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Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Moving to the Beat

So everyone who knows me is aware I'm a total music junkie. I like it all - I seriously have a bit of everything in my collection - even a teeny tiny bit of country (which means less than 100 of 10,000 songs). I don't have many playlists anymore, and the ones I have serve a serious purpose. Case in point: the workout playlist. It changes regularly, but there's never been a particular genre that I always focus on to fill it.

Last week one of my best friends was checking out the new 160 GB iPod and he perused the workout playlist. His first comment was something to the effect of "There isn't much on there I'd workout to, it doesn't have that motivational beat." I wilted. I quickly ran through the playlist in my head. What's wrong with it? Really - there's nothing wrong with it. But I'm such an idealist and this huge fan of music that I have to remember not everyone gets my tastes. True, it had artists like Dave Gahan, who is awesome but tends to be moody and dark, missing the upbeat "shake that ass" vibe. It even had that Gavin Rossdale song, and true, it' probably didn't belong. I had put several bands on there I'd just recently appropriated and wanted to give several listens to, but yes, it was missing key elements that tend to make one move their feet.

So I still have that playlist, and it will rotate as it always did. But I was inspired to create an additional workout playlist, entitled "Funky Workout" that has genres like Freestyle, Rap, Pop, Hip Hop, etc. It's definitely motivational and has nothing that makes you want to sit down.

What do you listen to when you work out? What about when you just need motivation?
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6 comments:

New White Keds said...

There is a series of CDs called Jock Jams, put out by ESPN I htink... Anyway, talk about that shake your ass vibe -- nothing gets me going like that. Unless, of course, it is a good Bee Gees/Barry Manilow compilation (lol).

I also tried workig out to Mitch Fatel the other morning. He is a comedian, think Dane Cook, and I flew through the work out. I was so focused on laughing my ass off, that I forgot the clock on the eliptical machine. It cracked me up. Of course, there was the added bonus of my laughing and no ione else in the place knowing what I was laughing at. To them, I was the crazy lady on the machine ... mwahhhahahahahah....

Bar L. said...

My workout list contains:

Hard to Handle, Black Crowes
some Quiet Riot
some Def Lepard
some Bruce
some Queen
some Aerosmith
some Bad Co.
some Stones
some Zeppelin

I'll stop here. I'm way too predicatable

New White Keds said...

Oh! Wait! I forgot... Crazy Train is my best song for when I am about to give up. All it takes is the echoing calls at the beginning and I get a second wind!

jiggins said...

My workout playlist consists of everything between face-paced danceable-pop and what i refer to as hip-pop funkiness.. :) keeps me going and i use the beats to help determine the rhythm of my workouts. I listen to everything between rock, pop, hip-pop, whiteboy soul-rock, ( think Marc Broussard, Gavin Degraw) and a little .. very little bit of country-style pop.. very little bit.. (think the Wreckers and "landslide" by Dixie Chix.. sorry to admit.. it snuck in there) Mostly tho.. I love deep dark sexy electronic music! haha.. How does that work out?

LoraLoo said...

Amy: I know the Jock Jams. I saw them once and for whatever reason never picked any of them up. I have walked to Dane Cook (the CD my awesome friend bought me, who was that?) and the walk was over before I knew it.

Barbara: See I overlook Metal when I workout, but I heard a Def Leppard song this morning that I know I need to add. That gives me ideas!

Amy: Crazy Train...LOL... I forget that side to you. I love that song.

Jiggins: I get the feeling you and I might have similar tastes! I have that one charted song by the Wreckers, heh.

Nik said...

Before iPod died, I was all over the place when it came to workout music. Start off strong and powerful -- Living Dead Girl by Rob Zombie or Def Leppard's Go were two of my fave starter songs. Then it'd go mostly mid-to faster tempo, throw in a couple of slower tempo songs to give yourself a bit of a break towards the middle of workout, but not so much where you're just putzing along, then head back to faster stuff, including Yeah by Usher. I'm definitely a shuffle person when it comes to iPod though. Just turn it on and skip what you're not feelin that day. Damn I miss my iPod.