ABSTRACT
Mens sana in corpore sano. This quotation from the Roman poet Juvenal summarizes the common belief that a bond between physical health and cognition exists. The interest in the relation between physical activity and cognition started to grow when scientists first examined motor development. Development is a continuous phenomenon that occurs mostly during the early years of human life. The 'maturational perspective' of development dominated the first half of the 20th century; development was considered an internal or innate process guided by a biological and genetic clock controlling maturation of the central nervous system and development of the musculoskeletal system. Executive functions are a group of interrelated top-down mental processes responsible for selection, scheduling, coordination and monitoring of goal-directed processes regulating perception, memory and action. The practice of physical activity is believed to lead to improvement of motor skills and competencies with several beneficial effects on present and future health, as well as on psychological constraints of the child.
