Abstract
The present study examined the effects of low- and high-intensity cycling exercise on the H-reflex and state anxiety among men having low (n = 20) or high (n = 20) trait anxiety. Participants completed measures of state anxiety and underwent elicitation and recording of the H-reflex in the soleus muscle before and 10 min after three 20-min conditions: (1) quiet rest, (2) cycling at 40% V̇O2peak, and (3) cycling at 70% V̇O2peak. We found that (1) exercise, but not quiet rest, resulted in a reduction of the H-reflex; the magnitude of the reduction did not differ between men having low or high trait anxiety; (2) exercise and quiet rest resulted in similar reductions of state anxiety, and the magnitude of the reductions was larger for men having high trait anxiety than low trait anxiety; and (3) reductions of the H-reflex were unrelated to reductions of self-reported state anxiety across all three conditions, Contrary to prior opinion, the postexercise reduction in the H-reflex reported by previous researchers and in the present study appears to be unrelated to self-reported anxiety after exercise.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 96-105 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Psychophysiology |
Volume | 41 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 2004 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Acute exercise
- Hoffmann reflex
- State anxiety
- Trait anxiety
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Neuroscience
- Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Neurology
- Endocrine and Autonomic Systems
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Biological Psychiatry