If you really want to get anything out of a workout, you should be at it for over 30 minutes. Music can be a great source of motivation for exercise, but playlists on YT or Spotify are never perfect. So something I’ve gotten into recently has been to engage in interval training for the duration of one album or CD all the way through. they tend to be 30-60 minutes – And best of all, as you memorize exercises they crudely replace HIIT timers. Don’t count how many reps you do – Just perform the exercise for some passage in the song. Maybe it’s from the beginning of a song to the beginning of its first chorus, or from the beginning of the bridge to the end of the third chorus. Try to hold a plank for an entire solo. It’s not rigid amounts of time, but who cares? It’s fun, it’s a great way to revisit your collection and find a new appreciation for an old favorite you may not have listened to in a long time – And with the benefit of exercise besides.
On the treadmill? Just walk on the treadmill for the length of the album! Have a couple of light weights handy and alternate each song – walking freely, holding the weights, uphill, running, walking backwards. Did you put Bowie on? Up the hill backwards.
Here are some selections to get you started. I will revisit this post and update it as I find more albums to suggest!
Pet Shop Boys – Very
The Style Council – Introducing…
The Strokes – Is This It
Madonna – The Immaculate Collection
Heaven – Telepathic Love
The Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed
Billy Bragg – Don’t Try This at Home
Dokken – The Very Best
Coolio – It Takes a Thief
Jam Harder – The A&M Underground Dance Collection [comp]
Rocky IV – Soundtrack [comp]
Nate Dogg – G-Funk Mix
Fine Young Cannibals – The Raw and the Cooked
GZA – Liquid Swords
Luscious Jackson – Natural Ingredients
‘Til Tuesday – Voices Carry
Leon Ferri 