Music is an excellent way to energize your body as you work out. Any physical activity that involves a repetitive or continuous motion like running, rowing, weightlifting, or pedaling can greatly benefit from the addition of motivating music.
Here are some of the benefits that adding music can bring to your workout:
Focus – Adding music and the accompanying earbuds or headphones allows you to tune out your surroundings while chit-chatting with others in the gym. While this may seem antisocial, it allows you to focus on your training and complete your workout in less time and with more intensity. Adding music to your repetitive exercises means that your focus is on the music rather than the aches and pains that are a part of your running, weightlifting, rowing, and cycling.
Motivation – Music is a great motivator, and it can encourage you to push through one last agonizing repetition or that last lap on the track. All you need to achieve a new fitness level is to discover exercise music that stimulates your mind and body. Your choice of workout music should complement your personality, your attitude, and your mood during training. If you don’t like to exercise, but you enjoy music, combining the two will make you more likely to continue your program.
Relaxation – Music can help connect your mind and body, particularly relaxation sessions with soothing music that can sync your mind with your body. When stretching or practicing yoga, you may benefit from listening to more Zen sounds such as rain forest or waterfall soundtracks. A yoga meditation experience can include background tribal chants with synthesized ambient undertones.
Picking songs for your workout playlist
The songs you choose to play during your workout, depending on the type of workout you want to do and your own taste in music. In general, songs that work well on playlists have a steady and fast beat. The best tunes are those that have around 120-140 beats per minute (BPM). You can calculate the BPM by simply counting, or you can use available software or phone apps. The style of music is really up to you. When selecting workout music:
- Focus on your favorite type of music. Start with music that you regularly listen to. You will be familiar with the songs in these areas and can easily determine which ones you would like to listen to while exercising and which ones you would not.
- Pick a variety of music. Up-tempo music will help to get your energy up and keep you engaged in your exercise. Mellow music helps to keep you at a moderate pace, which aids in longevity. For some people, listening to the same tempo of music during a workout makes them lose focus, so keep this in mind when you are picking workout music.
- Venture out into other genres. If you are not familiar with other music types, a fabulous tip is to look at the top playlists of radio stations. These lists can be found online or by simply listening to the radio. Sample the songs to see if some of them are worth adding to your workout music collection.