How To Use Your Playlist For Motivation If You Don’t Feel Like Working Out

Need some motivation for your next sweat sesh? It may be time to turn up the volume.

It turns out that listening to you favourite gym jams can actually help you to increase stamina, stay motivated and put you in a better mood. (It also helps drown out any other gym-goers, or family members if you’re a home exerciser!) 

Studies have shown that listening to up-beat music while exercising can release feel-good chemicals, such as dopamine and opioids, in your brain which can help to boost your mood, make you feel less tired, and even dull pain.  It’s a natural stress reliever and an excellent way to shed negative thoughts and enter a more positive state of mind.

And that’s not all. It’s believed that neurons in your brain can synchronise with the tempo of music, helping you to perform repetitive motions, such as sprints, more quickly. The more energetic and fast-paced your music is, the more likely your pace will be, too. 

Motivation is one of the biggest reasons for listening to music whilst exercising. It helps you to push through those never-ending squats, and gets you to the gym even when you’d rather be in bed. Studies have found that listening to music during exercise can both delay fatigue and lessen the subjective perception of fatigue. And that’s not all, further studies by the American Council on Exercise have found people tend to enjoy exercise more when listening to music because they focus less on their breathing and perceive it to be less taxing.

Whether it’s heavy metal during a strength session or disco bangers during HIIT, choose some up-beat tunes that will get you in the zone and keep you there. Create a playlist that you can’t wait to blast out and becomes synonymous with having a bangin’ workout.

Your playlist should include songs you enjoy listening to, but won’t distract you from training hard.

Remember: 

• Choose upbeat and energising tracks that will keep you moving.
• Listen to songs that have motivational lyrics.
• Select music that suits your workout style — the music you listen to during a spin session may be different to the music you choose for high-intensity interval training or LISS.

To help you smash through your next workout, we’ve put together 10 songs to pump you up:

1. The Business - Tiesto
2. Goosebumps - HVME
3. Power - Kanye West
4. Physical - Dua Lipa
5. Run The World - Beyonce
6. Right Here, Right Now - Fatboy Slim
7. Go Get It - T.I
8. Sail - AWOLNATION
9. Change Your Life - Iggy Azalea
10. Level Up - Ciara

Whether it’s the same song on repeat or a playlist, find what gets you in the zone and smash through that workout.

Earphones in, volume up, let’s go. 

What's your favourite workout song? Let us know in a comment below!