Take Your Music to the Next Level

First, check out this bumpin’ track by Breathe Carolina

Whether you pump up the gangsta rap or prefer the delicate stylings of Baroque composition, there’s just something about tunes pulsing in your head that makes sucking air feel less like….well, sucking wind.

But did you know you can time your workout to actual song on tap? No, I’m not talking about any of that Darrin’s Dance Grooves choreography (though it’s a heck of a workout, I’m sure.) I’m talking about good old fashioned interval training that’s good for you no matter what your fitness goals are.

Here’s how we do it.

Pick a song that you’re familiar with. It should be reasonably upbeat and have a chorus that repeats itself again and again. If you listen around, you’ll find that the majority of tunes on the radio fall into this category.

Determine where the verses and the choruses are, as well as the bridge. The choruses will likely have the same lyrics while the verses ‘tell the story,’ if that’s any help. The bridge is where things get funky; maybe a breakdown section, a rap cameo, just something different. And the song will probably close out with another chorus.

Which leaves you with a structure that looks like this:

Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus, Chorus, Fadeout.

or

A-B-A-B-C-B-B

Here’s where the fun starts. Each section gets its own assignment. Verses are for light jogs, Choruses are sprints, Bridges are high-knees. Here’s your new roster:

jog.sprint.jog.sprint.high-knees.sprint.sprint.

Now try out Breathe Carolina again

As with most songs, verses tend to be longer than choruses, giving you ample time to recover between sprints. The bridge is extra-long, so it’s a good idea to use it to ramp yourself up for a big finish. However you look at it, that’s a workout in a 4 minute song. Link a handful of these together and you’ll go home drenched.

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