Run Faster, Longer

I just read a study that was published this week in the Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology. It shows that music can enhance endurance and help exercisers feel more positive even when they are working out at a very high intensity.

But not just any music.

The researchers used tracks by Queen, Madonna, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and they found when runners kept in strict time with the beat, music enhanced endurance by 15 percent. The point is to match the tempo of music with workout intensity. (We should tell the organizers of the Army Ten Miler this weekend that it's not a crime to run with your iPod!)

A reviewer of the study made a good point. He wrote that this research also has applications beyond the power of pop music. Any means you can find to stay motivated in your workout will deliver better results and more consistency in the long run.

FOR THE RECORD: I have never listened to Bohemian Rhapsody while running, and don't have it on my iPod. Now, as far as Fat Bottom Girls goes, that's a completely different story.

Cheers