Kanye's P is for Push-up, Pull-up, Pull-down or Plank. He's here to help.
An ergogenic aid is something that - in layman's terms - benefits a person during a bout of exercise/improves performance. You may be wondering how one of the douchiest people around (but, in my opinion, most amazing musicians) could serve in this capacity. And that would be a good question.
I never would have considered it myself until I reached the home stretch of a recent, particularly taxing day at the gym. It was at this moment that "Monster" from Mr. West came on my iPod (his next mega-hit, you watch), which immediately gave me a tangible boost that I wasn't expecting and allowed me to finish stronger than I started. At that moment, I started to wonder what research has been done to gauge music's true impact on a workout. Because I had definitely just experienced something interesting.
Turns out, quite a bit of research has been done on the subject. I read a few pieces, but the most informative was one I found a post on a site called WorkoutMuse that cites a few different studies that proved music not only motivates but it also makes one "Stronger." Kanye would be so proud. The right kind of music also reduces perceived exertion, improves the ability to learn new movements and blends perfectly with the fundamentals of motion, which improves mechanics and exercise output.
Hey, you might think Queen is the right thing for the treadmill. Or maybe, like one of the AM warriors I see a few times a week at the SDSU Arc, you prefer death metal. Just find something that works for you and strap on your headphones. Get your "Glory". Mr West is here to help.
I read an article in Runners magazine that listed what types of songs you should be listening to depending on how fast you run. It was just on Beats Per Minute (BPM)... pretty cool stuff. Then it listed some songs that fit in each category.
ReplyDeleteHere's the online version: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-240-466--13035-0,00.html