Improve Athletic Performance By Listening To Music

Spin instructors blast beats fit for a dance club. Runners don’t leave the house without earbuds and their latest playlist downloaded & ready to go. There’s no doubt that music has an effect on everything from your motivation to energy levels when you work out, but how exactly does listening to music while exercising affect your athletic ability? Here is what the latest research shows…

Listening to music while exercising reduces pain and increases endurance

Listening to music while exercising releases chemicals in the brain which can dull pain and make you less tired, according to an Oxford psychology professor.

Speaking at the conference of the Society for Music Perception & Cognition which concluded in Nashville on 5 August, Professor Robin Dunbar has said that actively engaging in music produces the best results.

The brain releases chemical opioids when it hears music. These are natural painkillers which act like morphine.

Interacting with music, by singing or dancing for example, increases the opioid signals much more than listening alone does, New Scientist reported.

Research by Dr Tom Fritz of the Max Planck Institute in Germany indicates that music best aids exercise when it is tailored to the specific workout.

“You don’t need a neuroscientist to tell you that music can be invigorating, intensely pleasurable or sad, but this is an exciting time for research on music’s biological foundations,” Dr Bowling said.

Full Story: Music during exercise ‘decreases exertion and releases natural painkillers in the brain’

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