Breaking Down ACRP

Active Choice Reaction Performance, or ACRP, is an important new area of sports performance that connects cognitive performance to physical performance. Many professional athletic teams have turned to training with cutting-edge devices to improve ACRP to get that competitive edge.^1-3

Very likely, your first question is: what is active choice reaction performance, or ACRP? Let’s break it down and define each aspect of ACRP to learn how it connects physical and cognitive performance.

1. Simple Reaction Time

The foundation of ACRP is simple reaction time: the time between a stimulus and a response. Let’s use a basketball analogy – if your opponent is about to take a shot and you jump to block it, the time between seeing their action and responding to it is your reaction time. When cognitive reaction time is tested in a lab, a subject is presented with stimuli (a shape, for example) on a computer screen and hits a key as soon as they see it.

2. Choice Reaction Time

Choice reaction time involves two or more stimuli that require different reactions. For example, a dip in your opponent’s shoulder means a drive to the basket, requiring you to shuffle to the left to stay in front of them, or a step back means a shot, requiring you to jump and block. In the lab, this is tested by having the subject press a left or right arrow when a left or right arrow is presented, as opposed to simple reaction time where a subject presses the spacebar every time any arrow is shown on the screen.  While the purely cognitive aspect of choice reaction time can be tested by computer-based methods, the physical aspect cannot since subjects are passive during testing.

3. Active Testing

Traditional reaction time testing is conducted under passive conditions in the laboratory: seated at a computer pressing buttons. However, sports performance is active – heart-pumping, adrenaline-fueled and whole body-engaging – and some data suggests the results of active testing (vs. passive) may translate better to sports performance.⁴ 

Sport-specific research studies have utilized new technologies and protocols to test for ACRP.^4-7 Many professional sports teams understand the importance of improving ACRP and have used several new tools to train their athletes. Across the board, professional basketball,^1-2 soccer,³ and baseball¹ teams have utilized devices such as the Makoto Arena II,¹ the FitLight Trainer² and the Batak Pro³ to improve hand-eye coordination and ACRP since those skills translate to improved performance on the field and court.

Supplementation with Neumentix^TM May Help ACRP

Training with cutting-edge technology at a world-class sports performance facility, however, is not the only way to improve ACRP. Recent research suggests the nootropic ingredient Neumentix can also help improve ACRP when taken in a daily supplement. Participants in a double-blind placebo controlled trial showed improvements in ACRP, measured by the Makoto Arena II, after 30 days of supplementation. Improvements were still present after 90 days of supplementation.7 These results were observed without additional training to improve ACRP during the study. In the future, athletes of all types may be taking nootropics for that extra edge. Neumentix may also benefit reactive agility for all adults. Something to consider next time you fail to catch your dropped phone.

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References:

1. Makoto USA - Physical Performance [http://www.makoto-usa.com/physical-performance-2/]

2. FitLight - Sports Training [https://www.fitlighttraining.com/sports-training/]

3. Batak Pro [http://www.batak.com/batakpro.htm]

4. Falcone PH, Tai C-Y, Carson LR, Joy JM, Mosman MM, Straight JL, Oury SL, Mendez Jr C, Loveridge NJ, Kim MP: Changes in cognitive function and sport-specific reaction time after active and passive dehydration. In Med Sci Sports Exerc. LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS 530 WALNUT ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19106-3621 USA; 2014: 880-880.

5. Hoffman JR, Kang J, Ratamess NA, Hoffman MW, Tranchina CP, Faigenbaum AD: Examination of a pre-exercise, high energy supplement on exercise performance. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 2009, 6:2.

6. Spradley BD, Crowley KR, Tai CY, Kendall KL, Fukuda DH, Esposito EN, Moon SE, Moon JR: Ingesting a pre-workout supplement containing caffeine, B-vitamins, amino acids, creatine, and beta-alanine before exercise delays fatigue while improving reaction time and muscular endurance. Nutr Metab (Lond) 2012, 9:28.

7. Falcone PH, Tribby AC, Vogel RM, Joy JM, Moon JR, Slayton C, Henigman M, Lasrado JA, Lewis B, Fonseca BA, et al: Efficacy of a Nootropic Spearmint Extract on Active Choice Reaction Performance: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel Trial. 2018.

8. Ito N, Yabe T, Gamo Y, Nagai T, Oikawa T, Yamada H, Hanawa T: Rosmarinic acid from perillae herba produces an antidepressant-like effect in mice through cell proliferation in the hippocampus. Biol Pharm Bull 2008, 31:1376-1380.

9. Falé PL, Borges C, Madeira PJA, Ascensão L, Araújo MEM, Florêncio MH, Serralheiro MLM: Rosmarinic acid, scutellarein 4′-methyl ether 7-O-glucuronide and (16S)-coleon E are the main compounds responsible for the antiacetylcholinesterase and antioxidant activity in herbal tea of Plectranthus barbatus (“falso boldo”). Food Chemistry 2009, 114:798-805.

10. Fallarini S, Miglio G, Paoletti T, Minassi A, Amoruso A, Bardelli C, Brunelleschi S, Lombardi G: Clovamide and rosmarinic acid induce neuroprotective effects in in vitro models of neuronal death. Br J Pharmacol 2009, 157:1072-1084.

11. Braidy N, Matin A, Rossi F, Chinain M, Laurent D, Guillemin G: Neuroprotective effects of rosmarinic acid on ciguatoxin in primary human neurons. Neurotoxicity research 2014, 25:226-234.