Do you feel like you get a better workout in when you put your favourite tunes on?
It turns out that listening to you favourite gym jams can actually help you to increase stamina, stay motivated and put you in a better mood.
(Psst.. it also helps drown out any other gym-goers, or family members if you’re a home exerciser!)
Studies have shown that listening to up-beat music while exercising can release feel-good chemicals, such as dopamine and opioids, in your brain which can help to boost your mood, make you feel less tired, and even dull pain. It’s a natural stress reliever and an excellent way to shed negative thoughts and enter a more positive state of mind.
And that’s not all. It’s believed that neurons in your brain can synchronise with the tempo of music, helping you to perform repetitive motions, such as sprints, more quickly. The more energetic and fast-paced your music is, the more likely your pace will be, too.
Motivation is one of the biggest reasons for listening to music whilst exercising. It helps you to push through those never-ending squats, and gets you to the gym even when you’d rather be in bed. Studies taken spanning over 62 individual studies by researchers David-Lee Priest and Costas Karageorghis of Brunel University deemed that listening to music during exercise can both delay fatigue and lessen the subjective perception of fatigue.
So, whether it’s the same song on repeat or a playlist, find what gets you in the zone and smash through that workout.
Earphones in, volume up, let’s go.
What's your favourite workout song? Let us know in a comment below!
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