Effects of an 8-Week Neuroscience-Based Exercise Program on Brain Activity, Visual Attention, and Performance in Professional Female Volleyball Players Aged 16 to 21

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying how an 8-week neuro-athletic exercise training program affects brain activity, focus, decision-making, and sport-specific fitness in professional female volleyball players aged 16 to 21. This study includes 24 licensed players from the Turkish Volleyball Federation Womens Volleyball League 2 and 3, divided randomly into two groups. The trial aims to understand if combining neuroscience-based exercises with regular training improves athletic performance and cortical activation compared to regular training alone. The intervention group will participate in an 8-week program with sessions 3 days per week, including eye warm-up exercises and volleyball-specific visual and motor coordination activities such as Saccade and Anti-Saccade stations, Smart Optometry, Brock String, Star Chart, and Pinhole Glasses Small Area Game. These sessions are added to their regular volleyball training. The control group continues their usual training with matched total training time but without the neuro-athletic exercises. Participants will be assessed before starting and after completing the 8-week program. Assessments include measuring visual attention and decision-making during a serve task using a wearable eye-tracking system and monitoring brain oxygenation in the frontal cortex with functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Physical fitness tests such as agility, serve speed, vertical jump, balance, and flexibility will also be conducted. The study tracks changes in brain function and athletic ability to evaluate the impact of the neuro-athletic training.

Neuroscience-Based Exercise Training in Female Volleyball Players