Changes of Mood and Cognitive Performance before and after a 100 km Nighttime Ultramarathon Run

Abstract

Ultramarathons are becoming an increasingly popular endurance sport. Year after year, the demands on athletes’ skills and endurance increase. Ultramarathons are particularly taxing on athletes’ psychological functioning. This study assessed the relationships between taking part in a nighttime ultramarathon and changes in mood and cognitive functioning. The study included 20 experienced runners aged 26–57 (M = 37.29; SD = 7.94) who had M = 7.08, SD = 5.41 (range 3–44) years of experience running. There were 18 men and 2 women. The mood states were measured twice, just before the start of the run and shortly after crossing the finish line, using the Polish version of the UMACL UWIST Mood Adjective Checklist by Mathews, Chamberlain, and Jones. To assess cognitive functioning, the Stroop Color and Word Test and “Forward digit span” subtest from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale were used. We observed statistically significant changes in the mood of the runners: tense arousal, associated with the experienced stress, was significantly higher before the run than immediately after the finish. Moreover, we observed an improvement in cognitive functioning after finishing the 100 km run on both of the trials on the Stroop color word test and on the forward digit span test.

Effect of an Ultra-Endurance Event on Cardiovascular Function and Cognitive Performance in Marathon Runners

“…Owing to the influence of extreme physical and psychological demands of participating in an ultra-marathon event, we expected cognitive performance would decrease post-race. The current study contradicts previous work displaying prolonged physical fatigue may in fact result in a reduction of psychomotor and neuromuscular function; however, it does not necessarily have to be associated with mental fatigue and a reduction in cognitive functioning ( Wollseiffen et al, 2016 ; Krokosz et al, 2020 ). These studies showed no significant change in cognitive performance following prolonged exercise suggesting that enhanced physical conditioning may have an impact on the cognitive performance post-race; however, further empirical evidence is required.…”

The effects of sleep deprivation and extreme exertion on cognitive performance at the world-record breaking Suffolk Back Yard Ultra-marathon

“…Studies assessing cognitive performance in ultra-marathon field studies have used a plethora of diverse tools to assess cognitive performance. These include language control [ 26 ], problem solving [ 13 ], concentration and attention [ 13 , 16 , 17 ], reaction times [ 11 , 15 ] and executive function [ 11 , 12 , 15 , 26 ], with the latter three most frequently studied. The Stroop task has frequently been used as a measure of executive function in studies of cognitive performance in endurance events (two ultra-marathons [ 11 , 12 ] and one adventure race [ 27 ]) and in laboratory studies looking into the effects of sleep deprivation on athletes [ 28 ].…”

“…These include language control [ 26 ], problem solving [ 13 ], concentration and attention [ 13 , 16 , 17 ], reaction times [ 11 , 15 ] and executive function [ 11 , 12 , 15 , 26 ], with the latter three most frequently studied. The Stroop task has frequently been used as a measure of executive function in studies of cognitive performance in endurance events (two ultra-marathons [ 11 , 12 ] and one adventure race [ 27 ]) and in laboratory studies looking into the effects of sleep deprivation on athletes [ 28 ]. Reaction time has been used as an outcome measure both in field studies and in laboratory studies examining the impact of sleep deprivation in athletes [ 5 , 15 , 29 ].…”

“…Participants were asked to press the key assigned to the color and not the word. The primary outcome measures were Level 3 accuracy (%), Level 3 Reaction Time (ms) and the Interference Score (number of correct responses on level 3 minus the Predicted Color/Word Score), which reflects inhibitory control, the ability to ignore an automatic response to carry out a different action, and executive function [ 11 ].…”

“…Research on endurance sports in solo sailors [ 8 ], cyclists [ 9 ] and military events [ 10 ] has demonstrated lapses in attention, slower response times, poor mood and technical errors following sleep deprivation. Although the current literature base focusing on ultra-marathons has also shown conflicting results [ 11 – 13 ], races involving sleep deprivation have consistently reported a deterioration in cognitive performance [ 14 – 17 ]. However, few studies have assessed the impact of pre-race sleeping strategies on cognitive performance during ultra-marathons.…”