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THE EFFECT OF MINDFULNESS TRAINING ON MUSCULAR ENDURANCE PERFORMANCE, MINDFULNESS, AND MENTAL TOUGHNESS

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Mindfulness training, increasingly popular among performance-based populations such as athletes, equips individuals with strategies to manage both mental and physical stress by altering their perception of stressful events. Increased mindfulness has been associated with elevated levels of mental toughness, a valuable trait involving how well an individual copes with stressors. While mindfulness training has resulted in increased aerobic endurance performance, it has not been investigated in a similar exercise modality, muscular endurance. Additionally, both mindfulness and mental toughness may be valuable in highly fatiguing and stressful activities, such as muscular endurance performance. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of a mindfulness meditation on muscular endurance performance, mindfulness, and mental toughness. METHODS: A total of 24 male and female participants between the ages of 18 and 30 will be recruited for participation in this study. This study will use a quasi-experimental design with randomized conditions. All participants will complete two sessions, a week apart, of three sets of planks. The planks will go until volitional exhaustion and will be separated by 30 seconds of rest. The first session will include baseline assessments of mindfulness and mental toughness and the repeated planks. The second session will randomly allocate participants into a mindfulness meditation group and an audiobook group. Participants will complete the assigned activity, each lasting 5 minutes, before completing a series of three planks. Mindfulness will be assessed using the Toronto Mindfulness Scale (TMS) and mental toughness will be assessed using the Mental Toughness Index (MTI). The TMS and MTI will both be administered at baseline and after each experimental condition to detect changes due to mindfulness meditation. Additionally, the TMS will be administered before both experimental conditions to detect how stable mindfulness is between sessions. Immediately following each plank, RPE will be assessed. A 2X2 repeated measures ANOVA will be used to determine differences in muscular endurance, mindfulness, and mental toughness between groups. ANTICIPATED RESULTS: It is hypothesized that mindfulness meditation will positively impact muscular endurance, mindfulness, and mental toughness.

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