Whether you use music when you workout or not, the following is submitted for you to seriously think about using music to avoid distractions and ignore that nagging fatigue that we all get when training. First we need to explain how music's motivational magic is able to get you through your hard workout.

Dr. Costas Karageorghis, Ph.D who is professor of sport psychology, working out of Brunel University, has conducted many different studies on the relationship between music and exercise. He says, “Music does not moderate what you feel when exercising, but how you feel it.”

In a documented process of what science calls "disassociation" the mind is able to focus on any unrelated stimulus like music in order to not focus and the enormous amount of energy required to finish a workout. In one of Dr Karageorghis' many different studies that he has done which have been published in the Sports Journal he shows that music can alter arousal levels used effectively before a workout.

His research is able to show that music has a huge effect on the emotional as well as the physiological arousal of people. He shows that when the intensity of the music increases, it is able to stimulate the brain by speeding up the nervous system. He says that the synchronization of the music and the human movement can have a very positive effect.

In another study done that was published in "The Sport Journal" it shows that runners who are able to sync their pace against an upbeat song were able to achieve 15% improvement on their endurance when compared to those runners who had no music. It was however also demonstrated in the same study that if the music or tempo does not suit the exercise or the movement done then it can decrease performance.

It has been shown that our brain waves are able to modify our breath, pulse as well as movements in order to mimic a rhythm in a song we are listening to. This makes it important to select the music to suit the type of workout you are doing. If you are doing Yoga or a gentle jog then you should select music with around 90 to 115 beats per minute to match your heart rate. For weight training one needs a steady repetitive tempo like Pink Floyd or The Black-eyed Peas. But for a more intense type of training like cycling, running, or other intense cardio HIIT routines and doing a high intensity weight-training one should use music with a BPM of 135 or even higher to get your blood pumping.

The faster the tempo the faster the body rhythms and as the exercise becomes more challenging the faster tempo will help you keep your rhythm. That is when disassociation occurs so it is best to select fast tempo hard rock, techno or some very upbeat popular music.

Dr. Karageorghis explains that although different tastes of music vary from person to person his research has found that women prefer pop music and men prefer rock or rap music. He says that the correct selection of music can improve your enjoyment as well as the effectiveness of the workout.