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Up-Tempo Tunes Boost Exercise Value
New research suggests that listening to fast music when exercising keeps your heart rate up, while reducing fatigue.
I headed to the gym early today for a few hours. I may do a walking warm-up on a treadmill, weight lifting (chest and biceps), aerobic activity, more walking, and stretching. I love Friday morning workouts, mostly because I reward myself with an afternoon nap.
I am blessed to have an iPod, a relic of the past. At the same time, you will typically hear me listening to Mozart sonatas (mostly different versions of pieces I am working on) or Beethoven or Chopin. But not in the gym. There you will find me rocking to Snoop Dogg or Naughty by Nature or Biggie Smalls. Anything with a driving beat.
I do not doubt that music makes my exercise sessions more enjoyable. But is this universal language it associated with a reduction in my sense of effort? Or increase my heart rate? The answer appears to be yes.
A new study in Frontiers in Psychology examines the influence of higher tempi (faster music).
