Pump it Up.

Have you found yourself in a workout slump lately? Are you training for a marathon or triathalon and suffering from lack of motivation to get you through that last mile? Are you freaked out that bikini season is on the very near horizon but don't have your usual enthusiasm for the gym?

Whatever your motivation or lack thereof, I thought it might be useful to follow up to my recent post Escapades at the Gym, by sharing some inspiring workout music. Perhaps, in turn, anyone out there with some great workout music suggestions would be willing to share?!

Here is my most recent workout playlist:

Talking Heads' This Must be the Place (Naive Melody) (4:55)
Lambchop's Your F*cking Sunny Day (3:47)
Thievery Corporation's Richest Man in Babylon (5:41)
Deer Tick's Diamond Rings 2007 (4:42)
Catfish Haven's Let it Go (Got to Grow) (4:07)
Interpol's C'mere (3:11)
Catfish Haven's Crazy for Leaving (4:03)
Wilco's I'm the Man that Loves You (3:58)
Bloc Party's Banquet (3:47)

If the above list does not suit your tastes or proves under-inspiring otherwise, Aesop Rock recently put out a 45-minute track for Nike called All Day: Nike+ Original Run (Continuous Mix) designed to inspire the perfect running experience, starting with a gentle warm-up section, gradually ramping up the energy, and eventually concluding with a relaxed cool-down mode. Below are excerpts from two different reviews:

"Is this mix appropriate for serious runners who want to use music to set their pace? Beats me. I listened to it on my sofa while eating Doritos and drinking Heineken. But even then I was impressed by the variety and creativity Aesop brought to the mix. Unlike a lot of music within this genre, the music shifts and evolves, never resorting to lazy repetition. I doubt "All Day" can actually make exercise fun, but it can probably make it a little less excruciating. And that's really all you can ask for."

"Runners aren’t out there pounding granite in all weather on some entranced “runner’s high,” because that comes in the last ten minutes, fleetingly if at all. Aesop Rock understands that each step hurts, normally, that it’s not fun, that it can be boring, and that the mind wanders. All Day is something blindingly fun to focus on."

 

If you are looking for more inspiring workout mixes, I came across these sites dedicated to said topic and thought I would pass along as well: http://inside.nike.com/blogs/nikerunning_sportmusic-en_US/ or http://www.self.com/fitness/playlists

Happy Listening and Sweating!

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References:

http://www.prefixmag.com/reviews/aesop-rock/all-day-nike-original-run/15892/

http://www.cokemachineglow.com/record_review/552/aesoprock-allday-2007