents, and young adults. However, the
comparability of these contrasting meta-analytical findings is limited, because they had different inclusion criteria and hence are
reporting summary statistics from different bodies of evidence.
One way to extend our understanding of how age moderates the
effects of acute exercise on cognition is to meta-analytically review
the evidence on a specific cognitive outcome across a wide range
of age groups.
Executive Function and Aerobic Fitness
Similar to age, aerobic fitness is suggested to have an impact on
executive function in healthy children, and young and older adults
(Chaddock, Pontifex, Hillman, & Kramer, 2011; McAuley,
Kramer, & Colcombe, 2004). In this respect, cross-sectional studies
consistently found that higher aerobic fitness is related to greater
performance on a variety of executive control tasks (Hillman,
Castelli, & Buck, 2005; Huang et al., 2015). Some researchers also
suggest that aerobic fitness has greater influence on behavioral and
neuroelectric indices of cognitive performance than an acute bout
of aerobic exercise (Stroth et al., 2009; Themanson & Hillman,
2006). Knowing that ceiling effects can affect exercise-induced
benefits on executive function (Drollette et al., 2014; Sibley &
Beilock, 2007), participants with low aerobic fitness and low cognitive performance might benefit more from exercise than their
high-fit peers. So far, only a few studies have addressed the possible moderating role of aerobic fitness on the effects of acute aerobic exercise on higher cognitive functions. Hogan et al. (2013)
reported slower reaction time, but higher accuracy on executive
function tasks after exercise in unfit compared to fit children. The
results of Chang, Chu, Wang, Wang et al. (2015) also support a
moderating role of fitness, because old adults with high fitness
showed greater improvements in executive function after exercise
than their age-related, unfit peers. In contrast, the results of a previous meta-analysis do not confirm that higher order cognitive
Moderate exercise and executive function
functions assessed after an acute bout of aerobic exercise are influenced by the participants fitness level (Chang et al., 2012). This
heterogeneity among the studies warrants further investigation of
the role of fitness in the interaction of acute exercise and executive
function.
moderate intensity being most beneficial to higher order cognitive

function (McMorris & Hale, 2012). Therefore, focusing on moderate aerobic exercise allows the reduction of heterogeneity of effect
sizes for the present meta-analytical comparison, so that other moderators can be examined with less interference.
Executive Function and Exercise Intensity
Limitations of Previous Meta-Analyses
The body of evidence suggests that exercise intensity influences

the magnitude of possible acute cognitive benefits (Lambourne &
Tomporowski, 2010). Similar to the arousal-performance interaction theory (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908), exercise intensity is suggested to influence cognitive performance in an inverted-U effect
(Brisswalter, Collardeau, & Ren, 2002). This theory is supported
by a recent meta-analysis showing that moderate aerobic exercise
elicits greater improvements of cognitive performance than exercise at light or heavy intensity (McMorris & Hale, 2012).
Moreover, this dose-response relationship was not altered by the
timing of cognitive testing, so that similar effect sizes were
obtained for both measurements during and immediately following
exercise. Experimental studies provide further evidence for an
impact of exercise intensity on executive control following the
exercise bout. By assessing event-related potentials in young
adults, Kamijo, Nishihira, Higashiura, and Kuroiwa (2007) found
that more attentional resources were allocated to an executive function task after 20 min of mild and moderate exercise than exercise
at high intensity. In a more recent study, the authors additionally
found a greater improvement of inhibitory control after moderate
compared to low intensity aerobic exercise in both young and older
adults (Kamijo et al., 2009). In line with these results, Cordova, Silva, Moraes, Simoes, and Nobrega (2009) reported performance
improvements on executive function tasks relating to cognitive
flexibility and planning ability in older adults only after 25 min of
aerobic exercise at moderate intensity. The results of Lowe, Hall,
Vincent, and Luu (2014) support increased inhibitory control after
35 min of moderately intense cycling compared to a control condition, whereas no changes for this particular executive function
component were observed after high exercise intensity. In contrast,
Loprinzi and Kane (2015) did not observe any effect of 30 min of
aerobic exercise at low, moderate, and high intensity on cognitive
flexibility compared to an inactive control condition. Furthermore,
Buyn et al. (2014) found greater inhibitory control after a short aerobic exercise session at light intensity than after rest. Some experimental studies indicate that aerobic exercise at high intensity might
also elicit benefits on executive function. Barenberg, Berse, and
Dutke (2015) reported improved cognitive flexibility after two
interval exercise protocol runs, in which intensity was increased
every 10 s until exhaustion, compared to a resting condition.
Similarly, increased performance on inhibitory control tasks was
also found in older adults after high intensity interval training consisting of 10 1-min intervals (Alves et al., 2014). In contrast, the
authors found no changes in working memory.
In conclusion, results from studies comparing the effects of a
specific exercise intensity on executive function with an inactive
control condition are inconsistent (Alves et al., 2014; Barenberg
et al., 2015; Byun et al., 2014). When possible benefits of more
than one exercise intensity were investigated, most studies supported greater improvements of executive function after moderate
aerobic exercise (Cordova et al., 2009; Kamijo et al., 2007, 2009;
Lowe et al., 2014). Additionally, previous syntheses of the literature support exercise intensity to be a primary moderator of the
effects of acute aerobic exercise on executive control with
To some extent, acute benefits of exercise on cognitive performance and possible moderators of this relationship have already
been investigated in previous meta-analyses (Chang et al., 2012;
Etnier et al., 1997; Lambourne & Tomporowski, 2010; Sibley &
Etnier, 2003; Verburgh et al., 2014). These reviews reported a
small but reliable effect of exercise on cognition, which was consistently moderated by exercise intensity, cognitive task type, and
study design. Due to contrasting results as well as methodological
limitations, the influence of the assessed executive function component, participants age, and physical fitness on acute effects of aerobic exercise still remains to be elucidated (Chang et al., 2012;
Verburgh et al., 2014). This research deficit might be the result of
different methodological approaches as (a) specific aspects of executive function were not differentiated, (b) analyses were limited to
specific age or fitness groups, (c) only a few studies were available
for moderator analyses, (d) the examination of moderating effects
was performed on overall cognitive performance rather than executive function, (e) effect sizes obtained from reaction time or accuracy data were not differentiated, and (f) both controlled and
noncontrolled experimental studies were combined.
By reducing potential confounders, the current meta-analysis
investigates acute effects of moderate aerobic exercise on executive
function as well as the influence of specific subcomponents of
executive control, age, and aerobic fitness on this relationship.
Compared to previous meta-analyses on cognitive benefits after a
single exercise session, more effect sizes were available for a quantitative synthesis of findings in different age and fitness groups,
because the number of eligible studies has more than doubled since
these earlier meta-analyses have been published.
Method
Study Selection
The present meta-analysis followed the PRISMA reporting guidelines (Moher, Liberati, Tetzlaff, & Altman, 2010). The selection of
studies was based on the following criteria: (a) investigation of possible acute changes of executive function after moderate aerobic
exercise in healthy human subjects, (b) use of time or accuracy
(absolute or relative number of correct responses) measures
obtained from cognitive testing for assessment of executive function, (c) use of either a counterbalanced crossover design or a randomized design, and (d) comparison of effects of moderate aerobic
exercise with a control condition. Based on Norton, Norton, and
Sadgrove (2010), aerobic exercise at moderate intensity was
defined as exercise at 5570% of maximal heart rate, 4060% of
heart rate reserve, 4060% maximal oxygen consumption
(VO2max), or rating 1113 on the perceived exertion (RPE) scale.
Studies without a priori set exercise intensity prescriptions were
only included if the actual intensity matched the criteria for moderate aerobic activity. In comparison to the acute exercise intervention, the control condition had to be a period of physical inactivity
or a procedure in which heart rate was not significantly increased.
S. Ludyga et al.
(type, intensity, and duration) as well as cognitive tests used to

measure executive function. Recorded data were then used to evaluate the methodological quality of each study individually according to the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. This
rating scheme has been reported to be valid and reliable (de Morton, 2009; Maher, Sherrington, Herbert, Moseley, & Elkins, 2003),
and previous reviews investigating benefits of acute exercise also
applied the PEDro scale for assessment of methodological quality
(Astorino & Roberson, 2010; Roig, Nordbrandt, Geertsen, & Nielsen, 2013). However, the original version of the scale was modified
for the purpose of this meta-analysis, so that blinding of participants and investigators was not considered for quality assessment.
These criteria were disregarded, because it is assumed that true
blinding can hardly be achieved in studies investigating benefits of
a single exercise session on cognitive performance. Additionally,
the modified PEDro scale included an evaluation on whether or not
the exercise load was controlled and reported. In summary, the
final score was based on the following items: eligibility criteria,
random allocation, concealed allocation, baseline comparability,
reporting and control of exercise loads, blinded assessors, incomplete outcome data, intervention as allocated, between-group or
condition analysis, as well as both point estimates and measures of
variability. When a criterion was clearly satisfied, one point was
rewarded. For each study, quality scores were compared between
the two reviewers to reduce the risk of biases. The initial level of
agreement between raters was high (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] 5 .84) and any discrepancies were resolved by consensus. The quality rating was performed to assess (a) the risk of bias
of individual studies, and (b) the influence of study quality on the
observed effect of exercise on executive function. An overview of
the quality of included studies is provided in Figure 2. More
detailed information on individual ratings can be found in the
online supporting information.
Figure 1. PRISMA study flow diagram of study selection.
Selection of Outcomes
The literature search was conducted on August 15, 2015, using
the electronic databases PsycArticles, PsycINFO, PubMed, Medline, Scopus, and EMBASE. To identify relevant studies within the
last 20 years, the search terms acute, aerobic exercise, and
physical activity were combined with accuracy, central executive, cognition, cognitive flexibility, cognitive function,
cognitive performance, executive function, Flanker task,
inhibition, reaction time, response time, short-term memory, Simon task, Sternberg task, Stroop task, task switching, Tower of London, Trail Making Test, Wisconsin Card
Sorting task, and working memory. Additionally, the reference
lists of relevant studies were also used to locate investigations
matching the inclusion criteria. Only peer-reviewed studies published in English and indexed in one of the defined databases
were considered for further analysis. In case the results of an
investigation were published in different versions, only the study
with the highest number of participants was included in the present meta-analysis. An overview of the selection process is provided in Figure 1.
Study Quality
For the assessment of methodological quality, two authors (SL,
MG) independently extracted information on study design (screening method, blinding, and testing procedures), participants characteristics (number, gender, age, fitness level), exercise intervention
Previous studies investigating exercise effects on executive function have used behavioral and/or neurophysiological data as main
outcome. As the majority of studies only reported behavioral data,
the quantification of performance on executive function tasks by
time-dependent and accuracy measures enabled a high comparability between studies. The selection of tasks requiring substantial
executive processing was based on Lezak (2004). Some studies
examined acute benefits of moderate aerobic exercise in different
cognitive domains. However, only accuracy or time-dependent
measures for tasks or subtests that assess one or more component
of executive function were considered relevant for the current
meta-analysis. Time measures included either reaction time or total
time for a specific part of the applied cognitive test. Accuracy data
were based on relative or absolute number of correct responses or
errors. In cases where error rate was reported, data were processed
prior to statistical analysis to resemble accuracy.
Selection of Subgroups
This meta-analysis aims to investigate the possible moderating role
of the executive function component as well as the participants
age and aerobic fitness on benefits elicited by moderate aerobic
exercise. The first subgroup analysis examined the effects of aerobic exercise on different aspects of executive function. As inhibitory control, shifting, and updating of working memory are
considered core components of executive function (Alvarez &
Figure 2. Overview of study quality. Green 5 low risk of bias; yellow 5 unclear risk of bias; red 5 high risk of bias.
Emory, 2006; Diamond, 2013; Pennington & Ozonoff, 1996),

effect sizes were examined in studies investigating the sensitivity
of one or more of these domains to moderate aerobic exercise. The
subsequent allocation of effect sizes to the subgroups was based on
the applied cognitive task and the aspect of executive function
assessed with this task (Lezak, 2004; Miyake et al., 2000).
The second subgroup analysis aimed to investigate age as a possible moderator of exercise-induced benefits on executive function.
For comparability, the selection of age groups was based on a previous meta-analysis of acute and chronic effects of exercise on cognition (Verburgh et al., 2014), so that effect sizes were investigated
in preadolescent children (612 years of age), adolescents (1317
years of age), young adults (1835 years of age), and older adults
(50 1 years of age). The assignment of effect sizes to the different
age groups was based on the mean age of the sample. The differentiation of effect sizes across age allows the examination of exercise
benefits in periods, which go along with specific changes of functions and structures associated with executive control (Blakemore
& Choudhury, 2006; Mayr et al., 2001; Nielson, Langenecker, &
Garavan, 2002; Zelazo & Miller, 2002). However, the age range
from 36 to 49 years was disregarded, because no studies on acute
effects of aerobic exercise on executive function were available in
this age group.
The third subgroup analysis was based on physical fitness.
Therefore, effect sizes were examined in studies with low-fit
(VO2max < average), average-fit (VO2max 5 average), and highfit participants (VO2max > average). The allocation of effect sizes
to the fitness subgroups was based on age- and sex-related normative data provided for relative VO2max (Shvartz & Reibold, 1990).
In studies including participants of both sexes, fitness was assessed
separately for men and women, transferred to an ordinal scale
(resembling the fitness categories outlined by Shvartz & Reibold,
1990), and weighted by the proportion of male and female participants. Subsequently, the mean score was used for the final allocation to one of the fitness subgroups. Effect sizes from studies
reporting peak power values instead of VO2max were also included. In these cases, median-split procedure was used to allocate the
sample to low-fit or high-fit subgroups (Hogan et al., 2013; Stroth
et al., 2009). For the remaining studies, only physical activity levels, which did not allow the quantification of aerobic fitness, were
available. Consequently, effect sizes obtained from those studies

were not included for subgroup analysis.
Statistical Analysis
Point measures and measures of variability for relevant accuracy
data and time-dependent measures were entered in SPSS 22.0
(IBM Statistics, USA), and effect sizes were calculated using the
formula provided by Lipsey and Wilson (2001): (a) for crossover
trials, effect size was calculated from means and SD of accuracy or
time data following the exercise and control condition, and (b)
mean gain scores, pre- and postexercise SD as well as paired t test
or mean gain scores and gain score SD were used to determine
effect sizes in randomized controlled trials or crossover trials
including pre- and postexercise values and pre- and postresting values. When errors or time values were used as dependent variable
for cognitive performance, the effect size obtained from study data
was multiplied by 21. Consequently, positive effect sizes indicate
either higher accuracy or faster reaction times in the exercise condition than in the control condition. The effect sizes were calculated
individually for each study and transformed to the bias-corrected
Hedges g (Hedges & Olkin, 1985) by multiplying the standardized
mean difference d by the correction factor J (J 5 1 2 [3/(4 df 2 1)].
Obtained effect sizes, standard errors, and number of participants were entered in RevManager 5.3 (Cochrane Collaboration,
UK), which was used to perform statistical analyses. Effects sizes
were weighted by the study inverse variance, which allows adjustment according to measurement error (Hedges & Olkin, 1985;
Sanchez-Meca & Marin-Martinez, 1998). The random effects
approach was employed to calculate total and subtotal effect sizes
(Gliner, Morgan, & Harmon, 2003). Following Cohens guidelines
for interpretation of effect sizes, d 5 .2, d 5 .5, and d 5 .8 corresponded to small, medium, and large effects, respectively (Cohen,
1987). Additionally, the Z test was employed to evaluate the significance of reported effects. For the assessment of statistical heterogeneity of effect sizes, the v2 test was applied. Inconsistency was
further quantified by using the I2 statistic, which calculates the percentage of the variability in effect estimates that is due to heterogeneity rather than sampling error (Huedo-Medina, Sanchez-Meca,
Marin-Martinez, & Botella, 2006). Furthermore, s2 is reported as
VO2max: 23.7 6
1.8 ml/min/kg
VO2max: 36.0 6
2.9 ml/min/kg
Age: 63.4 6 3.3 y

BMI: 23.4 6 2.7 kg/m2
Age: 62.8 6 2.48 y

BMI: 22.5 6 3.0 kg/m2
Age: 10.2 6 0.7 y

BMI: 17.9 6 1.4 kg/m2
21 (m)
21 (m)
42 (f)/41 (m)
2 (f)/19 (m)
18
24 (f)
47 (f)
20 (f)/16 (m)
72 (m)
30 (f)
Chang, Chu, Wang,

Song, & Wei, 2015,
low-fit
Chang, Chu, Wang,
Song, & Wei,.
2015, high-fit
Chen et al., 2014
Chu et al., 2015
Coles & Tomporovski,

2008
Cordova et al., 2009
De Marco et al., 2015
Drolette et al., 2012
Ellemberg &
Deschenes, 2010
Gothe et al., 2013
Crossover
RCT
Inactive
VO2max: 46.3 6
6.8 ml/min/kg
PA: 7.5 6 3.5 h/week
Age: 20.4 6 3.0 y
Age: 9.9 6 0.7 y

BMI: 17.4 6 3.1 kg/m2
Age: 9.1 6 2.0 y

BMI: 16.9 6 2.1 kg/m2
Age: 20.1 6 2.0 y
Crossover
VO2max: 22.5 6 4.9
Age: 63.0 6 4.6 y

BMI: 24.1 6 2.8 kg/m2
Crossover
RCT
Crossover
VO2max: 40.2 ml/

min/kg
Age: 22.2 6 1.6 y

BMI: 23.4 6 1.7 kg/m2
Crossover
VO2max: 55.0 6
9.8 ml/min/kg
RCT
Crossover
Age: 21.5 6 4.7 y
Crossover
VO2max: 42.5 6
6.5 ml/min/kg
26 (m)
Chang, Chu, Wang,

Wang, Song et al.,
2015
Age: 20.8 6 0.9 y

BMI: 22.0 6 2.7 kg/m2
28 (f)/14 (m)
Chang et al., 2012
RCT
Crossover
RCT
26 (f)/12 (m)
Bullock & Giesbrecht,

2014
Age: 69.5 6 8.3 y
IPAQ 2279.5 6 1807

MET-min/wk
32 (f)/8 (m)
Barella et al., 2010
Age: 22.3 6 1.9 y

BMI: 22.5 6 3.4 kg/m2
42 (f)
Alves et al., 2012
Crossover
Design
VO2max: 43.7 6
9.5 ml/min/kg
Fitness
level
Age: 20.4 6 1.0 y

BMI 22.1 6 3.0 kg/m2
Subjects
characteristics
2 3 90 min combined
exercise > 3 min
before study
PA: regular
age: 52.0 6 7.3 y

BMI: 26.2 6 3.8 kg/m2
Author
Flanker task
Modified choice
response time task
Modified Flanker task

(5 min postexercise)
Stroop color-word
Trail making test (8

min postexercise)
Visual switch task
Flanker task
N-back task
More-odd task
(20 min postexercise)
Stop-signal task
Stroop color-word (15

min postexercise)
min postexercise)
Tower of London
Modified Stroop
color-word (1 min
postexercise)
Modified visual search
task
Stroop color-word
Cognitive
test
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Shifting
Shifting
Inhibition
Inhibition
Working memory
Shifting
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Cognitive
domain
Table 1. Overview of Studies Included for the Meta-Analytical Investigation of Effects of Acute Aerobic Exercise on Executive Function
20 min treadmill
running at 60%
HRmax
5 min WU, 30 min
ergometer cycling
at 63% HRmax
while watching a
video, 5 min CD
5 min WU, 20 min

treadmill running at
6575% HRmax, 5
min CD
5 min WU, 30 min
ergometer cycling
at 60% VO2max, 5
min CD
5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 90% AT
10 min treadmill running at 70 HRmax
30 min running at
6070% HRmax
30 min treadmill
running at 5060%
HRR
5 min WU, 20 min
60% HRR
15 min ergometer
cycling at 50%
VO2max
5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 5070% HRR
(depending on fitness), 5 min CD
5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 65% HRR, 5 min
CD
5 min WU,
20 min ergometer
cycling at 5060%
HRR, 5 min CD
Exercise stimulus
20 min rest
40 min watching
video
10 min minimal exercise (no change in

HR)
20 min seated rest
25 min seated rest
40 min seated rest (on

cycling ergometer)
30 min reading
30 min reading
30 min reading
30 min reading
30 min reading
15 min seated rest
25 min seated rest
15 min listening, 15
min stretching
Control
condition
6
S. Ludyga et al.
17 (f)/23 (m)
3 (f)/13 (m)
57 (f)/47 (m)
3 (f)/7 (m)
12 (m)
12 (m)
12 (m)
15 (f)
9 (f)/13 (m)
23 (f)/11 (m)
26 (f)/12 (m)
18 (f)/18 (m)
3 (f)/13 (m)
Hung et al., 2013
Hyodo et al., 2012
Jaeger et al., 2015
Joyce et al., 2009
Kamijo et al., 2007
Kamijo et al., 2009

Kamijo et al., 2009
Li et al., 2014
Loprinzi & Kane,

2015
Lowe et al., 2014
Netz et al., 2007
OLeary et al., 2011
Palmer et al., 2013
Age: 7.9 6 0.4 y
VO2max: 45.2 ml/

min/kg
Age: 21.2 6 1.5 y
Age: 4.1 6 0.4 y
Baecke Index:
8.3 6 1.4
VO2max: 49.7 6
2.9 ml/min/kg,
PA: 5,120 6 1,257
MET-min/wk
Inactive
PA: 450 kcal/day

PA: 325 kcal/day
Age: 54.9 6 3.0 y

BMI: 23.7 6 3.4 kg/m2
Age: 20.2 6 1.8 y

BMI: 22.4 6 3.2 kg/m2
Age: 20.8 6 0.7 y
Age: 19 to 22 y
Age: 65.5 6 1.5 y

Age: 21.8 6 0.6 y
Age: 25.7 6 0.7 y
VO2max: 43.0 ml/

min/kg
Able to perform moderate exercise
Age: 69.3 6 3.5 y
Age: 23.0 6 2.0 y
IPAQ: 1170 METmin/wk
Age: 23.0 6 2.0 y

BMI: 23.0 6 5.9 kg/m2
PA: 5 3 60 min/week
Crossover
Crossover
RCT
RCT
Crossover
Crossover
Crossover
Crossover
Crossover
RCT
Crossover
RCT
Cross-over
62 (f)/34 (m)
Pmax: 138 6 24.8 W
Crossover
Pmax: 168 6 32.0 W
Age: 14.3 6 0.5 y

BMI: 19.5 6 3.4 kg/m2
Age: 14.3 6 0.7 y
BMI: 19.9 6 3.2 kg/m2
Age: 10.7 6 0.6 y
BMI: 19.9 6 4.5 kg/m2
5 (f)/10 (m)
Hogan et al., 2013,

high-fit
Hogan et al., 2013,
low-fit
Howie et al., 2015
6 (f)/9 (m)
Crossover
Design
VO2max: 40.1 ml/

min/kg
VO2max: 35.9 ml/

min/kg
Fitness
level
Age: 9.6 6 0.7 y
Subjects
characteristics
20 (m)
Hillman et al., 2009
Author
Table 1. Continued

(22 min
postexercise)
Picture deletion task
for preschoolers
Alternate uses task (5

min postexercise)
Stroop color-word
Inhibition
Inhibition
Shifting
Inhibition
Shifting
Working memory
Modified N-back task

Trail making test
(max 15 min
postexercise)
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Shifting
Working memory
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Shifting
Working memory
Inhibition
Inhibition
Working memory
Cognitive
domain
Stop-signal task

N-back task

min post)
Tower of London
Trail making test

Modified digit recall
Modified flanker task

(25 min
postexercise)
Flanker task with go/
no-go paradigm
N-back task (410

min postexercise)
Cognitive
test
35 min (recumbent)
ergometer cycling
at 30% HRR
3 min WU, 35 min
60% HRR, 3 min
CD
20 min treadmill
running at 60%
HRmax
30 min moderate aerobic activity (including running,
hopping, and
throwing)
20 min moderate aerobic activity (jumping, running)

5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 6070% HRR, 5
min CD
10 min ergometer
cycling at 50%
VO2max
20 min aerobic activities including running and jumping
30 min ergometer
cycling at 40%
Pmax
20 min ergometer
cycling at RPE 13
20 min ergometer
cycling at 50%
VO2max
20 min ergometer
cycling at 6070%
HRmax
30 min treadmill
running at 5170%
HRmax
20 min running on
treadmill at 60-70%
HRmax
20 min treadmill running at 60%
HRmax
20 min ergometer
cycling at 60%
HRmax
Exercise stimulus
30 min sedentary
activity
20 min seated rest
35 min minimal
exercise (no
change in HR)
40 min watching
movie
30 min seated rest
20 min seated rest
20 min seated rest
20 min seated rest

cycling ergometer)
20 min listening to a
story
10 min resting
30 min reading (on

cycling ergometer)
Lesson about exercise

science

cycling ergometer)
20 min seated rest
Control
condition

7
10 (f)/14 (m)
14 (f)/12 (m)
3 (f)/17 (m)
Wang et al., 2015, old
Weng et al., 2014
Yanagisawa et al.,
2010
IPAQ: 1593 6 1716

MET-min/wk
Total Godin Leisure
Activity Score:
54.4 6 4.63
VO2max: 46.3 6
10.4 ml/min/kg
Age: 55.6 6 5.2 y

BMI: 25.0 6 3.7 kg/m2
Age: 25.2 6 0.6 y

BMI: 23.4 6 0.5 kg/m2
Age: 21.5 6 4.8 y

BMI: 21.5 6 1.1 kg/m2
Crossover
Crossover
RCT
RCT
Crossover

N-back task
(615 min
postexercise)
min postexercise)
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test
Wisconsin Card
Sorting Test
Switch task
Flanker task (40 min

postexercise)
Flanker task modified

with a go/no-go
paradigm
Flanker task
N-back task
Modified spatial attention task (510 min

postexercise)
Stroop color-word
Trail making test

included in CAS
(10 min
postexercise)
Modified Sternberg
task
Trail making test
Cognitive
test
Inhibition
Inhibition
Working memory
Shifting
Shifting
Shifting
Inhibition
Inhibition
Inhibition
Working memory
Inhibition
Inhibition
Working memory
Shifting
Shifting
Cognitive
domain
15 min ergometer
cycling at 50%
VO2max
40 min ergometer
cycling at 60%
VO2max
5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 65% HRR, 5 min
CD
5 min WU, 20 min
ergometer cycling
at 65% HRR, 5 min
CD
30 min ergometer
cycling at 65%
HRmax

VO2max
20 min ergometer
cycling at 85%
ANT
20 min running at
RPE 1114
HRmax
20 min ergometer
cycling at 60%
HRmax (watching
video)
30 min treadmill
running at
RPE 1315
30 min ergometer
cycling at 70%
HRmax
60 min PE lesson at
moderate to vigorous intensity
Exercise stimulus
25 min seated rest
30 min passive
cycling
30 min reading
30 min reading
40 min reading or
watching video
30 min seated rest
20 min watching
video
13 min seated rest
20 min cycling without resistance (no

change in HR)
20 min reading
30 min seated rest
60 min reading
30 min watching
documentary
Control
condition
Note. BMI 5 body mass index; VO2max 5 maximal oxygen consumption; Pmax 5 maximal power; PA 5 physical activity; IPAQ 5 International Physical Activity Questionnaire; RCT 5 randomized controlled trial; AT 5 aerobic threshold; ANT 5 anaerobic threshold; HRmax 5 maximal heart rate; HRR 5 heart rate reserve; RPE 5 received perception of effort; WU 5 warm-up; CD 5 cool-down
19 (f)/8 (m)
Wang et al., 2015,

young
Age: 22.6 6 2.5 y

BMI: 22.5 6 2.3 kg/m2
Age: 21.5 6 1.9
Crossover
10 (f)/12 (m)
VO2max: 56.3 6
7.9 ml/min/kg
VO2max: 38.7 6
7.5 ml/min/kg
VO2max: 40.0 6
5.7 ml/min/kg;
PA: 23 sessions/week
IPAQ: 872 6 1,030
MET-min/wk
Pmax: 140.6 6 25.6 W
Age: 20.6 6 2.4 y
7 (f)/7 (m)
6 (f)/10 (m)
7 (f)/7 (m)
Crossover
Crossover
Stroth et al., 2009,

high-fit
Stroth et al,. 2009,
low-fit
Themanson & Hillman, 2006, high-fit
Themanson & Hillman, 2006, low-fit
Tomporowski &
Ganio, 2006
Pmax: 167.6 6 32.7 W
13 (f)/42 (m)
Soga et al., 2015
Age: 22.5 6 3.1 y
Crossover
PA: 3 h/week
Age: 14.2 6 0.4 y

BMI: 19.6 6 3.6 kg/m2
Age: 14.3 6 0.6 y
BMI: 20.6 6 4.0 kg/m2
Age: 20.1 6 1.7 y
37 (f)/39 (m)
Sibley et al., 2006
Age: 22.0 y
Crossover
VO2max: 54.6 ml/

min/kg
7 (f)/10 (m)
2 (f)/18 (m)
Sanabria et al., 2011
Age: 22.2 6 0.3 y
Crossover
Crossover
9 (f)/12 (m)
Pontifex et al., 2009
Age: 9.8 6 0.4 y
Crossover
Design
VO2max: 48.4 6
6.3 ml/min/kg
18 (f)/22 (m)
Pirrie & Lodewyk,

2012
Fitness
level
Age: 11.2 6 2.4 y
Subjects
characteristics
Age: 15.7 6 0.5 y

BMI: 20.8 6 3.3 kg/m2
7 (f)/11 (m)
Piepmeier et al., 2015
Author
Table 1. Continued
8
S. Ludyga et al.
Figure 3. Acute effects of aerobic exercise on time-dependent measures of executive function in adolescent children, adolescents, young adults, and
older adults. Extensions of study names indicate that more than one effect size was obtained. SS 5 effect size for (set-) shifting; WM 5 effect size for
working memory; old 5 effect size for older adults; young 5 effect size for young adults.
the estimate of the between-study variance in random effects metaanalysis. In accordance with the recommendations of Peters et al.
(2010), the possibility of publication bias for effect sizes analyzed
with the random effects approach was assessed using Eggers

regression test (Egger, Smith, Schneider, & Minder, 1997), which
is based on the degree of funnel plot asymmetry.
S. Ludyga et al.
10
As described by Borenstein (2009), subgroup analysis was performed by applying a standard test for heterogeneity across subgroup results. When the test for subgroup differences reached
significance, post hoc Z tests on the differences assessed with the
random effects model were used to compare groups with each other. Based on the number of between-group comparisons, the Bonferroni correction was applied.
Following the protocol of Verburgh et al. (2014), regression
analysis was performed to investigate whether or not duration of
aerobic exercise, study quality, and study design explained a significant proportion of the variance of the effect of exercise on executive function. This required a standardization of the regression
slopes, which was performed by multiplying the regression slopes
with the quotient of the standard deviation of the moderator and the
standard deviation of the executive function outcome. The adjusted
Pearsons multivariate coefficient of determination and b as standardized coefficient are provided.
Results
The review of literature yielded 40 studies that were found to be
eligible for the current meta-analysis. Their characteristics are summarized in Table 1. The majority of the studies employed a crossover design (N 5 30), which allowed the comparison of an exercise
condition and a control condition within subjects. The metaanalysis also included randomized controlled trials (N 5 10), where
groups either performed physical exercise or no exercise. Aerobic
activities employed as exercise intervention included cycling on a
stationary ergometer (N 5 24), running on a treadmill (N 5 12),
and mixed aerobic activities (N 5 4). In the control condition, participants were assigned to seated rest (N 5 19), reading (N 5 11),
watching a video (N 5 5), minimal exercise (N 5 4), or stretching
(N 5 1). Some authors investigated acute effects of moderate aerobic exercise in comparison to an inactive control condition in highand low-fit participants (N 5 4) or younger and older participants
(N 5 2). These were treated as two separate studies when the
results reported by the authors were not collapsed across groups.
Moreover, only a few studies investigated exercise-induced benefits on two (N 5 3) or three (N 5 2) subcomponents of executive
function. For those cases, the effect sizes for the different subcomponents were also entered for meta-analytical comparison.
Initial Analysis
Effect sizes were obtained from time-dependent measures (N 5 50)
and accuracy data (N 5 43). Most studies provided both measures
of cognitive performance as dependent variables (N 5 22). Effect
sizes obtained from time-dependent measures of executive function
were heterogeneous (s2 5 .14; v2 5 151.51; df 5 49; p .001;
I2 5 68%). The mean effect size of this outcome was significant
(g 5 .35; Z 5 5.28; p < .001). For accuracy measures, heterogeneity
of effect sizes was identified (s2 5 .06; v2 5 78.25; df 5 42;
p .001; I2 5 46%). The analysis revealed a small but significant
effect of aerobic exercise on accuracy in executive function tasks
(g 5 .22; Z 5 3.68; p .001). Effect sizes for accuracy and timedependent measures were not significantly different from each other
(Mdiff 5 .13, SEdiff 5 .09, Zdiff 5 1.44, p 5 .150). As indicated by
the Egger regression test, no evidence for publication bias was
found for effect sizes obtained from time-dependent measures
(p 5 .780) and accuracy data (p 5 .356).
Subgroup Analysis for Executive Function Component

The analysis of exercise benefits on core components of executive function was based on effect sizes obtained from studies
investigating acute effects of exercise on inhibitory control
(N 5 30), shifting (N 5 12), and working memory (N 5 7). The
results of the statistical analysis did not reveal any differences in
accuracy (v2 5 .62; df 5 2; p 5 .74; I2 5 0%) and timedependent measures (v2 5 .04, df 5 2; p 5 .98, I2 5 0%) between
the specific executive function components, so that no further
analyses were conducted.
Subgroup Analysis for Age
Effect sizes for subgroup analysis were obtained from studies
investigating acute benefits of exercise on executive function in
preadolescent children (N 5 9), adolescents (N 5 3), young
adults (N 5 23), and older adults (N 5 7). Due to studies including more than one experiment, 50 and 43 effect sizes were available for meta-analysis of time-dependent measures and accuracy
data, respectively. Regarding time measures (Figure 3), a small
effect was found in young adults (g 5 .20). In preadolescent
children (g 5 .54) and older adults (g 5 .67), the effect of acute
exercise on time-dependent measures of executive function was
moderate, whereas no significant effect was found in adolescents. The between-groups differences of effect sizes reached
significance (v2 5 17.74; df 5 3; p .001; I2 5 83.1%). Post hoc
testing with an adjusted alpha level of p .008 revealed that
effect sizes in older adults were significantly higher than in adolescents (Mdiff 5 .63; SEdiff 5 .15; Zdiff 5 4.29; p .001) and
young adults (Mdiff 5 .47; SEdiff 5 .16; Zdiff 5 .03; p 5 .002).
Furthermore, preadolescent children showed a higher mean
effect size (Mdiff 5 .50; SEdiff 5 .18; Zdiff 5 2.84; p 5 .004) than
adolescents. In contrast to reaction time, the acute effect of exercise on accuracy in executive function tasks was not significantly different between the age groups (v2 5 .63; df 5 3; p 5 .89;
I2 5 0%).
Subgroup Analysis for Fitness
The subgroup analysis was based on studies investigating acute
effects of exercise on executive function in low-fit (N 5 11),
average-fit (N 5 9), and high-fit participants (N 5 6). Only effect
sizes from time-dependent measures (N 5 26) were examined
meta-analytically, because for accuracy data fewer than five effect
sizes were available for each fitness group. However, the test for
subgroup differences failed to reach statistical significance
(v2 5 4.62; df 5 2; p 5 .10; I2 5 56.7%), so that no further analyses
were undertaken.
Regression Analysis
The effect of moderate aerobic exercise on accuracy (r2 5 2.02;
SE 5 .49; b 5 2.04; p 5 .539) and time-dependent measures of
executive function (r2 5 .07; SE 5 .47; b 5 .26; p 5 .071) was not
predicted by the duration of the session. Similarly, the study design
(time: r2 5 2.05; SE 5 .66; b 5 .22; p 5 .121; accuracy: r2 5 .01;
SE 5 .49; b 5 .18; p 5 .260) and the study quality (time: r2 5 .02;
SE 5 .54; b 5 .20; p 5 .202; accuracy: r2 5 .02; SE 5 .48; b 5 .20;
p 5 .188) did not account for a significant proportion of the variance for the observed effects.

Discussion
Exercise and Executive Function
Based on a meta-analysis of 40 studies, a small effect of moderate
aerobic exercise was confirmed on time-dependent measures
(g 5 .35) and accuracy in executive function tasks (g 5 .22). These
results are consistent with previous meta-analyses, which also
reported small (Chang et al., 2012) to moderate improvements of
executive function (Verburgh et al., 2014) after a single aerobic
exercise session. Further examination of specific subcomponents of
executive function did not reveal differences in sensitivity to aerobic exercise between inhibitory control, set shifting, and updating
of working memory. However, this finding should be interpreted
with caution as far more effect sizes were available for inhibition
than other subcomponents. In this respect, high heterogeneity of
accuracy and time-dependent measures from working memory and
set-shifting tasks limit the comparability with effect sizes obtained
from inhibitory control. Moreover, another confounding factor was
the small number of studies that examined benefits of moderate
aerobic exercise on more than one component of executive function (Chen et al., 2014; Gothe et al., 2013; Jaeger et al., 2014; Li
et al., 2014). Nonetheless, the present results support a general rather than a selective effect of a single aerobic exercise session on
executive processing. Similar benefits were found for accuracy and
time-dependent measures, so that the absence of negative effects
argues against a simple speed-accuracy trade-off. Consequently,
cognitive enhancements after aerobic exercise are suggested to be
due to different physiological mechanisms rather than a simple
change of the strategic inclination of participants from prevention
to promotion focus (Forster, Higgins, & Bianco, 2003).
As response time involves speed of stimulus classification,
stimulus evaluation, response selection, and motor preparation
(Doucet & Stelmack, 1999), exercise-induced benefits on executive
function result from improvements in one or more of these processes. Studies combining behavioral and neurophysiological measures
allow further examination of the underlying mechanisms for
improved reaction time and accuracy. In this respect, moderate aerobic exercise has been shown to elicit transient changes in specific
neuroelectric indices of executive functioning (Kamijo et al., 2007,
2009), indicating a reduction of stimulus classification or evaluation time. In contrast, benefits of aerobic exercise on executive control might not be attributed to changes in perception of attention to
a stimulus during early information processing (Chu, Alderman,
Wei, & Chang, 2015). With improved accuracy and/or response
time on executive function tasks, previous studies have linked
exercise-induced benefits to increased allocation of attentional
resources toward the executive function task to a certain extent
(Hillman et al., 2009, 2011; Kamijo et al., 2007, 2009).
Executive Function and Age
The results of the present meta-analysis indicate that preadolescent
children (g 5 .54) and older adults (g 5 .67) benefit most from aerobic exercise. In contrast, adolescents (g 5 .04) and young adults
(g 5 .20) showed no or only a small improvement of timedependent measures of executive function after a single exercise
session. In a previous meta-analysis, temporary improvements in
cognition were most pronounced in adolescents and older adults,
whereas no changes in cognitive performance were found for preadolescent children (Chang et al., 2012). The results of the present
subgroup analysis for age are different from this specific pattern
11
and pronounce the need to investigate the moderating role of age
on exercise-induced benefits on specific cognitive domains, such as
executive control, rather than general cognition. Interestingly, the
effect sizes reported for the age subgroups are to a certain extent an
inverted reflection of the curve of executive function across the life
span (Cepeda et al., 2001; Zelazo et al., 2004). This indicates greater exercise benefits in individuals with an immature executive
function system (preadolescent children) and those experiencing an
age-related decline of higher order cognitive functions (older
adults). Consequently, the brain seems to be more sensitive to
external stimuli, such as aerobic activity, when the executive function system undergoes developmental changes. In turn, the effect
sizes obtained from adolescents and young adults seem to be affected by a ceiling effect as executive function and particularly inhibitory control reaches its peak in these age groups (Bedard et al.,
2002; Zelazo et al., 2004). However, the results of Sibley and
Beilock (2007) indicate that among young adults low-performers
might benefit more from aerobic exercise than high-performers on
executive function tasks. Although the present meta-analysis has
found effects of moderate aerobic exercise in specific age groups,
it remains unclear whether or not adults aged 35 to 50 years may
also benefit from a single exercise session. This is due to the fact
that no effect sizes were available for this age span. Therefore,
authors are encouraged to investigate possible effects of aerobic
exercise on participants aged 35 to 50 years in future studies. This
will allow a more comprehensive analysis of age as moderator for
exercise-induced benefits on executive control. As the present
meta-analysis found a specific relation between exercise benefits
on executive function and age for the acute exercise paradigm, further investigation of possible underlying mechanisms is highly
encouraged.
In contrast to reaction time, the effect of moderate aerobic exercise on accuracy in executive function tasks was not influenced by
age. For most of the executive function tasks applied (e.g., flanker
task, Stroop color-word), healthy participants achieve high accuracy rates in general, whereas a greater variability is given for their
reaction times (Chang, Chu, Wang, Song, & Wei, 2015; Drollette,
Shishido, Pontifex, & Hillman, 2012; Hyodo et al., 2012).
Therefore, a ceiling effect of accuracy measures could partly
explain the lack of differences between the age groups. Future studies can help to verify this assumption by an examination of effects
of aerobic exercise on executive function tests with accuracy as the
primary outcome or a higher difficulty for correct responses.
Regarding the possible moderating role of age, differences between
accuracy and time-dependent measures might as well have been
due to the number of effect sizes available for comparison.
Especially for older adults, who had the greatest improvements in
response time after a single aerobic exercise session, only a few
effect sizes were available for accuracy measures. This is due to
studies reporting either reaction time or accuracy (Barella et al.,
2010; Chang, Chu, Wang, Song, & Wei, 2015; Cordova et al.,
2009; Kamijo et al., 2009; Netz, Tomer, Axelrad, Argov, & Inbar,
2007; Wang et al., 2015). In future studies, this issue can be
addressed by always reporting both measures, if they are available
from the applied executive function test. Furthermore, there is a
possibility that exercise-induced benefits on accuracy measures are
not sensitive to age. This would indicate similar improvements of
cognitive control in children, adolescents, as well as young and
older adults following moderate aerobic exercise, whereas changes
in speed of stimulus classification and evaluation varies between
these age groups.
S. Ludyga et al.
12
Executive Function and Aerobic Fitness
Limitations and Future Directions
Apart from age, the present meta-analysis also examined the potential moderating effect of aerobic fitness on exercise-induced benefits on executive function. The results of the subgroup analysis
show that the effect of moderate aerobic exercise on executive control does not differ between low-fit, average-fit, and high-fit participants. This contradicts the findings of experimental studies that
confirmed greater exercise-induced benefits on executive function
in either high-fit (Chang, Chu, Wang, Wang et al., 2015) or low-fit
participants (Hogan et al., 2013). In a previous meta-analysis, physical fitness moderated the effect of exercise on cognition only
when the task was administered during exercise (Chang et al.,
2012). This is possibly due to a higher cognitive reserve during
exercise in aerobically trained participants, because they require
less cortical resources for the maintenance of exercise performance
(Ludyga, Gronwald, & Hottenrott, 2016). In contrast, when executive function is assessed after exercise, high-fit individuals might
not benefit from this advantage. This assumption is supported by
the present results, because the effect sizes did not vary between
fitness subgroups. As exercise temporarily enhances executive
function regardless of the subjects aerobic fitness, the findings of
this meta-analysis are practically relevant for a broad section of the
population. Consequently, a single exercise session is an efficient
strategy to facilitate goal-directed behavior and associated processes, which in turn influence performance on a variety of complex
tasks in multiple settings (Diamond, 2013). Further, this temporary
change in executive control is suggested to have an impact on academic performance and success in daily life (Bailey, 2007; Borella
et al., 2010).
The majority of studies included were of low risk of bias, so that

the estimated overall effect is suggested to lie close to the true
effect (Guyatt et al., 2011). The absence of funnel plot asymmetry,
which was assessed with Eggers weighted regression model
(Egger et al., 1997), also supports a low risk of bias in the data.
Based on this observation, the overall effect is not expected to
change dramatically with future publications. In contrast, the effect
sizes estimated for the age and fitness subgroups as well as the
executive function components should be controlled by a reassessment when more results from experimental studies are available.
Therefore, authors are encouraged to further investigate acute
effects of aerobic exercise on executive function in children, adolescents, and older adults particularly. Regarding moderating
effects, the subgroup analyses showed that benefits elicited by
exercise were influenced by the subjects age only. In metaanalyses, the examination of moderators can lead to false interpretations when the analyzed variable is affected by another moderator. Therefore, regression tests were used to evaluate whether or
not the effect sizes were influenced by potential confounders. The
results showed that exercise duration, study design, as well as
methodological quality did not account for a significant proportion
of the variance between the effects. As exercise intensity and type
were specified prior to analysis, it can be assumed that age truly
moderates the benefits of aerobic exercise on executive function.
Although the effect sizes were not influenced by the executive
function component, a possible moderating effect should not be
ruled out. The majority of studies included in this review assessed
exercise-induced benefits on inhibition, whereas only a few effect
sizes were available for other subcomponents of executive function. Consequently, the application of tests measuring task switching and updating of working memory is necessary to examine
whether or not one of the fundamental executive function components is more sensitive to acute aerobic exercise. Furthermore, it
should be kept in mind that the present meta-analysis examined
effects of aerobic exercise on executive function based on moderate
intensity. Consequently, it remains unclear how other exercise
intensities influence executive control and if those effects are further moderated by the subjects characteristics (e.g., age and fitness). Future meta-analyses are encouraged to address this issue
and are expected to benefit from a higher availability of effect sizes
for exercise-induced changes in executive control after mild, moderate, and vigorous aerobic exercise. Additionally, future works
should also include other exercise modalities that place similar
demands on the cardiovascular system, such as coordinative exercise and team sports. However, this requires an increase of the
number of studies investigating possible benefits of different exercise modalities on executive function.
Underlying Mechanisms for Exercise-Induced Benefits

Although the positive effect of aerobic exercise on higher order
cognitive functions has been replicated several times in experimental studies of high quality (Chang, Chu, Wang, Wang et al., 2015;
Pontifex et al., 2009), evidence in support of the underlying biological mechanisms is still limited. However, neurocognitive benefits
have been related to a facilitation of arousal by an increased release
of catecholamines and endorphins (Dishman & OConnor, 2009;
McMorris, Collard, Corbett, Dicks, & Swain, 2008), which in turn
has an impact on cognitive performance (Anish, 2005). The expression of growth factors, which is upregulated by acute exercise
(Szuhany, Bugatti, & Otto, 2015), is also considered as a potential
mechanism for changes in executive function and working memory
performance in particular (Piepmeier & Etnier, 2015). As the present meta-analysis was based on moderate aerobic exercise only, it
is important to note that previous studies have reported increased
brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) serum concentration
after aerobic exercise at this particular intensity (Calvert et al.,
2014; Goekint et al., 2008). Furthermore, cognitive benefits might
be linked to the brains hemodynamic response to exercise.
Increased regional cerebral blood flow (Ide & Secher, 2000), oxygen supply, and uptake by the brain (Secher et al., 2008) due to aerobic exercise have been associated with improved cognitive
performance in previous studies (Chavez-Eakle, Graff-Guerrero,
Garca-Reyna, Vaugier, & Cruz-Fuentes, 2007; Mozolic,
Hayasaka, & Laurienti, 2010). As the understanding of underlying
mechanisms is still limited, further research on the biological processes responsible for changes in executive control following aerobic exercise is encouraged.
Conclusion
This meta-analytical examination has shown that a single, moderate aerobic exercise session improves executive function. This cognitive ability seems to be more sensitive to exercise stimuli when
the executive function system undergoes developmental changes.
In this respect, preadolescent children and older adults compared to
other age groups seem to receive greater benefits from a moderate
aerobic exercise session. Although exercise-related improvements
on executive function components, such as inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, and working memory, are temporary, these benefits are still of high practical relevance. In preadolescent children,
13
short aerobic exercise bouts of moderate intensity may be used to

restore cognitive resources in school, which in turn creates favorable conditions for learning processes. Due to the association of
executive function with the ability to deal with complex tasks and
to maintain self-regulation, older adults are also encouraged to
engage in moderate aerobic exercise sessions. Although acute benefits of moderately intense exercise on executive function are less
pronounced in younger adults, this age group should not ignore the
potential neuroenhancing effect of aerobic activities as higher education, professional training, and work temporarily place high
demands on the executive function system. Furthermore, the strategic use of a single exercise session has a significant advantage over
chronic exercise effects, because benefits on higher order cognition
are elicited immediately and do not require a training period.
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Appendix S1: Notes on Tables S1S5.

Table S1: Acute effects of aerobic exercise on time-dependent measures
of executive function tasks assessing inhibition, shifting, and working
memory.
Table S2: Acute effects of aerobic exercise on accuracy in executive
function tasks assessing inhibition, shifting, and working memory.
Table S3: Acute effects of aerobic exercise on accuracy in executive
function tasks in children, adolescents, young adults, and older adults.
Table S4: Acute effects of aerobic exercise on time-dependent measures
of executive function in high-fit, average-fit, and low-fit subjects.
Table S5: Quality ratings of individual studies.
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Acute Effects of Moderate Aerobic Exercise On Specific Aspects of Executive Function in Different Age and Fitness Groups: A Meta-Analysis

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Psychophysiology, 00 (2016), 0000. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Printed in the USA.

C 2016 Society for Psychophysiological Research

Acute effects of moderate aerobic exercise on specific aspects

SEBASTIAN LUDYGA,a MARKUS GERBER,a SERGE BRAND,a,b EDITH HOLSBOER-TRACHSLER,b

temporarily be altered by a single exercise session (Chang, Labban,

Aerobic Exercise and Brain Plasticity

The authors thank Flora Colledge (University of Basel, Department of

Moderate exercise and executive function

moderate intensity being most beneficial to higher order cognitive

Executive Function and Exercise Intensity

Limitations of Previous Meta-Analyses

The body of evidence suggests that exercise intensity influences

(type, intensity, and duration) as well as cognitive tests used to

Moderate exercise and executive function

Emory, 2006; Diamond, 2013; Pennington & Ozonoff, 1996),

available. Consequently, effect sizes obtained from those studies

Age: 63.4 6 3.3 y

Age: 62.8 6 2.48 y

Age: 10.2 6 0.7 y

Chang, Chu, Wang,

Chu et al., 2015

Coles & Tomporovski,

Cordova et al., 2009

De Marco et al., 2015

Drolette et al., 2012

Gothe et al., 2013

Age: 20.4 6 3.0 y

Age: 9.9 6 0.7 y

Age: 9.1 6 2.0 y

Age: 20.1 6 2.0 y

VO2max: 22.5 6 4.9

Age: 63.0 6 4.6 y

VO2max: 40.2 ml/

Age: 22.2 6 1.6 y

Age: 21.5 6 4.7 y

Chang, Chu, Wang,

Age: 20.8 6 0.9 y

Chang et al., 2012

Bullock & Giesbrecht,

Age: 69.5 6 8.3 y

IPAQ 2279.5 6 1807

Barella et al., 2010

Age: 22.3 6 1.9 y

Alves et al., 2012

Age: 20.4 6 1.0 y

age: 52.0 6 7.3 y

Modified Flanker task

Trail making test (8

Visual switch task

Stroop color-word (15

5 min WU, 20 min

10 min minimal exercise (no change in

25 min seated rest

40 min seated rest (on

15 min seated rest

25 min seated rest

Hung et al., 2013

Hyodo et al., 2012

Jaeger et al., 2015

Joyce et al., 2009

Kamijo et al., 2007

Kamijo et al., 2009

Loprinzi & Kane,