Music or not: why and what?
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RV posted 2 years ago.
There's been a thread or two on this - but I don't bike or run outside with music. Two reasons - safety first and second headphones etc. are not allowed in races so I wouldn't want to train different than how I race. I like to focus onthe workout so the music or whatever is really unnecessary.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
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jeslol posted 2 years ago.
Mental training is just as important as the running, biking ans swimming. Too many folks fall victim to "I can only run(bike) with music". You need to train how you want to race. You can't race with headphones, so you need to train without them. Long training runs are boring, so are long runs at the end of the race. But you need to stay focused and push through the boring, so you can keep you pace up.
That's not to say I never train with music, but it's usually reserved for the trainer.
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Nell1217 posted 2 years ago.
I don't run or bike with music outside for safety reasons. However, during the winter while I'm doing interval training on the treadmill I have my headset. And if I'm on the trainer I like to crank up the music, as long as my family isn't asleep!
]Face your fears and live your dreams,
Take it all in,
Yes, every chance you get.”
- Jon Blais ALS Ironman 2005
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vanjames posted 2 years ago.
I listen to tunes off and on. I usually fade them out as the season starts for the reasons mentioned above. For now tho I like to listen especially on teh treadmill and indoor trainer.
My favs at the moment: Kaiser Chiefs, Snow Patrol, Green Day
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donegal1 posted 2 years ago.
I love my iPod, but my usage varies: more during base training, and less as the season progresses. I've actually found it helpful during long runs - I put on my favorite music and it just carries me along. My body gets used to holding a good, solid rhythm over long distance and that skill carries over to my racing. I just get in the zone and go!
I also make playlists for my indoor trainer workouts, which I think is a must.
As far as mental training - I don't think you should rely on the music, but that's never been the case with me, or any of my friends. I believe that enjoying your training keeps your focus and motivation high for racing. In that respect, music can be a great tool. :-)
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thehitman posted 2 years ago.
jeslol wrote:
... You need to train how you want to race. You can't race with headphones, so you need to train without them. ...
By that logic, we should all train at race pace and distance, too.
I'm fairly serious about my bike training, but I had Bob Marley playing on my MP3 this morning as I rode in 32 degree weather. Just the thought of jammin' in Jamaica is enough to keep me a little warmer. Of course, I'm one of those people who can talk and chew gum at the same time :rolleyes: so the music doesn't prevent me from staying focused on my training.
thehitman
“Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.” Mark Twain
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deepbluex posted 2 years ago.
For some reason I can't train with music. It distracts me.
I tried running with headphones on and I couldn't hear my breathing, I couldn't hear my footsteps, and it threw my concentration. I like to hear low-level noises like that and music doesn't help me feel my pace.
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kylie posted 2 years ago.
I've just started sometimes training with music (an iPod Shuffle). I will run with it outside, as I keep it low enough and can still hear cars. I use it for running lately when it is a run that I'm determining by heart rate as my watch beeps loud enough that I can still keep my training goals in focus. Like hitman, I don't find it a problem to focus on a few things (form, HR, and some background music). I also don't think that it's always necessary to train as I race: yes, it is important, but not at every workout. I don't have the race day excitement and jitters helping me keep going, and if some music helps I don't have a problem with it. Especially, as mentioned above, as it can help keep training fun and that is why I'm out there. However, at the same time, I think it's important not to become dependant on it, and so don't do all my runs (or always the entire run when I do take it) with music on.
Biking I tend to do on busier streets, so leave the headphones off and hear what is around me.
Oh and the what? Whatever happens to be randomly selected by the shuffle, which contains random songs out of a huge collection of all types of music I enjoy. Lately lots of Death Cab for Cutie, Nada Surf, some Switchfoot, Ben lee, Decemberists, and Bright Eyes.
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magicno5 posted 2 years ago.
I'm with the people who don't train with music. I really enjoy going out and training and being by myself and I find the music a little distracting. Also, I can't really hear myself breathe so I feel like I'm not in touch with my body. Another reason is that I travel to some pretty exotic and unusual places for work and I like to run in those places to see the scenery and take in the environment. But probably the biggest reason above all is that running with an ipod in brazil (where I am right now), for instance, is a great invitation to get robbed or beat up so it's not the most advisable thing.
One funny thing though is that my wife got me the nano to workout with because the video ipod I have is pretty big and the first time I ran with it at home in florida it started to rain halfway through my run and the whole bottom of it rusted up and stopped working. I sent it back to Apple and they sent me a new one but I guess that goes to show me that I'm not meant to workout with music.
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Robj3411 posted 2 years ago.
I guess none of you have ADD. I for one almost always run with headphones on when I can. I also always listen to music when I am training indoors. I don't wear them when I'm riding, but that's for safety reasons. For me, I don't see a problem with it. It can get pretty boring spinning on a trainer or staionary bike with nothing else to occupy your mind. Same thing with pounding endless pavement, I just get bored. To me, I get a better workout when I have something to jam to. As for what I listen too, I have a good little playlist on my MP3 that consists of alot of upbeat stuff, Rancid, Blink182, some old rock. May sound weird, but I can also go forever if there is a football or baseball game on the radio, I guess I just need to occupy my brain.
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PrinceofClydes posted 2 years ago.
I like to train with music too.
I put my Walkman in a Ziploc baggie and tape around the wire, then I clip it to my Speedos, put the goggles over top of the headphones to keep 'em on. Then I'm good to go, sixty-seventy laps or so until the tape ends and I have to get out of the pool.
It's good on the stat. bike too. I like uptempo stuff like Black Betty by RamJam and on the treadmill dance music is best, even Britney Spears, Celine & Paul Simon's Graceland! Some Hip Hop has good rhythms & tempo for long runs.
Music fills my head with imagery which sometimes helps pass the hours on the long runs, Christina's Dirty for example.
er, ..what was the question again?
PoC
"Pain doesn't last, chicks dig scars, glory is forever!"
- Shane Falco.
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RV posted 2 years ago.
PrinceofClydes wrote:
Britney Spears, Celine & Paul Simon's Graceland!
That's the best arguement for running without music!
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
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dr_rios_ec posted 2 years ago.
I am another music fan...for almost everything I should say...
I train with music, most of the time, only a few times I do it without a soundtrack just to train my concentration...but for the rest of the time, when I run in or outdoors always with music. For biking is different cause´ can be pretty dangereous if I miss the sound of an eighteen wheeler aproaching :eek:
The tunes...well, not precisely Brittney Spears.. :D
...but depends on the mood, the weather or the activity.
Dance, Trance for a treadmill workout.
If the day is cold...some salsa, meregue, reggae...stuff like that.
Weight trainning...some rock, I love "Black Betty" by Ram Jam by the way....I also like Jane´s Addiction, Metallica, Rasmus, Linkin Park...stuff like that.
-Santiago
"Man!! Defeat is worse than dying, cause´you have to live with it" -My Dad
"It ain´t about how hard you can hit...it is how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward"-Rocky Balboa
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vmarwin posted 2 years ago.
PrinceofClydes wrote:
I like to train with music too.
I put my Walkman in a Ziploc baggie and tape around the wire, then I clip it to my Speedos, put the goggles over top of the headphones to keep 'em on. Then I'm good to go, sixty-seventy laps or so until the tape ends and I have to get out of the pool.PoC
POC,
There's no way you swim with a walkman...I can't believe no one else picked up on that sarcasm.
But, for those of you who would like to swim with tunes, there's the SwiMP3. Its waterproof and plays music by vibrating your skull.
If you wish to be out front, then act as if you were behind.
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Triguy98 posted 2 years ago.
vmarwin wrote:
Its waterproof and plays music by vibrating your skull.
Which is very effective for those people without enough thoughts to fill their head while swimming ;)
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
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marzian posted 2 years ago.
POC....putiting your walkman on a ziploc... that is old school
i run with music from time to time when i do my short/easy days and its fun. during my longer days i seldom do. i find myself humming a different tune than the playing song by the end or the run. weird.
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zcowgirl3 posted 2 years ago.
I would never have thought of the Ziploc ordeal, ain' goin' to lie. That's spiffy!
Now with the "thoughtful" music ya'll think of..well, whatever gets you to A and to B and to get done what needs to then all power to the awesome thoughts. (lol)
As for myself, I need music. I have my MP3 set for upbeat music that gives me a pace for runnin' (Eminem-Lose it and or Eye of the Tiger), for bikin' somethin' to just keep me on a roll (Linkin' Park-any song) however for swimming with it bein' my total weakess (for now) I just concentrate on what the heck I'm doin' however then drift off sometimes to think of what I'll do tomorrow even though I'm not done w/ the workout I'm doin'. However when it comes to race day I just remember the songs of my MP3 and go with it. I concentrate enough (sometimes tooooo much) so I can go w/ or w/out. Durin' my track career I did the same thing. When I would do things on my own I would have that puppy on for me to go but when I was at practice I had enough goin' on to keep me focused w/ my team and Coach I didn't need it.
So maybe w/ some it has to do with what atmospehere you're in. Or if you just concentrate alot on your body, the beat and breathing then maybe I'm wrong. Who knows. Sooo many ways out there!
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Luffe posted 2 years ago.
I never train with music, perhaps I'm old fashioned.
While using my recently purchased indoor cycle trainer I watch DVD, but I'm only training indoor when there is snow outside. No matter how hard the rain or wind, and only max two times a week.
I want to stay in focus, and I cannot do that with music.
7 hours of hope!
4 hours of pain!
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nightwithak posted 2 years ago.
my shuffle has helped my training immensely. I know I can't race with headphones, but I love music so much and I don't really have time in my life to just sit down and listen to music, so it's the best of both worlds when I can train and 'tune out' at the same time. Also, I find that when I race I am finding songs in my head to sing anyway, like I am singing myself through a race because I have memorized all of my workout songs. I know it sounds weird, but it works for me. I have a pretty good variety, but my favs are anything loud and rowdy that gets my blood flowin', like:
Project 86
Institute
Velvet Revolver
Chevelle
okgo
incubus
I always seem to be able to push through with my favorite tunes pounding in my head.
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Anton posted 2 years ago.
I only use my Shuffle if running on a treadmill at the gym and for lifting. On the rollers or trainer I watch TDF on DVD if it's a long ride or Spinervals for a specific workout.
NEVER out side...running or biking. I prefer to "feel freer and more receptive to the good things all around." (Chouinard)
Road Runners Club of America and USCF STRONGLY discourage use of headphones while training outside for safety reasons- both traffic and assault. Women attacked while running alone on trails,it has often been found,were wearing headphones and did not hear their attacker.
On that cheery note, lately I'm listening to:
Blue Cheer, Living Color
Ten Years After, Cream
Isley Brothers , Foo's
The Shins, Fallout Boy
Hot Tuna, Rush
and Jimi (of course)
"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" - Vincent Van Gogh
My Blog: http://agingsuperhero.blogspot.com
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
My wife bought me some Oakley Thumps last year for my birthday (I love that woman).
I use them when I run but NEVER on my bike.
Most of my running is around a park with very little street crossings.
I don't crank it up too loud, just read an article about iPod ear (hearing loss caused by prolonged exposure to loud music via a portable music device).
“The researchers determined that the exposure limit for safe headphone listening is one hour a day with the volume no higher than 60 percent. If you listen for more than an hour, you should turn the volume below 60 percent. Another informal rule of thumb: If you have to remove the headphones to hear people talking to you, it is too loud.�
As far as music, well I have everything from AC/DC to Yellowcard with a lot of Bob Marley and Greenday.
- T
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rob88 posted 2 years ago.
I usually run with my mp3 player - it makes training more fun and I don't miss it or need it in a race. On the bike I leave the music at home; I don't feel safe with the headphones on a bike. I just got the Swimp3 for the pool - it's ok but it sure looks dorky. No cool points with that thing strapped to your head.
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Robj3411 posted 2 years ago.
Rob
how well does the swimp3 player work, I've heard some bad things about radios and such made for swimming. I believe Speedo made a few versions that didn't hold up well after a few times in the pool . I'd be interested in one if it is durable enough to last
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vmarwin posted 2 years ago.
My Shuffle is one of my favorite training parters, I used to run with a 30G iPod on my arm...and that was fine, but the shuffle is weightless. I also ride with it frequently. I keep it soft enough so that I can still hear some ambient noises for safety, but I definitley enjoy it on the bike, especially when I'm commuting to work in the morning...which tends to be safe since I'm on a bike path for 80% of the distance.
If you wish to be out front, then act as if you were behind.
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rbreddin75 posted 2 years ago.
jeslol wrote:
Mental training is just as important as the running, biking ans swimming. Too many folks fall victim to "I can only run(bike) with music". You need to train how you want to race. You can't race with headphones, so you need to train without them. Long training runs are boring, so are long runs at the end of the race. But you need to stay focused and push through the boring, so you can keep you pace up.That's not to say I never train with music, but it's usually reserved for the trainer.
I AGREE COMPLETELY that is why I also dont wear those huge cushoning bike shorts on training rides... (you gotta get your arse used to the thin tri pads, otherwise your RUN will be comical) LOL
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RV posted 2 years ago.
rredding wrote:
I AGREE COMPLETELY that is why I also dont wear those huge cushoning bike shorts on training rides... (you gotta get your arse used to the thin tri pads, otherwise your RUN will be comical) LOL
True - Also the thick pads also affects your positioning - Gotta be able to get through a long training ride same as you would for a race.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
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thehitman posted 2 years ago.
vmarwin wrote:
POC,
... for those of you who would like to swim with tunes, there's the SwiMP3. Its waterproof and plays music by vibrating your skull.
The swiMP3 can be bought for a little better price than the $200 MSRP. Check out http://www.swimoutlet.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=3020&Click=298225
And in keeping with those of you of the "train as you race" school of thought, I think I'll see if I can do a 2:20 Oly distance triathlon (one of my goals) this afternoon. :rolleyes:
thehitman
“Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.” Mark Twain
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RV posted 2 years ago.
thehitman wrote:
And in keeping with those of you of the "train as you race" school of thought, I think I'll see if I can do a 2:20 Oly distance triathlon (one of my goals) this afternoon. :rolleyes:
Geez, c'mon hitman - you know that is not what is meant by the train as you race. And of course, it doesn't mean that you do a race simulation everytime out. Training prepares you for the race. You don't train extensively on flats if you know that your race course is hilly. You get out of the pool and do open water swims. And on and on. You hear many comments from people that are using headphones as a crutch to get through a tough workout. That isn't an option during a race - so best to prepare yourself for mentally overcoming those obstacles, be it boredom or otherwise. That one always gets me - I've never been bored during a training session. If having music is just a niceity and you are focusing on the workout then great - just be careful on the road with them.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
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Robj3411 posted 2 years ago.
I really don't understand why you guys are knocking this so much. For me, there is a tremendous difference mentally between training and racing and I don't think listening to music hampers the mental prep or that by not listening to music, you are mentally tougher. Do you guys think of NOTHING else but the run/bike/swim while you are training?
Maybe for some people it is distracting, I can buy that, just like people that need quiet to read or get work done...
I personally am in a different group, I enjoy background noise when i'm reading, working and training. Whats wrong with that?
A question for the "Train as you race guys" Do you wear your helmet and glasses when you are riding your indoor trainer/stationary bike?
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
First I setup a little T1 area in the garage. Second I have my wife body-mark on my favorite number. Then I jump into the bathtub with my wetsuit on, swim a few laps and then run downstairs to practice my transition. Then it’s on to the bike trainer with full gear (helmet, sunglasses, race bib, GU Gel, etc.). JUST KIDDING. I agree, I would go crazy if I didn’t have my music when I run. I don’t use it when I ride my bike on the road for fear of not hearing someone about to smash into me. Look at Lance, he listens to music on training rides and on warm-ups before a TdF Stage.
And what about those people that run R&R Marathons? Do they get their neighbors’ teenage kids garage band to come out and play while they run around the block for practice?
-T
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bfulto posted 2 years ago.
Cool website! I like the comments area and all of the tips given.
Hey, I just wanted to see what everyone else prefers while training. Do you have music on board or do you prefer to train without a soundtrack? Personally, I almost always have my iPod with me while running or lifting, and usually while I'm commuting to work and doing solo rides. My training playlist is about 100 songs strong. A few personal favorites are:
POD Boom
Eminem Till I collapse
Atmosphere
Muse
If you wish to be out front, then act as if you were behind.