When you are getting ready to head out for a run, what items do you bring with you? It’s probably some combination of your phone, ID, cash, keys and maybe a gel or two. Oh, and your earbuds to listen to music of course!
Many athletes listen to music during a workout, not just for enjoyment and to sing those miles away, but to reach peak performance.
Research presented in Scientific American out of Brunel University in London by Dr. Costas Karageorghis found that:
“Music distracts people from pain and fatigue, elevates mood, increases endurance, reduces perceived effort and may even promote metabolic efficiency.”
In fact, according to Dr. Karageorghis’ twenty-year research study:
“Music can enhance endurance by 15% and improve the 'feeling states’ of exercisers, helping them to derive much greater pleasure from the task.” How awesome does that sound?
With this information in mind, you may be thinking of putting together a list of upbeat songs for your next running playlist—or maybe you want an app to do the work for you. It seems logical that songs with a high-tempo would get you pumped up for a good, hard workout.
That’s not a bad train of thought, although the research shared in Scientific American shows that “ceiling effect occurs around 145BPM (beats per minute); anything higher does not seem to contribute much additional motivation."
That being said, Dr. Karageorghis’ research has found that increasing endurance isn’t all about listening to fast music. Rather if you select songs that are connected to memories and emotions that motivate you, an increase in endurance can still take place even if those songs have a slow beat.
Additionally, motivational song choices can depend on your age. Dr. Karageorghis said in an interview with the BBC that older exercisers tended to enjoy songs such as 'The Heat is On' by Glenn Frey, 'Don’t Stop Me Now' by Queen or 'Dancing Queen' by Abba. Younger exercisers tended to select more recent tracks for motivation.
Your Armpocket can hold your phone, ID, cash, keys, and gels during any type of run, and give you easy access to all of your favorite songs. With our touch-through screen, you can select playlists, check your progress, save to favorites, or adjust volume on the fly. You know you want to crank a few songs along the way!
We are so excited to announce our partnership with RockMyRun to offer curated music to help you perform at your best during each run. You can choose your tempo yourself, or sync the app to your steps and heart rate so the music automatically syncs with your movement. Choose your genre, and get lost as the miles fly by. And for added fun, check out some of our favorite songs by listening to In the Zone with Armpocket—our own eclectic playlist!
For 30 days of free running music, visit: https://rockmyrun.com/armpocket/
What songs energize you the most must during a run? We would love to hear from you!
