The Strength-Cognition Link in Youth: Age-Dependent Associations between Muscular Strength and Executive Function

Abstract

Executive function is important to children and adolescents as it enables planning, maintaining attention, self-regulation and adapting to new tasks.  The maturation of this cognitive domain is prolonged, so there is an extended time-window that allows its promotion (Ferguson et al., 2021). Similar to EF, muscular strength starts to develop in early childhood and remains trainable throughout lifespan. Due to this developmental overlap (García-Alonso et al., 2025), muscular strength has the potential to influence EF.  We aimed to examine whether higher muscular strength is related to better executive functioning and if this relation is moderated by age.

Our research question was addressed using data from healthy children and adolescents (5-21 years) of the Healthy Brain Network (HBN) cohort (Alexander et al., 2017). 348 participants completed selected cognitive tasks of the NIH Toolbox (Flanker, Card Sorting) and WISC-V (Digit Span Backward) to assess core components of cool executive functioning (inhibition, task-shifting, working memory updating). Furthermore, the Fitnessgram battery (curl up, push up, trunk lift) was administered to assess muscular strength.

Using structural equation modelling, we found that higher muscular strength was associated with better performance in EF tasks across all age groups. Age was strongly related to EF, reflecting developmental improvements throughout childhood and adolescence. A significant interaction between muscular strength and age indicated a stronger link between muscular strength and EF in younger children, decreasing by age.

Higher muscular strength is associated with higher scores in EF, but this link is moderated by age. This is a first indication that both domains do not co-develop uniformly across youth, highlighting a sensitive period in which physical fitness, especially muscular strength, may exert the greatest influence on cognition. Future longitudinal research should clarify how changes in strength contribute to trajectories of executive functioning throughout development.

References

Alexander, L. M., Escalera, J., Ai, L., Andreotti, C., Febre, K., Mangone, A., Vega-Potler, N., Langer, N., Alexander, A., Kovacs, M., Litke, S., O’Hagan, B., Andersen, J., Bronstein, B., Bui, A., Bushey, M., Butler, H., Castagna, V., Camacho, N., . . . Milham, M. P. (2017). An open resource for transdiagnostic research in pediatric mental health and learning disorders. Scientific Data, 4(1), Artikel 170181. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.181

Ferguson, H. J., Brunsdon, V. E. A., & Bradford, E. E. F. (2021). The developmental trajectories of executive function from adolescence to old age. Scientific Reports, 11(1), Artikel 1382. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-80866-1

García-Alonso, Y., Ramírez-Vélez, R., Legarra-Gorgoñon, G., Izquierdo, M., & Alonso-Martínez, A. M. (2025). Associations between physical fitness, physical activity, sedentary behavior and executive function in preschoolers. Pediatric Research, 98(4), 1492–1499. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-025-03946-w