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Updated: Oct 17, 2025

Supramaximal Intensity Hypoxic Exercise and Vascular Function Assessment in Mice
Published on: March 15, 2019
The combination of acute exercise and eye closure has a synergistic effect on alpha activity
Takaaki Komiyama1, Ryoma Goya2, Chisa Aoyama3
1Center for Education in Liberal Arts and Sciences, Osaka University, 1-16 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka, 560-0043, Japan.
Abstract:
Acute aerobic exercise increases the brain cortical activity in alpha frequency. Eye closure also increases alpha activity. However, whether the two have an additive or a synergistic effect on alpha activity has never been explored. This study observed electroencephalography (EEG) from fifteen participants seated on the cycle ergometer before, during, and after a cycling exercise with the eyes open and with them closed. Exercise intensity was set to a target heart rate (120-130 bpm), corresponding to light-to-moderate intensity exercise. Each epoch was 6 min and the last 4 min (eyes closed in the first 2 min and eyes open in the second 2 min) were analyzed. The EEG power spectrum densities were calculated for alpha frequency band activity (8-13 Hz). At rest, alpha activity was significantly greater with the eyes closed than open. Exercise significantly increased alpha activity in both eye conditions. More importantly, in the occipital site, the alpha-increasing effect of their combination was significantly greater than the sum of the effect of each, showing a synergistic effect. We concluded that acute light-to-moderate intensity exercise with the eyes closed has a synergistic effect on alpha activity.
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