Imagery Training in REM Sleep and Lucid Dreaming and the Optimisation of Motor Memory Consolidation in Athletes: A Narrative Review

Summary

Lucid dream practice may enhance motor learning in athletes by allowing for mental rehearsal during sleep, potentially improving performance comparably to waking mental practice. The synthesis of evidence suggests that while motor imagery activates brain networks similar to actual movement, lucid dreaming engages specific brain regions linked to movement. However, low frequency of lucid dreaming and limited controlled studies indicate that this approach should be used cautiously in athletic training and rehabilitation.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Background: Motor learning in competitive sport relies not only on physical practice but also on the offline reorganisation of memory traces during sleep. Waking motor imagery is a recognised ergogenic adjunct, while recent work suggests that mental rehearsal may be extended into the sleeping brain through lucid dreaming, a state in which the dreamer becomes aware of dreaming while remaining physiologically asleep. Aim: To synthesise neurophysiological, behavioural and applied evidence on motor imagery, sleep-dependent memory consolidation and lucid dream practice, and to consider its potential as a complementary modality in athletic training and rehabilitation. Material and methods: A narrative search of peer-reviewed publications was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar through 2024. Empirical and theoretical works on motor imagery, sleep-dependent consolidation, lucid dreaming neurobiology and lucid dream practice in athletic contexts were retained and synthesised. Results: Motor imagery seems to engage cortical and subcortical networks largely overlapping with those recruited during overt action, whereas slow-wave sleep and REM may support procedural memory through hippocampal–neocortical dialogue and neural replay. Lucid REM sleep has been linked with partial reactivation of prefrontal regions and with cardiovascular, ocular and electromyographic correlates of dreamed movement. Preliminary studies suggest that lucid dream practice may improve subsequent waking performance comparably to waking mental practice. Conclusions: Lucid dream practice may represent a complementary, low-physical-load modality with potential applications in rehabilitation, tapering and pre-competition stress management. Low lucid dream frequency, variable induction reliability and few controlled trials in elite samples call for cautious implementation.

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