overPumped.com Blog: Music to Pump Up your workout!

Most gyms today have a sound system installed through which they play a wide variety of mostly up-tempo music, and while gym goers may take it for granted, this music serves an important purpose. In a recent visit to a gym we saw first hand, the effects of the music or lack thereof.

Now the gym did in fact have a sound system installed and it was blasting as per usual but for some reason the atmosphere in the gym was filled with gloom. People were moving around the gym like the walking dead, barely making it from one station to the next. Except for the very entertaining tall-man in the corner giving an account of his days activities to a group of his friends, this gym left us feeling like most of us did during the closing scene of Fast 7. Then it occurred to us, the sound coming through the speakers was that of a local radio station's call-in program. Clearly not what we want to hear during our workout.

Over the years there has been a lot of research into the effects of music on physical performance and intensity, which have found many ways in which music can be Ergogenic. Dr Costas Karageorghis lists the following as some of the benefits of music;

It lowers your perception of effort. It can trick your mind into feeling less tired during a workout
It encourages positive thoughts
It can act as a sedative or a stimulant
A fast tempo can be used to pump you up prior to competition
Slower music can be used to calm your nerves and help you focus

For some of us music is essential to our workout and with the above being said, it clear to see why.

Choice of music

The genre of music chosen is based solely on personal preference and may vary based on the type and stage of your training. We prefer Heavy Metal during phases of heavy lifting or max attempts, for cardio our preference is the faster paced Soca Music, and during the maintenance phase a mix of genres work but our preference is old school Dancehall music.

There are, however, the folks among us that prefer a podcast or motivational speech like this one to fuel their workout and we accept that this works for them given that most still incorporate some sort of background music.

We truly hope that our experience at this gym would be a one-off experience however, just to be sure, we never leave home without our headphones and playlist.

Below is our current Playlist as we enter another bulking phase in our training, hope you enjoy and get overPUMPED.