Why the Right Music Means a Better Workout!

By BJ Gaddour, CSCS, YFS

www.WorkoutMuse.com

It was back in December of 2007 that I started to run into a real problem. My fitness bootcamp business was exploding and I found myself working with large groups of 15-20 plus people at each workout.

So what was the problem?

Well, like any sound group exercise program, each workout consisted of timed sets of various interval protocols that best allowed a wide variety of fitness levels to work at their own pace within the same workout. After all, 10 reps of squats can be completed by a well-conditioned athlete way faster than a sedentary, overweight, novice trainee. If you’re trying to run a professional program that starts and ends at the same time every time, interval training is the way to go for bootcamp-style workouts.

But interval training is a bit of a catch 22. Sure the program was running like a well-oiled machine, but I felt like I wasn’t able to provide as much client supervision since I was constantly having to look at the clock and be the human stopwatch announcing “go… halfway… stop.”

So, I knew I had to find a solution and I did so with the creation of interval workout music to automate my training program with the simple click of a button. I made a Craig’s List post to find a local sound designer to provide sonic support and the next day I met with Topher Farrell to discuss doing so. It was love at first sight and we created Workout Muse on the spot that very day and the rest is history.

Now, I don’t mean to make this just a promotional article for my company. But I felt it was beneficial to explain the evolution of my own program design and coaching systems. I must be honest- I am a much better coach today because the music tells my clients exactly what to do so I can do what I do best: coach, motivate, and supervise my clients.

But it’s more than just the extra supervision that drastically reduces the risk of injury from an intensive group exercise program (which is alone a huge improvement to any training program). It’s about the impact the right music can have on your workouts.

According to scientists at Dalhousie University in Canada, music not only motivates but it can make you stronger. These researchers recently discovered that people who listened to workout music during training showed significantly greater strength gains in 4 weeks time than those who wore noise-cancellation headphones. According to study author Jo M. Welch, Ph.D, the explanation for this increase in performance most likely lies in the music causing a reduction in perceived exertion during the workout thus allowing the trainee to work harder. Furthermore, she explained that the key was listening to the tunes that motivate you the most, whatever musical genre that may be.

In the past we had clients bring in their favorite music and that never really worked out that well- some liked it and some didn’t. I then tried my best to bring in an eclectic mix of music to please everyone, but that was even more of a disaster. It’s a real pain in the butt to have to constantly search for and buy new music that people always would complain about anyways. After all, music is just like politics and religion- everyone has their own personal tastes and preferences.

So I implemented interval workout music powered by Workout Muse that featured instrumental-only tracks with the only vocals being the audio updates that I used to have to announce myself. I immediately saw the power of the right music in my own program. Bottom line, people worked harder and cranked out more reps during each work set and subsequently took less rest and transition between exercises. You don’t need to be Mike Boyle or Alwyn Cosgrove to know that increased intensity and density within each workout leads to better results!

Another study from the University of Western Ontario in Canada supports what I have seen in the real world with hundreds of people from all walks of life- cranking up the volume jacks up the intensity of the training session. Janet McMordie, the author of the study, discovered that louder music during a workout resulted in better performance due to both a surge of mood-enhancing hormones (primarily adrenaline) and, just like the previous study, a sonic distraction that prevents you from realizing how tired you are so you can work harder for longer.

The 18 women in the study listened to their favorite music soundtracks of different decibel levels while performing various exercise tasks: cycling sprints, max reps on the leg press, and max reps on the bench press. She discovered the rep total increased by 46% on average at the loudest music volume when compared to listening to no music at all. Plus, across the board, even the lowest volume level resulted in significant performance gains further proving that listening to motivating workout music at any volume helps you push past your comfort zone to get the best training effect.

The most groundbreaking study on the effect of music on exercise and performance was done by Dr. Costas Karageorghis in Karageorghis & Terry, 1997, where he discovered the following:

1.) Music reduces perceived exertion by distracting the exerciser from exercise-induced fatigue so they can work harder for longer.

2.) Music can either psyche-up an athlete pre-workout/competition or relax an athlete pre-workout/competition depending on the tone of music and the consistency of the selected song lyrics.

3.) Music is the perfect marriage between the inherent similarities of rhythm and human movement- “the synchronization of music with exercise consistently demonstrates increased levels of work output among exercise participants (see Karageorghis & Terry, 1997, for review).”

4.) Music can aid in learning new movements and in learning how to move better- “music can enhance the acquisition of motor skills and create a better learning environment. There is evidence from both gymnastics and swimming in support of this (Chen, 1985; Jernberg, 1981).”

5.) Music can get you in the zone for optimal focus on the task at hand- “Our most recent research (Karageorghis & Terry, 1998) has revealed an interesting link between music and the attainment of flow state during aerobic dance exercise. Flow involves an altered state of awareness during physical activity in which the mind and body function on ‘auto-pilot’ with minimal conscious effort. Some coaches refer to this as being ‘in the zone’; it is an almost trance-like or hypnotic state. Flow has been associated with optimal psychological state and represents complete enjoyment of and immersion in physical activity.”

He also discovered four key factors that determine how motivating music can be, with internal factors being the most important:

Internal Factors:

1.) Rhythm

2.) Musicality: Melody and Harmony

External Factors:

3.) Cultural Impact

4.) Extra Musical Associations

These factors are best summarized in Dr. Karageorghis’s own words: “We have developed and validated a questionnaire to rate the motivational qualities of music which is called the Brunel Music Rating Inventory (BMRI: Karageorghis et al., 1997). For a piece of music to truly inspire the listener, it must have strong rhythmic qualities that match the activity at hand and also a tempo which matches the predicted heart rate. The melody and harmony of the music should promote a positive mood state; that is, they should energize the listener and increase vigor. The music should also stem from the listener’s socio-cultural background and comply with their preferences. Finally, it is ideal that for the music to be associated with physical activity either through the lyrics, e.g., Work Your Body!, or its association with other media such as film or TV. A classic example of such a track would be Survivor’s ‘Eye of the Tiger’, which was a theme from the Rocky series.”

It’s important to note the importance of choosing music of the right tempo or beats per minute (bmp) to elicit the desired movement response. During high-intensity cardio interval training, target heart rate tends to fall in the range of 140-160 bpm during the work periods and 100-120 bpm during the active recovery periods.  During circuit training, heart rate tends to be elevated throughout the duration of the workout between 120-140 bpm. Thus, selecting workout music with the appropriate bpm for a specific fitness activity will set the proper pace for a more effective workout.

In summary, for a better workout you must choose the right workout music. When it comes to selecting the right music the two most important factors are listening to workout tunes with the appropriate tempo for your selected activity of choice and then building a play list that falls within your preferred musical genre(s).

Crank it!

BJ Gaddour

BJ Gaddour is the Co-Creator and Fitness Director for Workout Muse, LLC. Workout Muse produces interval training music of many different musical genres such as rock, hip-hop, latin, pop, techno, etc. so that there is something for everyone. Plus, they create custom soundtracks with the end-user in mind: original musical compositions with specific rhythmic and audio arrangements guaranteed to inspire the best high-intensity interval training workouts of your life- whether it be for group exercise or your own personal workouts. You can get some free sample downloads by visiting WorkoutMuse.com. Still rather listen to your own music? No worries! The new iWorkout Muse application for iPhone and iPod touch allows you to build your own custom interval training workouts mixed to your favorite music and is now available in the itunes store for less than 2 bucks.

Tags: circuit training, fitness bootcamps, fitness music studies, high-intensity interval training, interval training music, interval workout music, the effect of workout music on exercise and performance, workout muse, workout music studies

This entry was posted on Monday, October 19th, 2009 at 12:31 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.