Most people can count on one hand the number of New Year’s resolutions they’ve actually ended up sticking to for an extended period of time.
Weight loss probably accounts for at least half of the resolutions in any given year. You enter the new year with determination and motivation to hit the gym 4 or 5 times a week and watch all those holiday sweets magically melt off your waistline, only to see your resolve tinker off into nothingness after only a few weeks.
But for many, working out in a gym is, plain and simple, boring. I’m a runner, and despite my love for exercise, I can tell you that I can barely stand more than five minutes on a treadmill. Running in place is no good for workout motivation. You’re working hard, sweating, expending energy, and yet you’re not actually moving anywhere. It’s insanely frustrating.
In order for people to become true Rams Head Gym regulars for months and months (doing the same 15 minutes on the cross-trainer, 25 reps on this ab machine, 10 reps on that lifting apparatus, blah blah blah), there has to be a little fun and enjoyment involved.
How to spice up your January gym sojourn? Just lose yourself in the music.
Music acts as a beneficial distraction, helping you get in the zone. It makes your mind focus on something besides the fatigue, the muscle burn, and the twenty minutes still remaining on your treadmill’s timer.
Here’s ten songs to kickstart your elliptical engine that, as you speed down your workout’s homestretch, will truly have you saying, “Whoa, where did the time go?!”
For the hip hop/rapper in you, here are my five favorites proven to propel you right through a jam at the end of your cardio cram:
1. Till I Collapse – Eminem
2. Best Love Song (feat. Chris Brown) – T-Pain
3. Hangover (feat. T-Pain) – Taio Cruz
4. Hey Baby (Drop It To The Floor) – Pitbull
5. N—gas in Paris – Jay Z and Kanye West
And if you’re not much of a Drake diehard or Flo Rida fanatic, here are some rock/alternative/pop selections that pump up your workout party just as well:
6. Hello Brooklyn – All Time Low
7. Don’t Wanna Go Home – Jason DeRulo
8. Dark Horses – Switchfoot
9. Bye Bye Bye – NSYNC (seriously, don’t judge, just try it. Got me through the last 10 minutes of an hour-long level 17 elliptical marathon.)
10. Take Over Control (feat. Eva Simons) – Afrojack
For more, check out Jog.fm, which can creates a playlist for you based on the estimated time you take to run a mile.
What do you think? Got others to add to the list? Comment below and share your gym time secrets!
To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.
