Music Improves Energy Levels

Exercise and music Many runners and gym members feel that music makes exercise more enjoyable. However, they might not know that scientists have found that some kinds of music can improve people’s energy by 15%. This was discovered by Dr. Costas Karageorghis at Brunel University’s School of Sport and Education. Karageorghis has worked with organizations such as Nike and with many champion athletes. In the study, 30 people listened to inspiring music and they did exercise at the same time. Nerve communication “stopped” When they were doing exercise in time to the music, people showed higher energy levels. Even when they were doing very hard exercise, they were positive about how they felt. When people are doing exercise, their nerves send messages saying that their bodies are getting tired. However, when they are listening to music at the same time, these messages are blocked. Karageorghis thinks this is because music causes part of the brain to send different messages to the body that make it happy and relaxed. Different effects Karageorghis’ study shows that different types of music have different effects on different people. The effects of some music can also depend on how tiring the exercise is. Karageorghis says that people who have extroverted personalities prefer faster and louder kinds of music compared to people who have reserved personalities. This is because the brains of extroverted people need more stimulation than the brains of reserved people. Reserved people want to feel less worried and so have better results when music makes them relaxed. Karageorghis was asked to provide music for the “Run to the Beat” half marathon in the UK, which has also now started in other countries. “I also have lots of other exciting projects that I am working on,” said Karageorghis. “One of these is to find out if the speed of music we listen to has an effect on our heart rate while we exercise.”