The Effects of Music on High-intensity Short-term Exercise in Well Trained Athletes

PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to assess the effects of listening to music during warm-up on short-term supramaximal performances during the 30-s Wingate test in highly trained athletes. METHODS: Twelve young male athletes (20.6±1.8 yrs, 177±4.4 cm and 72.3±5.3 kg) underwent two Wingate tests in separate sessions with a recovery period of 48 h in-between, either after a 10 min of warm-up with (MWU) or without (NMWU) music. High tempo music (>120 to 140bpm) was selected for the study. Heart rate (HR) and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) were recorded after the warm-up (for HR = average of warm-up) and immediately after the Wingate test. RESULTS: HR, RPE and the fatigue index during the Wingate test are not affected by the incorporation of music during warm-up. However, power output (P(peak) and P(mean)) was significantly higher after MWU than NMWU (P<0.05). The relative increases were 4.1 ± 3.6 and 4.0 ± 3.7 W·kg(−1) for P(peak) and P(mean) respectively. These findings demonstrated the beneficial effect of music during warm-up on short-term supramaximal performances. CONCLUSIONS: As it's a legal method and an additional aid, music may be used during warm-up before performing activities requiring powerful lower limbs’ muscles contractions during short-term supramaximal exercises.