Exercise
Music helps you tune out and tone up
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Janet McMordie, MSc Student, University of Western Ontario
New research has found that women can improve their workouts, especially their strengthening exercises, when they turned up their favorite tunes. “They performed a lot better and were happier,” says study author Janet McMordie, a graduate student at the University of Western Ontario in Canada who is working toward a master’s degree in kinesiology.
She says the findings add to a growing body of research suggesting that music is a real motivator for exercise. “It can help you get through your workout,” says McMordie. “From a personal standpoint, I can’t exercise without music,” she says. “I find it really boring. Psychologically, music gets you pumped up and it also distracts you from what you’re doing.” Music might also cause a surge of adrenaline that kicks things up, she says. [Continued]
Why must we exercise?
It’s the way our bodies are built. Even though it’s human nature to want to “take the easy road” & exert the least amount of effort as possible, our physiology says otherwise. Without exercise, our bodies slowly breakdown and develop ‘lifestyle diseases’ such as heart disease, type II diabetes, and more as is evident in today’s society. But the question is-how do we get ourselves to do it regularly enough to reap the benefits?
First, you have to prepare for a lifestyle change. Are you ready to exercise & eat healthy for the rest of your life? Second, you need to think about why you want to do this. What are your goals? What is motivating you? You need to whole-heartedly believe it’s possible to achieve these goals, or else you’ve already failed yourself. Third, you need to find a regime that works for you. Remember, a plan that worked for someone else might not work for you. Fourth: Evaluate. Evaluate your regime and yourself regularly-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly and yearly.
That’s it in a nutshell! It’s easier said than done, believe me- I’ve gone through my share of blunders in my own weight loss & exercise struggles. It takes dedication, hard work and motivation. But if I can do it, so can you.
What are your goals, and how is your training going? Email me at lyndsay@funcfit.com, and you could be featured on funcfit.com!