Performance and mood-state parameters during 30-day 6 degrees head-down bed rest with exercise training

Area of Science:

• Exercise Physiology
• Human Performance
• Psychological Health

Background:

• Prolonged bed rest (BR) can induce physiological deconditioning.
• The impact of different exercise-training regimens on mood and performance during BR requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if performance and mood impairments occur in bed-rested subjects.
• To assess if different exercise-training regimens (isotonic and isokinetic) modify or prevent these impairments.

Main Methods:

• Eighteen healthy men were divided into three groups: no exercise (NOE), isotonic exercise (ITE), and isokinetic exercise (IKE).
• Subjects underwent 30 days of absolute bed rest (BR) with daily assessments of performance, mood, and sleep.
• A 15-minute battery of 10 performance tests and 8 mood/2 sleep scales were used.

Main Results:

• Performance proficiency increased in 7 of 10 tests for all groups during BR, with no significant differences between groups.
• The ITE group showed a decline in activation mood dimensions (motivation, concentration) and improvement in sleep/tension scales during BR.
• No consistent significant deleterious changes in performance or mood were observed across groups.

Conclusions:

• Mood and performance did not deteriorate in response to prolonged bed rest.
• Exercise training did not alter overall mood and performance during bed rest.
• The observed mood changes in the ITE group may indicate overtraining or excessive workload.