Background:

Current treatment of ADHD relies primarily on psychopharmacological interventions, which are not always sufficiently effective for all individuals. Physical exercise may serve as a valuable adjunct. In children and adolescents with ADHD, endurance-based exercise in particular appears to alleviate certain symptoms and support executive functioning. Findings in adults with ADHD remain scarce and neural explanations for these effects remain lacking. Furthermore, it remains unclear to what extent different training methods (continuous vs. interval) and exercise load characteristics (moderate vs. intense) influence outcomes. A deeper understanding of the exercise-induced mechanisms is essential for the evidence-based implementation of exercise as a therapeutic tool for adults with ADHD.

Methodology:

In a randomised, controlled crossover study, participants complete the following running protocols based on a graded exercise test: (1) moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) for 30 minutes, as well as two 20-minute, distance-matched interval runs (1 min × 1 min) at moderate intensity (MIIT) and high intensity (HIIT). Using a pre-post design, affective state, cognitive performance, and brain activity are recorded using electroencephalography (EEG).