iPod therefore I Run

Ok, so you get home from a hard day at work and you start preparing for your run. You do a quick mental check of your kit: trainers, yes, water bottle, yes, gels, yes, hat, yes, iPod, no – I knew there was something missing. Such has been the success of iPods and mp3 players that chances are some of you will be using one on your run. And you are not the only one. Many athletes believe that the music aids in relaxation or helps them get into a rhythm necessary for a smooth workout.

But whilst having your favourite tunes might while away the time a little quicker, does it help improve your running? It appears that although up-beat music has no apparent clear physiological effect on runners, it does seem to promote longer exercise times, perhaps by making people feel more energised or by diverting their attention from feelings of tiredness. Paula Radcliffe, Kelly Holmes and Hailie Gebreselassie have all said that listening to their favourite music puts them in the right frame of mind to compete and recent research at York University found that when exercising in a gym environment people using weights will exercise for longer when music is played.

I know someone who planned out her entire half-marathon based on music through her iPod. And she had set up her favourite music to coincide with the last 5 minutes of the race. Now that really is planning! But it worked for her and it may work for you too.

Wikipedia has a good overview of the latest research.

And for those of you who want some to find out the best tunes for running, take a look a jogtunes.