The difference in attentional focus during exercise affects attention resources

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the difference in attentional focus, including the external focus (EF) or internal focus (IF) during exercise on attention resources from the viewpoint of the brain activity. [Participants and Methods] The study included 20 healthy adult participants randomly assigned to two groups: the EF and IF groups. The participants in each group received different verbal instructions before performing a tennis ball task, in which they threw a tennis ball on the floor at a target with their non-dominant hands as accurately as possible while sitting on a chair. During the task, oxygenated hemoglobin (oxy-Hb) in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was continuously measured using a near-infrared spectroscopy device. The accuracy of the task and the change of oxy-Hb were statistically analyzed. [Results] Although there were no statistically significant differences between the groups, both accuracy of the task and oxy-Hb in the EF group were found to be higher than those in the IF group. [Conclusion] Our results showed that although the accuracy of motor control in the EF was superior to that in the IF, there is a possibility of increased attention resources in the EF compared to those in the IF.