Effect of Brief Mindfulness and Relaxation Inductions on Anxiety, Affect and Brain Activation in Athletes

The athlete population has a high risk of suffering from mental health problems (e.g., anxiety), especially for athletes with individual sports. As such, various forms of mental training were used to maintain the mental health of athletes, such as mindfulness training or relaxation training. However, differences pertaining to the electrophysiological mechanisms resulting from both mental training in athletes are unknown. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to examine the differential effects between the brief mindfulness induction (MI) and relaxation induction (RI) on state anxiety, affect and the activation of the brain in track and field athletes.