“Music helps you heal”- we often hear people telling us this. It helps us to function better, focus more, and increase our productivity. Music is indeed the one source that can help you relax and rejuvenate, depending on what you choose for yourself. But in today’s era where we want to know the ‘how’ behind everything, will it be fair to let this one notion pass without judgments?
Let us unleash the curiosity bug in you. The one part of your mind that raises questions like a kid on the first bench.
It is time to answer your questions and quench your thirst.
Often we see people going to the gym with headphones on. More so, we also witness people working out at home while listening to music with their in-ear headset or blasting their workout playlist on speakers. Reminds us of all the Punjabi songs that Indian gym owners play with their bass speakers.
But do you wonder why?
When did music become so important a part of our workout routine?
According to our God of information, Google, many a time people cut their workout short or even skip it if there isn’t any music.
So, does that mean rhythmic sound vibrations have such an important role to play? Let us find out.
When you're distracted at work, we know how quickly your productivity plummets.
But when you are working out, distractions can act as a boon. Every coin has two sides.
Listening to music while exercising can improve your workout by triggering motivation and putting you in a better mood. Music that is motivational and synchronized with your exercises boost your stamina. Let us make it simpler by giving you an example.
When you are running on a treadmill while listening to music, the beats become your ally. You catch the beat and start running on them. This, in return, leaves you satisfied and pumped up to exercise more.
Did you know that the USA Track & Field, the national governing body for distance racing, had banned the use of portable iPods in the marathon, stating that music gives the runners a competitive edge? The University of Toronto conducted a study in which they assessed 34 cardiac rehabilitation patients while following specific workout regimens. They divided the patients into 3 groups: one group was asked to exercise without music. The second group was given a personalized playlist, whereas the third group listened to playlists curated specifically to enhance tempo-pace synchronization with rhythmic auditory stimulation (RAS).
The results?
The group listening to RAS music did not feel as if they were exerting much energy. Their endurance and energy levels increased and the duration of their workout stretched considerably as well.
Hence, it is a proven fact that listening to music can boost your performance to a great extent.
Yes, boAtheads! It is true. Your mind doesn’t let you feel the fatigue and increases your efficiency if it knows you are enjoying what you’re doing. Wait… did we just crack the code of working out without feeling exhausted? Are we really... geniuses?
When you feel exhausted, your will to work out and stay fit goes down naturally. It all seems like a burdensome process to you, doesn’t it? This is where we can trick our minds.
When we listen to fast but steady beats, our mind naturally wants to fall in sync with them. This is exactly similar to your shoulders moving involuntarily as soon as you listen to the Dhol playing! When you dance, you enjoy and lose yourself to the rhythms. That is the reason you feel no pressure, only pleasure.
Have you ever experienced the need to enter a certain zone to get a particular work done? Most of the time, the right music can help you get into it. We call ours “the hustle playlist.”
So, we all know music has a psychological effect on us. This is extremely beneficial in calories-burning sessions. How?
Music stimulates the release of feel-good hormones in the body (such as dopamine, oxytocin, and more). It also lowers the level of the stress hormone. As these levels drop, so does your stress level. It enables you to let go of negative thoughts and embrace a more positive mindset.
Now, while you work out, you are channeling all your day's stress. So, with the right music, the workouts would also be an exercise for your mind.
We know, we know. Today’s blog might be a heavy read with the different researches mentioned, right? But trust us. We must strive to learn something every day to help the seed in our minds feed and grow.
With this, we hope the curiosity bug in you is duly fed and rested. But we’ll awaken it again, just tomorrow when we bring to you another mindful reading.
And if you still want to learn more, kudos! Here is another interesting read to tickle that huge curiosity bug in you: How Does Noise Cancellation Work?
We’ll take your leave now, amigos. Only to meet again!
