Asics: Mind Race

The impact of physical inactivity on our mental state has been revealed for the first time in the Mind Race, an ASICS experiment to show just how important exercise is for our mental health. The ASICS campaign sees regular exercisers and athletes including Olympian, Ewan Thomas, stop exercising for one week to quantify the impact on our mental state - testing anecdotal evidence that 'when we don't move, our minds race'.
Agency: Golin
Led by Professor Brendon Stubbs, a leading researcher in movement and the mind, ASICS used its cutting-edge Mind Uplifter technology to measure the impact of movement on the mind, analysing data from thousands of people exercising in 21 countries and when they paused their regular exercise routines for just one week. The results were significant. After just one week without exercise, participants’ confidence levels dropped by 20%; positivity fell by 16%, mental energy levels slumped by 23% and their ability to cope with stress reduced by 22%. Overall State of Mind scores dropped from a high 68 out of 100 when physically active to a mediocre 55 out of 100. These negative mental effects were powerfully visualized in the Mind Race film - launched globally across Paid, Owned and Earned channels - which showed for the first time what a lack of movement looks like on the mind. But the Mind Race also provided good news. The global data showed that only 15.09 minutes of exercise is needed to significantly positively impact our mental state - even after periods of inactivity. The Mind Race campaign encourages the public to track their own mental uplift from returning to exercise using the Mind Uplifter technology, available for free at https://minduplifter.asics.com/