Use 5 min breaks wisely

Back in the 1990’s a guy named Dr. Mark Rosekind ran the Fatigue Countermeasures Program at NASA.
To big amazement back then, he discovered that a 26-minute nap could boost NASA-pilots performance by an amazing 34%!

The Fatigue Countermeasures Program tested the impact of short “power naps”, and the findings were eye-opening: a tiny window of rest not only sharpened reaction times but also improved alertness by over 50%.

But, can you convince your boss that 26 minutes of sleep after lunch will increase his bottom line..?

Last week’s featured article showed that a single 22-minute meditation session could work wonders – even for first-time meditators.

However, you might not need either 26 mins of nap of 22-minutes of Loving-kindness meditation.
Today’s insights is drawn from the scientific article:

“The Effectiveness of Short Meditation on Attentional Performance: A Quick Classroom Activity”

Takeaways:

⏱️ Use small breaks to foster mental sharpness

Even just 5 minutes of focused breathing meditation can significantly improve attention and reaction times. This simple practice could easily fit into a busy workday, helping you stay sharp and productive all day long.

😴 Relaxation matters—but meditation is superior

The study shows, that you don’t even have to do a meditation – simple relaxation is also effective!

👨‍💻 Implement a short meditation or relaxation session at work. 

The study shows that after a meditation session, participants achieved better cognitive performance measure on a PVT test.
When you implement this to your workday, you could check your performance on the PVT-test before and after your meditation session. 

Go to your resources site and navigate to “tests” 

Let’s learn about this study:

_{Disclaimer: This summary is based on the article “The Effectiveness of Short Meditation on Attentional Performance: A Quick Classroom Activity” by Ren Guerriero, Shreyas Joshi & Bruce F. O’Hara and aims to provide key takeaways and a condensed overview of its content. While the essence is drawn from the original article, some parts have been simplified or rephrased to enhance understanding. Please note that we at, OptiMindInsights or any other potential writers or contributors to our summaries, do not accept responsibility for any consequences arising from the use of this summary. The information provided should not be considered a substitute for personal research or professional advice. Readers are encouraged to consult the original article for detailed insights and references. The summary does not include references, but they can typically be found within the original publication. Always exercise due diligence and consider your unique circumstances before applying any information in your personal or professional life. We refer to the creative commons for reproducibility rights.}

The study in a nutshell:

In this study the authors investigated the effects of a 5-minute focused breathing meditation on attentional performance in undergraduate students. The attentional performance was measured using the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT).

The findings showed an improvement in reaction time during the PVT-test. Moreover, the sleep duration from the night before had no influence on the results.

The study was conducted on students and the authors combined the meditation sessions with education about how meditation affects the brain. This approach reflects a principle we’ve previously investigated at OptiMindInsights: how learning about the effects of a strategy enhances the impact of practicing it.

What they did:

What the authors found out:

The above illustrated investigation was repeated over multiple academic years, divided into cohorts:

2015-2016 cohort with 186 students.

2016-2017 cohort with 102 students.

2018-2019 cohortewith 41 students

Overall Findings:

Across all participants, reaction times improved significantly after the 5-minute meditation session, with an average decrease in the PVT reaction time of 26 milliseconds (p < 0.0001). 
65.8% of participants showed faster reaction times post-meditation.

Cohort Analysis:

2015-2016 cohort: Showed an average improvement of 13.2 milliseconds in reaction times.

2016-2017: cohort demonstrated the largest average improvement of 59.6 milliseconds.

2018-2019: Cohort showed a smaller but significant improvement of 7.5 milliseconds.

Control Activity:

In 2019, a subset of participants engaged in a 5-minute sedentary activity (e.g., sitting quietly) instead of meditation. This group experienced an average improvement of 15 milliseconds,  suggesting that relaxation alone has positive effects. 

Actually, this decrease in reaction time is larger than both the 2015-2016 and 2018-2019 cohort, but that large effect measured in the 2016-2017 cohort makes the average effect of meditation more substantial than the effect of relaxation. 

It’s difficult to determine whether this is due to a broader impact of meditation, specific to the 2016-2017 cohort, or influenced by other factors affecting the measurement. However, one thing is clear: both meditation and relaxation are effective!

What can we learn from this study?

This week’s study shows that even a short 5-minute focused breathing meditation can significantly improve attentional performance.

Moreover, a control group doing simpel relaxation also showed improvements, suggesting that both meditation and relaxation could be effective strategies for improving mental performance.

These findings highlight meditation's potential to enhance cognitive performance. And importantly for us, it shows that even a 5 minute session is enough to obtain real results - and like last week, it shows that it can be measured immediately. 

This is short enough that I believe most people would be able to include this into their hectic workday, and thereby improve their performance and likely impress their boss.

Quick Answers to Your Top of Mind Questions 🙋‍♂️

🙋‍♀️ How effective is a 5-minute meditation for improving attention?

A 5-minute focused breathing meditation significantly improves reaction times, with most participants showing measurable gains in attentional performance.

🙋‍♂️ Can relaxation alone enhance cognitive performance?

Yes, the study shows that even a sedentary activity like sitting quietly improved reaction times, though meditation, on average, was more effective (due to a large effect of the 2016-2017 cohort).

🙋‍♀️ How can this practice be integrated into a busy professional routine?

A brief meditation or quiet relaxation can be easily incorporated into short breaks. When others go for a smoke (if that still a thing), you could go for a 5 min sit in quietness and come back sharper.

_{Finishing statement: At OptiMindInsights we respect the contributions of researchers and aim to make scientific findings more accessible. Our summaries are prepared with care to comply with the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License and other applicable terms.If you believe any part of our content does not meet these standards or if you have any concerns, please contact us at [email protected]m. Your input is crucial in helping us maintain respect and accuracy in our work.
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