Can a song make you perform exercises better?
Last month, I witnessed firsthand how Smart Araneta viewers shuffled, wiggled, swayed, jumped, and danced their cares away to the music of LMFAO and their party rock crew. It was more than a concert, it was a big party. Hardly anyone sat. In fact, those sitting down gave up their seats to be in the arena-massive dance floor.
That’s why I was not surprised when their Party Rock Anthem emerged the winner in the Men’s Health and Gold’s Gym USA annual survey for the Best Workout Song. “LMFAO can officially lay claim to having the most rockin’ song in the gym. After a competitive nationwide vote, LMFAO’s blood-pumping popular track, Party Rock Anthem, nominated by New York Knicks forward Steve Novak, survived a bracket stacked with 15 chart-topping tunes to claim the title of greatest workout song of the past year in the second annual March Music Madness competition,” they announced.
The annual survey was designed to expose what kind of music gets gym-goers amped during their workouts. Last year, Kanye West’s Stronger was chosen by voters as the song that made them move and groove in the gym in 2010. Party Rock Anthem, nominated by Novak, emerged from a “Final Four” that included mega hits Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5, Levels by Avicii, and Pitbull’s Give Me Everything Tonight.
The nominator of the winning song got to donate $5,000 to his charity of choice. Gold’s Gym USA donated the money on behalf of Steve Novak to the Loeys-Dietz Syndrome Foundation. The LDSF is a non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging education about Loeys-Dietz Syndrome and related connective tissue disorders to medical professionals and communities in order to aid in identification, diagnosis, and treatment of Loeys-Dietz Syndrome.
“I was excited to hear that Party Rock Anthem came out on top during March Music Madness this year,” said Steve Novak. “The song has always helped push me through some of my most difficult workouts, helping me up my game on the court. More importantly, I’m glad for the opportunity to give back to the Loeys-Dietz Syndrome Foundation, a cause that’s really close to me. Thanks to everyone who voted!”
Novak further told ESPN in an interview about the song, “That’s a hot song. It’s a song that has energy to it. You listen to it and it gets you up!”
In a British study published last year, volunteers were made to ride stationary bikes while listening to music. There were six songs chosen with varying tempos.
They were told to ride the bicycle at a pace they can maintain for 30 minutes. The heart rate, power output, pedal cadence, enjoyment of the music, and perception of effort were measured throughout the sessions. There were times when the tempo was increased by 10 percent and moments when it was decreased by 10 percent.
The study revealed that riding changed significantly in response to the tempo changes. When tempo is slow, their pedaling slows down, too. Their heart rates fall as well as the distance covered. When tempo is faster, the volunteers covered more miles, produced more power and increased pedal cadence. Their heart rates rose, they enjoyed the music 36 percent more when it’s more upbeat. While the up-tempo didn’t make them feel that the workout was easier, it pushed them to exert more effort.
Another study published last year also found that basketball players prone to performing poorly under pressure during games performed a lot better when they first listened to catchy, upbeat music. Experts say that music’s dual ability to distract attention (from how much effort you are exerting, for example), while simultaneously boosting the heart and the muscles to perform, makes it a vital component of regular exercise.
How exactly music affects performance through influences on the body and the brain is still being explored by scientists. They were also quick to point out that there are limitations to the positive effect of music on performance. Studies show that when you are exercising on an intense level, music doesn’t seem to register any more plusses except perhaps motivating you to finish the set or the race.
Nina Kraus, a neurobiology professor at Northwestern University in Illinois, explained, “Humans and songbirds are the only creatures that automatically feel the beat of a song. The human heart wants to synchronize to music, the legs want to swing, metronomically, to a beat. Our bodies are made to be moved by music and move to it.”
Statistics do not lie. And Party Rock Anthem has great global stats to boast of. The music video has over 436 million views on YouTube. The hit song performed by American electro recording duo LMFAO (Stefan and Skyler Gordy), featuring British singer Lauren Bennett and GoonRock, was released as the first single from their second album “Sorry for Party Rocking” in 2011. The single has gone to number one in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It is a certified 11x platinum, the second highest selling single of all time in Australia, and a 6x platinum in the US with platinum certifications in numerous countries.
Party Rock Anthem, a mostly electronic composition, sold over 6,000,000 downloads in the US. It became the fastest song in digital history to reach the six-million sales mark in 48 weeks versus Adele’s Rolling in the Deep which achieved it in 54 weeks. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and remained there for six straight weeks. Worldwide, it was the third best-selling digital single of 2011 with sales of 9.7 million copies. The song was named Favorite Song at the 2012 Kids’ Choice Awards. It is also Billboard’s song of summer for 2011.
“We’re music designers,” RedFoo (Stefan Gordy) of LMFAO said in their official website. “If music is a way to communicate with people, we’re almost like scientists. Some people make software applications. Drama movie writers write a story that can make you cry. We’re designing something for use in the clubs for DJs and we know exactly what we built it for.”
SkyBlu (Skyler Gordy) and RedFoo are successful DJs, which is partly why they know all the elements of great party music. RedFoo is the son of the legendary Berry Gordy, founder of Motown Records, while Sky is Berry’s grandson (RedFoo’s nephew).
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Post me a note at mylene@goldsgym.com.ph or mylenedayrit@gmail.com.
