The Perceived Effects Of Music On Exercise Performance

The perceived effects of music may or may not affect your performance during exercise. Exercise instructors may incorporate music during training to enhance your exercise session. Instructors may even consider the absence of music, or playing inappropriate music, detrimental to your performance, notes Len Kravitz, PhD. "The Happiness Project" author Gretchen Rubin suggests that music may significantly influence your state of mind while boosting your mood and energy level.

Efficiency

Exercise efficiency refers to the amount of work that you perform relative to your heart rate. Performing more work while maintaining a lower heart rate corresponds with greater exercise efficiency. Nottingham Trent University research led by Attila Szabo, PhD, indicates that perceiving music tempo, which changes from slow to fast, may improve the efficiency of your performance during exercise. The researchers evaluated 24 male and female university students. The students also claimed to enjoy the slow-to-fast music exercise sessions more than exercise that only accompanied slow or fast music. The findings of this study are published in a September 1999 edition of the "Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness."

Coordination

The perceived effects of music on exercise may improve your coordination. An April 2011 randomized controlled trial study led by Andrea Trombetti, MD, of the Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève observed 134 community-dwelling seniors above 65 years of age. Dr. Trombetti's team administered a multitask exercise program, which required that participants perform tasks to the rhythm of piano music. After six months, researchers observed more consistent walking strides and greater balance, which reduced the risk of falling. Dr. Kravitz suggests that perceiving a musical beat may help improve coordination by helping you find a desired rate of movement.

Exertion

You may perceive greater exertion when listening to music during exercise. A research team led by Greg Atkinson, PhD, investigated the average speed, power, heart rate and perceived exertion among 16 males. The 25-year-old participants reported greater perceptions of physical exertion when listening to trance music during an ergometer exercise session. Participants also reported that musical tempo and rhythm were more motivating than harmony and melody. The researchers determined that trance music may also increase cycling speed, particularly during the first few minutes after the onset of exercise.

Strength

Perceiving stimulating music may help increase or reduce your raw strength during exercise. A Brunel University College study led by Costas Karageorghis, PhD, observed the effect of listening to stimulating music, sedative music and white noise, before a grip strength test among college-aged men and women. The results of the study were published in a December 1996 issue of "Perceptual and Motor Skills." The researchers report that participants who listened to stimulating music before the test had higher grip strength scores than white noise listeners, and significantly higher scores than sedative music listeners. Dr. Kravitz speculates that sedative music may actually reduce exercise ability.