The Effects of Brain Breaks on Dynamic Balance in University Students

April 23, 2026 updated by: Mengyuan Zhao, Anhui Medical University

Effects of Brain-Breaks on Physical Activity, Emotional Regulation, Sleep, Resilience, Academic Self-efficacy and Attention Among Chinese University Students.

The goal of this study is to learn if an online physical activity program called "Brain Breaks" can improve well-being among university students. It will also explore how physical activity relates to dynamic balance, emotion regulation, and resilience.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does the Brain Breaks program increase students' dynamic balance? Does it affect emotion regulation, or resilience?

Researchers will compare a group that does Brain Breaks activities to a group that does not, to see if the program has positive effects.

Participants will:

Take part in an 8-week program If in the Brain Breaks group, do short 5-10 minute physical activity videos, five times per week

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

103

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • China
    • Jiangsu
      • Yancheng, Jiangsu, China, 224000
        • Jiangsu Vocational College Of Medicine

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Full-time university students aged 18-26 years
  • Able to stand and walk independently
  • Willing to participate in the 8-week intervention and assessments

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Self-reported history of lower extremity injury or surgery in the past 6 months
  • Diagnosed neurological or vestibular disorders affecting balance
  • Regular participation in structured balance or physical activity training outside the study
  • Any medical condition that prevents safe performance of physical activity

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Control Group
Experimental: Brain Breaks Group
Other: Brain Breaks Intervention
Participants in the intervention group will engage in "Brain Breaks" - short, structured physical activity breaks delivered via video. Each session lasts 5-10 minutes and includes movements such as jumping jacks, marching in place, and dynamic stretching. The intervention will be performed once per day, 5 times per week, for a total of 8 weeks. The videos are designed to be fun and engaging, requiring no additional equipment.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Sway path length measured by BioFlex FP system
Time Frame: Baseline, week 8
Sway path length (in cm) of the centre of pressure during balance assessment.
Baseline, week 8
Sway area measured by BioFlex FP system
Time Frame: Baseline, week 8
Sway area (in cm²) of the centre of pressure.
Baseline, week 8
Mean velocity of centre of pressure in AP and ML directions
Time Frame: Baseline, week 8
Mean velocity (in cm/s) in anterior-posterior and medial-lateral directions.
Baseline, week 8

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Anhui Medical University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

October 14, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 9, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

December 9, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 8, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 16, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

April 23, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 28, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 23, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 22040240

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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