How to choose the right music for your workout

We all know that a good playlist can make or break your workout

. The right song and indeed the right playlist can push you through those last few reps and propel you faster and further than you have run before.

So, how can you ensure that you’re picking the right tunes for your session?

Andrew Lane is a Professor of Sport Psychology at the University of Wolverhampton, who is accredited from the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) for scientific support and research and Chartered Psychologist with the British Psychological Society. He says that music performance is highly personal, but once you get to know the key principles for selecting motivational music, you can create a playlist that can see you excel in your chosen field.

‘Music can help you with everything from psyching you up, to managing anxiety, or helping you to relax,’ he says. ‘Music with inspiring lyrics can help you connect to memories when you were strong, powerful and determined to manifest similar qualities.’

And it’s not just psychological benefits. ‘One of the most powerful and commonly supported findings is that motivational music reduces how hard exercise feels,’ he says. ‘It also helps adherence — helping you to train harder, though it feels easier, reducing feelings of fatigue.

‘Music can also help with motor coordination, especially when your movements are synchronised to a beat. This effect is heightened when people exercise together, eg; rowing, cycling etc. It’s great for teaching you to pace yourself. It’s also great for diverting your feelings away from tiredness or boredom, which can arise through repetitive actions.’

This all sounds great for your morning workout, but how exactly do you go about choosing the right songs to achieve these results? Andrew says a good starting point would be to ask yourself exactly what you want to achieve from the session.

‘What do you want the music to do?’ he asks. ‘Do you want the music to energise you, or build a faster pace? Pick songs that have a solid beat and make sure there’s some sort of rhythm to your playlist so you can synchronise your movements.

‘For longer workouts, choose songs that have a steady and similar tempo to build up a consistent pace. And select songs that have personal meaning for inspiration.’

Work out your playlist – Professor Andrew Lane’s recommends the best music selection for yoga or the gym

According to Spotify data, during 2020 when Brits swapped their gyms for living rooms, over 385,000 workout playlists were created or updated on the site.

‘Audio plays a huge role in our lives, nowhere more so that in fitness,’ says Sara Sersadic, senior music editor at Spotify. ‘Music has the ability to evoke powerful emotional responses and have a significant effect on our mood and the right music can push fitness boundaries.’

The Swedish audio streaming service now has over 365million monthly active users and has recently released a new fitness microsite called Pumped. This allows everyone to create a free personalised HIIT workout by answering quick questions such as workout space, intensity level and music style. The sessions are then soundtracked by their favourite artists and voiced by celebrity ‘coaches’ such as Tolly T from The Receipts and Dani Dyer, to keep up their motivation.

Here are some suggestions from Professor Andrew Lane to help you build the perfect workout playlist…

For Hiit: Dance

‘Humans have an innate response to rhythm, especially tempo (measured in beats per minute) and dance music is characterised by its high tempo (120bpm). A study by Professor Costas Karageorghis et al (2011) examined preference for music tempo over a wide range of exercise intensities and the exercise heart rate-music tempo preference relationship. In simple terms, increases in exercise intensity were matched by increasing preferences for faster music.’

Try: Jonasu: Black Magic [124bpm] Tom Zanetti: Didn’t Know [126bpm] Rain Radio & DJ Craig Gorman: Talk About [124bpm] Becky Hill: Last Time [124bpm]

For running: Rap

‘Music has been found to be particularly helpful for runners. When we work with runners, we are often looking to improve their stride rate, either to run faster or change their running style, often as a response to injury. A track of 160 beats per minute is suitable for slow or recovery runs, while for faster sessions, we encourage a higher stride rate, 180-200, or even 220. As music choice is personal, select songs that motivate you and have personal meaning,’ says Andrew.

Try: Rick Ross: Stay Schemin (feat. Drake and French) [162bpm] Logic: Perfect [160bpm] Stormzy: Big For Your Boots [175bpm] Tay-K: The Race [160bpm] Post Malone: Paranoid [160bpm]

For yoga: Classical

‘Yoga is typically performed at a low heart rate and classical music complements this well. The complexity and layering within classical music help the mind to not wander, meaning you can also get similar benefits to meditation as it allows you to switch off almost completely. Classical music that works for yoga is piano music, from composers like Ludovico Einaudi.’

Try: Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending [75bpm] Neil Cowley: Tramlines [68bpm] Ludovico Einaudi: Le Onde [106bpm] Isobel Waller-Bridge: Illuminations [68bpm]

Weight-training: Rock

‘Those doing weight training can benefit from listening to rock music, which psyches you up, through both lyrics and music. Rock has a steady pace (110-140 BPM) but usually a high level of musical intensity, which can give people that extra motivation to push hard and generate explosive power from their muscles. However, the benefits of listening to rock music are only really found by people who enjoy it, so an alternative could be to listen to music that gets your pulse racing, such as R&B and songs about love, as this has a similar effect.’

Try: Måneskin: I Wanna Be Your Slave [133bpm] Royal Blood: Trouble’s Coming [112bpm] YONAKA: Seize The Power [134bpm] Bon Jovi: It’s My Life [120bpm]

For hiking: Indie

‘When hiking, pick relatively relaxed music (100bpm). Ben Howard and The Kooks’ music is uplifting and emotive, and allows you to switch off. Nature has restorative effects, so listening to relaxing indie music can enhance your surroundings.’

Try: The Kooks: She Moves In Her Own Way [76bpm] Ben Howard: Keep Your Head Up [79bpm] Jake Bugg: Simple As This [97bpm] Munya: Pour Toi [95 bpm] Cassia: Slow [90bpm]

Do you have a story to share?

Get in touch by emailing [email protected].

How to get your Metro newspaper fix

Metro newspaper is still available for you to pick up every weekday morning or you can download our app for all your favourite news, features, puzzles… and the exclusive evening edition!

Download the Metro newspaper app for free on App Store and Google Play

Source: Read Full Article