It's no surprise that exercise increases endorphin levels, but a recent study found that listening to certain music while running can help combat mental exhaustion.
Achieving a "runner's high" is ideal, but often exhaustion can prevent a person from reaching that level before giving up. According to Science Daily, which analyzed the University of Edinburgh study, "the performance of runners who listened to a playlist of their own choosing after completing a challenging brain teaser was on par with when they weren't mentally exhausted."
The study's researchers looked at 18 fitness enthusiasts who were divided into two groups. Each group took a mix of interval running capacity and a 30-minute computer-based cognitive test, and was tested with and without motivational music.
Songs included in the study were "Everyday" by A $ AP Rocky, "Addicted To You" by Avicii, "Run This Town" by Jay-Z, "Power" by Kanye West, "No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age and "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor.
The study proved what many of us who have tried exercising without headphones know, it's clearly better.
"Mental exhaustion is common for many of us and can adversely affect many of our daily activities, including exercise," said Dr. Shaun Phillips of the University of Edinburgh's Moray House School of Education and Sport. "So it makes sense to find safe and effective ways to reduce these negative effects."
"The results suggest that listening to self-chosen motivational music can be a useful strategy to help active people improve their endurance and mental fatigue performance," continued Dr. Phillips gone. "This positive effect of self-chosen music could help people to better maintain the quality and the positive effect of their training units."
You can read the full study here.
