Immediate effect of two yoga-based relaxation techniques on performance in a letter-cancellation task.

The performance in a six-letter cancellation task was assessed with 69 male volunteers, ages 18 to 48 years, immediately before and after two yoga-based relaxation techniques and a control session of equal duration. The techniques were Cyclic Meditation and Supine Rest. Cyclic Meditation consists of alternating cycles of yoga postures and supine rest. After both practices, the net scores were significantly higher, although the magnitude of change was more after Cyclic Meditation than after Supine Rest (24.9% versus 13.6%). There was reduction in scores for wrong cancellations after Cyclic Meditation and not after Supine Rest. The control group showed no change. The results suggest that Cyclic Meditation brings about a greater improvement in performance in this task, which requires selective attention, concentration, visual scanning abilities, and a repetitive motor response.