It’s very rare to see someone working out at the gym and for them not be listening to music. In fact, most gyms will play music and offer televisions to help you push through your workout with some motivation. Because we all know that a minute on a treadmill is longer than a real life minute. 

Having a good pair of earphones or headphones can make your workout better. But there are so many to choose from, how do you know which one is the best? When exercising, the number one thing you need to look for is fit. You want to make sure the earphone stays securely in your ear while you move around. This also means they should be comfortable so you can wear them for a good couple of hours. And they should also have great sound quality so you don’t have to blast your music. 

You may want to look into ear buds that come with a selection of silicon or foam tips. This will give you the option to make them more snug and fit securely in your ear. There are also ear buds that come with hooks. Insert the ear bud into your ear and the hook goes up and around your ear to keep it from falling out. Another thing to consider is waterproof or sweat proof earphones. If you sweat more than the average person, sweat proof earphones will prevent them from getting damaged. Technology advancement has also led to waterproof headphones. If you are swimmer or snowboarder, these will suit you best. 

If you are low on funds or don’t exercise frequently to justify buying new earphones, than try this. There is actually a proper way of wearing ear buds that keeps them from falling out. Wrap the wire of the earphone behind the back of your ear and place your ear bud in your ear. By having the wire around your ear like a clip, it should lessen its movement from the impact of motion. Depending the style of earphone you may have to put the left ear bud in the right ear and the right ear bud in the left. 

So now that you have the right equipment for your workout, you need a motivational playlist. Start by selecting a warm-up song, it should be something catchy with tempo that builds up. A song that inspires you and motivates you is best. Following this song, you should have something that is equally motivating but with a faster tempo to get your heart rate going. After these two main songs, mix fast and slow tempo songs for the rest of your playlist. We tend to naturally speed up or slow down depending on the beat of a song. 

Having a variety of tempo songs will help you pace yourself. Make sure that after a pump-up song you have a slower paced song so you can complete your exercise routine without over doing it. Depending on the type of workout, make sure to place some “in between” songs for when you want to take a break in between sets. For example if you are going on a run and know you will walk part of it, adjust your songs to fit that. Make it something that grabs your attention and keeps you motivated to continue. Favorite songs work best. When you are almost ready for your cool down, finish your playlist with the best pump-up song you have. It has to be something that will inspire you to finish your workout before completely reaching exhaustion. Then finish off with a cool down track with slow tempo and lyrics that make you feel accomplished. Creating a playlist benefits you in two ways. It helps you get through your workout in a better mood than if you are listening to other people grunt. And you can make your playlist the length of your workout. Since you know the order of your songs you can push yourself harder when you know you are near the end and be satisfied that you completed a one or two hour workouts.