The Sound of Running

I recently read the article Pace Setter in Outside Magazine's January edition. Written by Nick Heil for the Lab Rat section of the magazine, it concerned the influence of music over the act of running. The article got me thinking about how I have used music as a catalyst for pushing myself further and farther in running, as well as in cycling.

First off, I have always been one to get bored easily and with running it was no different. As I got more involved with running I found that music allowed for some sort of entertainment while I ran. It was not until I started to run competitively though that I found that music was a great way to motivate myself into a faster cadence.

When I trained for the Winter Waddle 2005 I relied on Rammstein's album Sehnsucht as musical motivation. I also used the first 3rd of the album as a time reference, since I did not yet carry a watch on my runs. The track which would get me through the long and often cold and windy back stretches of Lake Calhoun was Du Hast. Whenever that song would come on my ipod I would up my pace and get lost in the song's methodical back beats.

As I trained for the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon I used a wide array of music to get me through the long rides. Several of the staples of my play list were Sabotage, Sugar We're Goin' Down, Get Free, Keep Hope Alive, Iron Lion Zion, and my personal favorite Battle Without Honor or Humanity. Though I was not able to use an ipod during the actual triathlon, for various reasons, each of these songs kept me sane and entertained as I feverishly peddled through the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

With other races on my docket I used mixed playlists to get my through the training and the actual events. Whether it was 100 degrees outside with 80 % humidity or it was 10 degrees with a 20 below windchill, music allowed me to escape from the elements. With the Winter Waddle 2006 I tried something different.

Prior to the race, since I still refused to purchase a watch, I selected my six favorite songs to run to and set them on my ipod for the race. Each of these six songs would amount to about 22 minutes of music. I would use the songs as a way to gauge my speed and time. Keep Hope Alive, I'm Shipping up to Boston, Ready Steady Go, Sabotage, Battle without Honor or Humanity, and Du Hast. The songs were great and came in handy on several of the long accents, but I found myself worrying about the pace I was keep, which altered my focus. I finished faster than had hoped but it was the last time I would create a race specific play list. My goal was to get lost in the music, not worry about times.

I have found music to be a great motivator in running and would be bored without it. Here is a list of other songs I use when training.

Cochise - Audioslave
Mr. Brightside - The Killers
Here I come - The Roots
Voodoo Chile - Jimi Hendrix
Trying to Find a Balance - Atmosphere.