Use Music to Tune Up a Workout
The right songs can put you in a better frame of mind, make a hard workout seem easier, and help you pick up the pace.
by Steve Cline
 Some music is forever linked to athletics. Consider “Gonna Fly Now,” the theme from Rocky; “Chariots of Fire;” or Olivia Newton John’s “Let’s Get Physical” (OK, only if you still put on leg warmers to work out).
The playlist of inspiring tunes is longer than you might think. While certain types of music can aid your endurance, research suggests that whatever music you enjoy—even a Lawrence Welk polka—can help you exercise better.
One way music can affect your workout is by aiding your mood.
“Music enhances the positive aspects of mood: excitement, happiness, relaxation,” says Costas Karageorghis, Ph.D., an associate professor of sports psychology at Brunel University in England. “It also reduces the negative aspects: tension, fatigue, anxiety.”
Most of us tap this effect when we use our favorite music to motivate us to exercise. “If you feel better about what you’re doing, then your performance is going to be better,” says Robert T. Herdegen, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia.
Dr. Herdegen helped conduct a study that put a dozen college students on exercise bikes and had them pedal as fast as they could for 10 minutes. Students who listened to music of their choice went 11 percent farther than those who rode in silence or listened to white noise.
Listening to music can even make a fairly hard workout seem easier.
Dr. Karageorghis has written numerous articles on the relationship between music and exercise. When you work out at less than 75 percent of your maximum, he says, pleasing background music results in a 10 percent decrease in perceived exertion. You focus on the music rather than how fast your heart is beating, how tired your muscles feel, and how deeply you are gulping for air.
However, the power of music to distract is limited. Work out at 75 percent or more of your maximum and the effect goes away. No matter how loud you blast your favorite song, your body will tell your brain it is working extremely hard.
For improved performance, the most effective workout music has a tempo you can synchronize to movement. Every beat matches a footfall (for runners or stair steppers) or turn of the pedal (for stationary bikers).
In untrained athletes, Dr. Karageorghis says, carefully coordinating music with movement can increase endurance as much as 15 to 20 percent by helping you maintain a steady rate. “In essence, the music helps you move more efficiently,” he says.
The key is to find songs that have a steady tempo and are upbeat enough to keep you moving. A good deal of popular music is recorded at 120 to 140 beats per minute (BPM), roughly the tempo you need for a good workout. You can use songs with a slower beat by moving double time—for example, two footfalls per beat while running.
Thanks to the Web, learning the BPM of a song is easy. The BPM Database (http://bpmdatabase.com) lists the BPM for nearly 24,000 songs. And at JogTunes (http://jogtunes.com), you can find sample playlists for different workouts.
You can get creative with your workout mix. You can vary the BPM to add warm-up and cool-down periods. You can mix in short, high-BPM songs for intense bursts of exercise.
Finding a balance between your favorite artists and BPM is the key, Dr. Herdegen says. “Pick stuff with the right tempo, but make sure it’s stuff you like.”
Dr. Herdegen cautions that workout music should not distract you from potential hazards. “I would never use it if I was biking on the road or running on the road,” he says.
| Stroll Walking |
3.0 to 3.2
mph |
115 to
118 |
Blondie, "Heart of Glas" |
Easy Fitness
Walking |
3.3 to 3.5
mph |
118 to
121 |
Vanilla Ice, "Ice Ice Baby" |
Moderate Fitness
Walking |
3.6 to 4.0
mph |
124 to
126 |
ZZ Top, "Sharp Dressed Man" |
Fast Fitness
Walking |
4.0 to 4.3
mph |
130 to
138 |
ACDC, "You Shook Me All Night Long" |
| Power Walking |
4.3 to 4.5
mph |
137 to
139 |
Nirvana, "Drain You" |
| Jogging |
5.2 to 6.0
mph |
147 to
150 |
Vince Gill, "Next Big Thing" |
| Running |
6.0 to 8.0
mph |
147 to
160 |
Beatles, "I Saw Her Standing There" |
Moderate
Cycling |
60 to 70 rpm |
139 to 145 |
Prince, "Baby I'm a Star" |
| Fast Cycling |
75 to 80 rpm |
147 to 150 |
Billy Joel, "We Didn't Start the Fire" |
| Stairclimbing |
|
124 to 128 |
Elton John, "Philadelphia Freedom" |
| Elliptical Machine |
|
124 to
128 |
The Gap Band,"You Dropped a Bomb on Me" | |
|