Washington - You’re dressing for a morning run. Or about to climb on the elliptical for a high-energy workout. Or warming up before a weightlifting session. What’s the first thing you reach for? Your earbuds, naturally.
Studies have shown that listening to music that fits the cadence of what you’re doing – running, cycling, aerobics – makes you work harder.
“The metronome aspect, the synchronisation of movement to music, is the most important,” says Carl Foster, director of the Human Performance Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin.
The idea of synchronising movement to a beat is nothing new, he points out: in Roman galleys, the drumbeat drove the pace of the rowers. “But there is also the distraction and arousal that music brings,” Foster says. They both matter, but it’s unclear how much. “There’s definitely more buried in music that affects us. But we don’t know exactly how to tease it out.”
So, how to pick the “right” music?
If you want to make a workout mix based on tempo – or BPM, for beats per minute – various websites, including www.songbpm.com, can help you determine the tempo of your favourite music to see whether it fits your intended activity.
Or you can go to sites such as www.motiontraxx.com that offer playlists at a certain BPM for running and cycling as well as other activities.
Other sites include www.workoutmusic.com and www.powermusic.com.
“Music is positive energy,” says Deekron “the Fitness DJ” Krikorian, who produces fitness playlists for fitness music company MotionTraxx. “So when I put together playlists, I look for intensity, positive feeling and cohesiveness.”
If he finds a song that feels right in terms of mood and intensity but has the wrong tempo, he might manipulate the BPM to fit the type of exercise intended.
“The beat becomes very important any time there is repetitive movement,” Krikorian says. “Our instincts tell us to move to the beat. Our feet tell us to move to the beat.”
The ideal cadence for running is a hotly debated topic in the running world, and variations in stride length mean finding your ideal tempo could take a bit of experimentation.
Some sources say a BPM of 170; others go up to 200. Some suggest the ideal running cadence is in the 170s to 180s. And some studies show that faster may be better for injury prevention.
If that sounds like too much work, try a group fitness class; cycling, step and aerobics instructors have been leveraging the power of the beat for years.
Ingrid Nelson, a cycling instructor, says intensity, style and cadence are all important when putting together her playlists. “I like a lot of ’90s hip hop and usually stay in the range of 95 to 105 BPM,” Nelson says, aligning the beat to the cyclists’ revolutions per minute. But she might go as low as 80 or as high as 120 BPM for hills and sprints, respectively.
When drills are aligned with the beat, she says, participants “connect with music” and “relax into the pulse”.
As for other fitness activities, such as step aerobics, the tempo hovers around 130 BPM, says fitness instructor Harold Sanco. “You have to pick music that is both safe and effective,” he says. “If you are going too fast, you risk injury and you’re not working out effectively because you are not getting the full range of motion.”
But Sanco says music is important beyond tempo and genre; it also helps put participants in a lighter mood.
“Music can make people happy no matter what their day has been like,” he says. “It entertains and educates.”
Rachel Goldberg, an instructor at a cycle studio, says her music choices go beyond BPM, style and genre. She uses the phrasing of the music to get the most out of her rides.
“When you marry your body’s movements with the music it’s a more holistic experience,” she says. “You start flowing with the music.”
If there is a chorus or other recurring crescendos in the music, Goldberg might use those to increase the intensity.
“The music becomes your North Star – it guides you.”
It also distracts you – something many of us have relied on during a long treadmill workout.
Cedric Bryant, chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise, says this is the aspect of music that resonates the most with him. “I enjoy using music as a distraction,” he says, adding that music can keep you going no matter how tired you are.
Distraction, whether it be music or even a comedy show, can be helpful in a workout – at least in the beginning, Foster says.
That’s where the importance of the beat and arousal come in. “After about 20 minutes or so, Larry the Cable Guy is not enough to keep us going,” says Foster, who used comedy in one of his studies. “We need more than a joke to carry us.” – The Washington Post
Find the right BPM
Studies have shown that listening to music that fits the cadence of what you’re doing can make you work harder. But different types of exercise call for different tempos. Use this guide when building your playlist.
Power walking: 120-145
Elliptical, stair climber: 130-150
Indoor cycling: 130-160
Jogging: 135-155
Running: 155-180
Source: Motiontraxx.com/bpmfinder
Sample playlist
This playlist, created by “Fitness DJ” Deekron, is designed to pace a jog of 25 to 30 minutes. It includes tempos between 140 BPM (an easy jog) and 160 (a moderate run).
Warm-up (optional): Invisible by U2 (138 BPM) 3:47
1 Love Me by Katy Perry (143 BPM) 3:52
2 Locked Out of Heaven by Bruno Mars (145 BPM) 3:53
3 Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton (145 BPM) 4:18
4 Perfect World by Broken Bells (155 BPM) 6:24
5 Happy by Pharrell Williams (160 BPM) 3:53
6 Strange Times by the Black Keys (160 BPM) 3:10