I don’t know about you but when I grab my iPod and go for a run and find out the battery is dead my motivation to workout is disappears! No question, music is a HUGE motivator for exercise. Not only will thinking about listening to great tracks get you pumped up for your workout, but the tunes themselves can actually help you increase your workout intensity and duration to get better results.

We all know music affects your mood. If you listen to a sad song you might feel depressed, but if you listen to a track that’s intense and upbeat, you’ll feel motivated to tackle the day. The same is true for exercise: the harder the rock, the harder you’ll want to pump up your intensity. Music also keeps your mind stimulated and distracted while you’re exercising so it’s less likely you get bored, and it makes your routines more fun and positive. But pick your tunes carefully. Listening to a disc full of Yanni isn’t likely to help you exert yourself, but blasting a mix of Gorillaz and dance music like ABBA could inspire you to extend your weight training time by 10 minutes or push yourself to turn in a few 7-minute miles instead of your usual 8-minute miles. This isn’t just my opinion, it is a proven fact!

When choosing music for your workouts, pay special attention to the beats per minute (BPM) of the songs you pick. If you don’t know the BPM of the tunes on your iPod, you can download software like BeatScanner to calculate them for you or can find them yourself by tapping the beats 15 seconds of a song on your leg and multiplying that number by 4. Here’s an example: Say you like to rock out to the Beatles when doing cardio and you jump rope for a few minutes while listening to “A Hard Day’s Night,” which has a BPM of about 72. If you wanted to increase your intensity and number of jumps, you could switch your next song to “Help!” which has a BPM of closer to 100. The higher BPM, the higher your heart rate so you essentially kill two birds with one stone.

The tempo of fast, pulsing music can help you exert more effort and you may end up finishing your workout at a 30% higher intensity level because of the songs you chose to play. You can even use this as a planning tool to help you achieve goals too. Try playing a couple of slower songs during your warm-up, then transitioning into faster tunes for your main workout. Pick songs with a higher BPM than your normal tunes if you want to pump up your intensity or duration of your workout. Finding the extended dance version of a favorite song can be an ideal solution.

Here are some examples:

• For lifting weights and doing strength training try hard rock music.
• Go with fast, pulsing music for cardio. You’ll be inspired to do more without taking as many breaks. “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers is a great song for cardio. It has about 150 BPM, a good high-intensity workout pace.
• For jogging and running try songs with steady, quick beats. Bubblegum Pop and top-40 music (think Taylor Swift and Kanye West) are good choices.

Remember to vary your playlists and song picks so you won’t get bored. And if you love a slow song and want to try it for a cardio workout, go for it! You can always operate at twice the rhythm of its BPM or use it for a cool down. Same with fast songs if you need to take things down a notch, just try working out at half the song’s natural BPM.

If you need more ideas, check out the playlist sections in my book No Gym Required or the links to iTunes playlists on my Web site (www.nogymrequired.com). I have playlists for warm-ups, cardio, and body toning.

Crank it up, and have fun!

Jen

ON 944