Photo By Chungshen Chang | In May 2025, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research launched the “Push Ups for...... read more read more
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In May 2025, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research launched the “Push Ups for the Mind” application, which guides app users on a path to improve their attention and performance.
The app’s development was funded by the Center for Traumatic Stress at the Uniformed Services University and the Henry Jackson Foundation. The initiative was co-led by Dr. Amy Adler, a senior scientist at WRAIR, and Col. Vincent Capaldi, program director of the combined internal medicine and psychiatry residence at the Uniformed Services University. The app was created by Dr. Amishi Jha, a neuroscientist and expert in mindfulness. Dr. Jha developed the methodology behind the app through more than two decades of research on attention.
“Attention is a currency,” said Dr. Jha. “We need to spend it to be fully present in all aspects of our lives: professional and personal. But our attention is limited and vulnerable to distraction. Research shows that mindfulness training is a powerful method for protecting and strengthening attention.”
Mindfulness is a cognitive skill – the ability to pay attention to the present moment without emotional reactivity so you can take in your surroundings and make deliberate decisions. Mindfulness training involves exercises that enhance the ability to use this skill.
“Even though everyone has the capacity to be mindful, we can’t always access that ability,” said Dr. Jha. “We know that the demands on our attention in daily life are immense, especially when engaging in complex and technical work – and as demands ramp up, demands on our attention increase too. ‘Pushups for the Mind.mil’ was designed as a brain training tool to help everyone better meet those demands.”
The app is free for U.S. Service Members. Once downloaded from the app store, “Pushups for the Mind.mil” starts with foundational lessons on attention and mindfulness. These podcast-like discussions briefly explain the science behind each mindfulness exercise. The app then guides users on a training path to strengthen their attention with daily mindfulness exercises. Prior research with high-stakes occupations like the military has shown that practicing these exercises for as little as 12 minutes a day can improve focus, mood, and performance.
“This app puts cutting-edge, evidence-based training at the fingertips of the service member,” said Col. Capaldi. “Pushups for the Mind can make mindfulness practice a real and practical part of daily life for service members.”
The app is available to everyone, but it was designed for a specific audience: the service member. The app provides exercises, puts mindfulness in a military context, and helps build habits that strengthen their attention.
“At WRAIR, we are excited to make mindfulness training easily accessible for service members,” said Dr. Adler. “This project allows us to demystify mindfulness and transform it into a life tool to strengthen the personal, military, and professional lives of service members.”
| Date Taken: | 08.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 08.27.2025 09:56 |
| Story ID: | 546552 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 271 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, WRAIR launches “Pushups for the Mind.mil” app to improve Warfighter performance, by Zeke Gonzalez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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