ASICS Global State of Mind Index
Global State of Mind Index is the research carried out by ASICS that demonstrates the positive link between active lifestyle and mental health. The research of the Japanese brand has indeed highlighted that only 15 minutes and 9 seconds of physical exercise is enough to improve mental well-being, showing the enormous beneficial impact that such a short activity can give.
State of Mind Index is a score on a scale of 100, calculated on the basis of accumulated average scores following ten cognitive and emotional aspects (including positivity, satisfaction, relax, concentration and composure). The study was conducted by Edelman Data & Insights and is based on a champion of 37,000 people coming from 16 different countries around the world, representative at national level by age, sex and region in every market. The research shows that people who make more physical activity are those with a higher score: those who practice sports have an average mental state score of 68/100, compared to only 56/100 for people who are instead inactive.
Global State of Mind Index has also highlighted the potentially worrying impact that poor levels of physical activity can have on younger generations around the world. In fact, youngest generations are those who carry out less movement. While older people (57+ years old) carry out a physical activity of almost an hour (53 minutes), reporting an average score of 67/100, only 45% of the people who belongs to Gen Z (18 – 24 years) do sports and, consequently, have an average State of Mind Index score much lower than the older counterpart (59/100).
Regarding specifically the Italian data, people who carry out physical activity obtained an average score of 62/100, compared to the result of 55/100 for non-active individuals. Overall, Italy has been among the countries with the lowest State of Mind Index and levels of activity, resulting significantly lower (29% on average of active people) compared to global data (52%). Also the scores attributed to the various generations are lower: 56/100 in Gen Z and 59/100 in the older generation.
Global population is convinced that you should do at least 30 minutes of exercise to see a positive impact on your mind, however, Dr. Brendon Stubbs, one of the main researchers on the relationship between physical exercise and mental health at London’s King’s College, told us that: “Our new research shows that only just about 15 minutes of movement are sufficient to perceive a benefit. Thanks to State of Mind Index we hope to push more people as possible to try and see that such a small amount of active lifestyle can lead to a great result.”
Following the results obtained by Global State of Mind Index, Asics decided to launch the 15:09 Uplift Challenge. The Challenge will take place in June and it invites everyone to move for 15:09 minutes in order to experience how strong is the link between constant sport and a positive mental health and how much a short physical exercise can give you in terms of mental well-being. The Challenge, led by the new young athletes of the Asics Team, will also see the participation of some historic athletes of the Japanese brand, such as Stefano Baldini, Marathon’s Olympic champion, US runner Deena Kastor, former Japanese volleyball player Yuki Mori, Olympic Marathon winner Mizuki Noguchi and UK former 10,000 World Champion Liz McColgan.
