I didn't get a ton of sleep last night, I went to bed at my usual time so an hour later, due to the time change and several sets of tiny feet came in at their usual time this morning, an hour 'earlier' due to the time change. Such is life!
I started my workout and after 15 minutes was too tired to continue and listening to talk radio wasn't helping. I'm an admitted NPR addict but it's not exactly conducive to inspiring one to rock out to a cardio fitness regime.
I switched to fast music and went for 40 minutes solid. This was the longest I've done with this cardio workout (my usual would be 30 mins) and felt great - all because of the fast 'fitness' type music I was listening too. For one, the upbeat tempos and enjoyment of the songs urge one to continue and secondly, I kept telling myself 'one more song' and on I went. My kids rocked out too.
Music and exercise are like cheese cake and coffee (bad analogy when talking exercising and keeping in shape). I looked into this a little bit today, after my not-so-starling realization that talk radio and fitness weren't best paired (and how had I not realized this before?) Studies have shown that uptempo, upbeat, loud (ish) music during exercise help a person go longer - and stronger.
Apparently, music with beats between 120 and 140 per second work best for cardio/aerobic routines, with heavy metal music preferred in weight rooms. Groups ranging from Wham! to Green Day to LL Cool J to Metallica have been cited as exerciser favorites. Gyms have fitness CDs programmed and piped through to exercise classes and CDs are available for sale, based on favorite tunes that the masses recommend for working out.
For more on this topic, click here
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/01/10/europe/fitness.php?page=1
...and don't be afraid to let current events radio take a back seat to some pop, hip hop or metal, when you hit the gym.
Tell Us
Does music inspire to your work out harder? What's your music of choice?
All user-generated information on this site is the opinion of its author only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions. Members and guests are responsible for their own posts and the potential consequences of those posts detailed in our Terms of Service.
Add a Comment2 Comments
I agree, music and movement (of any kind) seen to go together like peas in a pod (healthier analogy than Susan's, ha ha).
I worked out on a treadmill this AM at the Y, and the music was great and kept me going; I also pushed myself further than if I had no music.
Well, that is until they played REM's "Everybody Hurts" and I started thinking about my legs hurting, then my lung, then my side... I may have to talk with them about their choice of songs.
November 4, 2008 - 2:53pmThis Comment
Susan, I'm totally there with you.
I don't exercise at home, I exercise at a gym. But I take my Ipod (used to be a Walkman CD player) and find that I always exercise harder, better and longer if I'm listening to music. You're right, the "one more song" philosophy gets you through a lot of minutes!!
Our gym has television sets where the volume is down (due to gym music) but the words are all in closed caption. From time to time I'll turn off my music and watch something on the televisions, maybe The View," but I find that I am never as motivated to keep going.
This works with housecleaning, too!!
November 4, 2008 - 9:24amThis Comment