The effects of pre-task music on choice visual reaction time in elite taekwondo athletes

Objectives The effects of music on sport performance mainly involved endurance or resistance exercises overlooking possible effects on reaction time, which is deemed essential in martial arts for a proficient performance. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the exposure to pre-task music on choice visual reaction time in elite Taekwondo athletes. Design Repeated measure study design. Methods Reaction time and mean Heart Rate (HR mean ) were recorded in twenty young taekwondo athletes (17.5 ± 2.5 years old) while performing a roundhouse kick in response to different visual stimuli after three warm-up conditions: listening to self-selected music (SM), research-selected music (RM) or no music (CC). Moreover, Feeling Scale (FS), Felt Arousal Scale (FAS) were recorded before (T 0 ) and after warm-up (T 1 ) in each testing session. Results SM and RM elicited significantly faster reaction times compared to CC (−3.3 % and − 5.2 %, respectively). No significant difference in reaction time was observed between SM and RM. The FS and FAS scores were significantly higher at T 1 compared to T 0 in the SM and RM conditions, whereas no difference between T 0 and T 1 was observed in the CC condition. No difference was observed for HR mean between SM, RM and CC conditions. Conclusions Listening to SM and RM during the warm-up, improved choice visual reaction times in elite taekwondo athletes. These results suggest the use of music as a performance-enhancing strategy prior to combat competition or training in martial arts.