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EFFECTS OF SELF-SELECTED MUSIC ON STRENGTH,
EXPLOSIVENESS,AND MOOD
MATTHEW S. BIAGINI,LEE E. BROWN,JARED W. COBURN,DANIEL A. JUDELSON,TRACI A. STATLER,
MARTIM BOTTARO,TAI T. TRAN,AND NICK A. LONGO
Department of Kinesiology, Human Performance Laboratory, Center for Sport Performance, California State University,
Fullerton, California
ABSTRACT
Biagini, MS, Brown, LE, Coburn, JW, Judelson, DA, Statler, TA,
Bottaro, M, Tran, TT, and Longo, NA. Effects of self-selected
music on strength, explosiveness, and mood. J Strength Cond
Res 26(7): 1934–1938, 2012—There has been much in-
vestigation into the use of music as an ergogenic aid to facilitate
physical performance. However, previous studies have primarily
focused on predetermined music and aerobic exercise. The
purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of self-
selected music (SSM) vs. those of no music (NM) on the mood
and performance of the athletes performing bench press and
squat jump. Twenty resistance trained collegiate men completed
2 experimental conditions, one while listening to SSM and the
other with NM. The subjects reported their profile of mood states
(POMS) and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) before and after
performing 3 sets to failure of the bench press at 75% 1
repetition maximum (1RM) and 3 reps of the squat jump at 30%
1RM. Statistical analyses revealed no differences in squat jump
height or relative ground reaction force, but the takeoff velocity
(SSM-2.06 60.17 ms
21
; NM-1.99 60.18 ms
21
), rate of
velocity development (SSM-5.92 61.46 ms
22
;NM-5.636
1.70 ms
22
), and rate of force development (SSM-3175.61 6
1792.37 Ns
21
; NM-2519.12 61470.32 Ns
21
) were greater
with SSM, whereas RPE (SSM-5.71 61.37; NM-6.36 61.61)
was greater with NM. Bench press reps to failure and RPE were
not different between conditions. The POMS scores of vigor
(SSM-20.15 65.58; NM-17.45 65.84), tension (SSM-8.40 6
3.99; NM-6.07 63.26), and fatigue (SSM-8.65 64.49; NM-
7.40 64.38) were greater with SSM. This study demonstrated
increased performance during an explosive exercise and an
altered moodstate when listening to SSM. Therefore, listening to
SSM might be beneficial for acute power performance.
KEY WORDS power, explosive, velocity
INTRODUCTION
Resistance exercise has been shown (2) to have
a profound influence on strength and power.
These adaptations stem from the ability to
manipulate a progressive amount of resistance
in an explosive manner. Optimizing time and maximizing
effort in the weight room can also improve athletic
performance. Because of this, the use of ergogenic aids has
become common place in most exercise programs and
weight rooms. An ergogenic aid can be defined as an external
influence with the ability to increase capacity for bodily or
mental labor especially by eliminating fatigue symptoms (2)
and can range from articles of clothing to imagery, caffeine,
steroids, or music (1,6).
There is a significant amount of research that supports the
use of music as an ergogenic aid (3–5,7,8,11,14,20,22). It has
been previously reported that music might allow an
individual to dissociate from exercise (1,9,10,12). The most
common positive outcomes when combining music and
exercise appear to be decreased ratings of perceived exertion
(RPEs), increased performance measures, improved mood,
and increased arousal. In contrast, there is research that
suggests that music does not elicit an ergogenic effect on
performance and that it may even have detrimental effects
(6,19). Although the mechanism is still unclear, it has been
suggested that music serves as an ergogenic aid by altering
focus of attention to external information (17).
The majority of investigations on the effects of synchro-
nous, asynchronous or oudeterous (neutral in terms of
motivational qualities) music tend to focus on aerobic rather
than on anaerobic exercise, whereas a limited amount of
research has examined resistance exercise, demonstrating
mixed results (11,18). In addition, nearly all previous studies
examining the effects of music on physical and psychophys-
ical measures have used a predetermined selection of music
(1,3,5–12,14,15,18,22) in an attempt to find fundamental
characteristics that elicit positive responses. However, the
individuality and psychological differences of humans
suggest that using self-selected music (SSM) may yield the
most beneficial effects (13,23). We hypothesize that if the
music is individually chosen, it may have a greater effect,
regardless of the type of music. Therefore, the purpose of this
Address correspondence to Lee E. Brown, leebrown@fullerton.edu.
26(7)/1934–1938
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Ó2012 National Strength and Conditioning Association
1934
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
the
TM
Copyright © National Strength and Conditioning Association Unauthorized reproduction of this article is prohibited.
study was to investigate the effects of SSM on strength,
explosiveness, and mood.
METHODS
Experimental Approach to the Problem
This study sought to investigate the effects of SSM on
strength, explosiveness, and mood during an acute bout of
exercise in resistance trained college men. Each subject
completed 3 visits. The first was used to obtain the bench
press and back squat 1 repetition maximum (1RM). The
following 2 experimental visits, which were identical to each
other with the exception of SSM being played or not being
played, measured bench press reps to failure, squat jump
performance, and mood.
Subjects
Twenty men (22.95 61.90 years, 177.57 67.07 cm, 83.85 6
15.15 kg, bench press 1RM 104.65 619.95 kg, back squat
1RM 134.77 626.02 kg) who were resistance trained (having
$years of experience in the parallel back squat and bench
press exercises) volunteered for this study. Any subject
reporting current health limitations or the current use of
anabolic steroid supplements was excluded from participa-
tion. Before participation, all the subjects read and signed an
informed consent document approved by the University
Institutional Review Board.
Procedures
To assess the effects of SSM on bench press, squat jump and
mood, the subjects completed 2 experimental conditions in
a counterbalanced order separated by at least 48 hours and
performed on the same time of day. One condition was
completed with SSM delivered through ambient speakers
measured at 80 dB (Scosche SPL1000F 135DB Max Spl
Meter, Oxnard, CA, USA), whereas the other condition had
no music (NM). Throughout the experiment, the subjects
were advised not to add any new exercises to their current
routine and were informed to refrain from exercise, alcohol,
or stimulants 36 hours before each visit. To ensure adequate
hydration, the subjects drank approximately 1 L of water the
night before and 0.5 L of water the morning of each trial.
Before the experimental conditions, each subject was
instructed to compile a minimum of 1 hour of SSM on
a blank CD that they would like to listen to while exercising.
For each condition, the subjects completed a Profile of
Mood States (POMS) questionnaire preexercise and post-
exercise, which quantified their individual levels of fatigue (F),
tension (T), vigor (V), anger (A), confusion (C), and
depression (D) (16). Rating of perceived exertion was
recorded 9 times during each condition using the OMNI
Resistance Exercise Scale (21) measuring 0–10 (after warm-
up, after each squat jump rep, after each bench press set, and
after the completion of the postexercise POMS).
Before the first experimental visit, the subjects reported to
the laboratory, and their height was measured in centimeters
using a stadiometer (Seca, Ontario, CA, USA), and body mass
was measured in kilograms using a digital scale (Ohaus,
ES200L, Pine Brook, NJ, USA). The subjects then performed
a 5-minute warm-up on a cycle-ergometer (Monark 828E,
Varberg, Sweden) at a self-selected workload and cadence.
Their 1RM was obtained for the parallel back squat and bench
press (counterbalanced order)
via a Muscle Maxx squat rack
(Power-Systems Fitness Equip-
ment, Knoxville, TN, USA)
following National Strength
and Conditioning Association
guidelines (2), where partici-
pants progressively increased
resistance after each successful
lift until their 1RM was
achieved.
When the subjects returned
to the laboratory for the first
experimental visit, a preexercise
POMS was completed, after
which they were instructed to
warm up for 5 minutes on the
cycle ergometer using the same
TABLE 1. Bench press reps per set and RPE
between conditions (mean 6SD).*
Self-selected music No music
Set 1 14.15 61.95 13.90 61.83
Set 2 7.80 61.67 7.35 61.56
Set 3 3.95 61.46 4.00 61.29
RPE 8.81 61.18 9.06 61.09
*RPE = rating of perceived exertion.
TABLE 2. Squat jump values for JH, TOV, RVD, rGRF, RFD, and RPE between
conditions (mean 6SD).*
Self-selected music No music Effect size
JH (cm) 24.65 64.05 24.22 65.20
rGRF (Nkg
21
) 12.94 62.61 12.39 62.50
TOV (ms
21
) 2.06 60.17†1.99 60.18 0.142
RVD (ms
22
) 5.92 61.46†5.63 61.70 0.063
RFD (Ns
21
) 3,175.61 61,792.37†2,519.12 61,470.32 0.209
RPE 5.71 61.37 6.36 61.61†0.310
*JH = jump height; TOV = takeoff velocity; RVD = rate of velocity development; rGRF =
relative ground reaction force; RFD = rate of force development; RPE = rating of perceived
exertion.
†Significantly greater than other condition.
VOLUME 26 | NUMBER 7 | JULY 2012 | 1935
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|
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procedure as that on the 1RM day. Immediately after the
warm-up, the subjects performed either 3 sets of the bench
press exercise or 3 squat jump reps (counterbalanced order).
The bench press consisted of 3 sets at 75% 1RM for reps to
failure with 2 minutes rest between sets. Failure was
determined when the bar traveled in the down direction
during the concentric phase. The squat jump consisted of 3
reps at 30% back squat 1RM with 1 minute rest between reps.
All the jumps were performed on an AMTI force plate
(Advanced Mechanical Technology, Inc., Watertown, MA,
USA) measuring jump height (JH), takeoff velocity (TOV),
rate of velocity development (RVD), relative ground reaction
force (rGRF), and rate of force development (RFD) were all
measured via the force plate. Squat jump data were sampled at
1,000 Hz and analyzed by custom LabVIEW software
(version 7.1, National Instruments Corporation, Austin, TX,
USA). At the end of each experimental visit, they completed
a postexercise POMS. During the second experimental visit,
the condition not performed in the first visit was used. On the
SSM visit, their music was played during the preexercise
POMS and continued throughout the condition until the
completion of the postexercise POMS.
Statistical Analyses
Descriptive statistics were calculated for all variables and
intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were calculated for
bench press and squat jump reliability. A 2 39 (condition 3
time) repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was
used to analyze RPE. Six 2 32 (condition 3time) repeated
measures ANOVAs were used to analyze POMS scores of F,
T, V, A, C, and D. Five 2 33 (condition 3rep) repeated
measures ANOVAs were used to analyze squat jump JH,
TOV, RVD, rGRF, and RFD. A 2 33 (condition 3set)
repeated measures ANOVA was used to analyze bench press
reps to failure. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences
(SPSS 19.0 for Windows, SPSS, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) was
used for all analyses, and Alpha was set a priori at 0.05 for
significance.
RESULTS
Bench press reps to failure (ICC, 0.81) and RPE during bench
press revealed no interactions or main effects (Table 1).
Squat jump revealed no interactions or main effects for JH
(ICC, 0.95) or rGRF (ICC, 0.93). However, TOV (ICC, 0.84),
RFD (ICC, 0.72), RVD (ICC, 0.93), and RPE all exhibited
a main effect for condition. One-way ANOVA demonstrated
that TOV, RFD, and RVD were greater for SSM, whereas
RPE was greater for NM (Table 2).
The POMS scores revealed an interaction of condition and
time for fatigue. This was followed-up by two 1 32ANOVAs
for each time between conditions, which revealed no
difference in the preexercise POMS, but fatigue was
significantly greater postexercise in SSM compared with that
for NM. There was also a main effect of condition for tension
and vigor with both being greater for SSM compared with
NM. There were no interactions or main effects for anger,
confusion, or depression (Table 3).
DISCUSSION
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of SSM
on strength, explosiveness, and mood during the bench press
and squat jump exercises. The primary findings were that
SSM increased squat jump explosiveness and feelings of vigor,
tension, and fatigue. In contrast, squat jump RPE was greater
for NM. Bench press reps to failure and associated RPE were
not different between conditions. Therefore, the use of SSM
might enhance acute power performance.
A previous study by Karageorghis et al. (11) investigated
different types of predetermined music on grip strength.
They used stimulative and sedative music in which
stimulative music was characterized by 134 bmin
21
, whereas
sedative music measured 90 bmin
21
and found stimulative
music to have a positive effect on strength. Our current study
allowed the subjects to listen to SSM while performing
a bench press strength exercise, and we found no advantage.
A possible explanation for this might be that the SSM chosen
TABLE 3. Profile of mood states values between time and SSM and NM for F, T, V, A, C and D (mean 6SD).*
Pre-exercise Postexercise Condition average
SSM NM SSM NM SSM NM
F 2.45 62.56 3.55 63.39 8.65 64.49†7.40 64.38
T 6.45 62.96 4.50 63.37 10.35 65.02 7.65 63.16 8.40 63.99†6.07 63.26
V 21.15 65.88 18.10 66.47 19.15 65.28 16.80 65.22 20.15 65.58†17.45 65.84
A 2.35 61.89 2.00 62.47 5.00 64.69 3.05 64.29
C 3.05 62.50 3.10 62.42 3.70 62.45 3.60 62.62
D 0.50 61.23 0.85 61.38 1.90 62.67 1.60 63.56
*SSM = self-selected music; NM = no music; F = fatigue; T = tension; V = vigor; A = anger; C = confusion; D = depression.
†Significantly greater than the NM condition.
1936
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Effects of Self-Selected Music
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by our subjects was not stimulative enough to overcome the
physically taxing demands of a prolonged strength exercise.
In a study conducted by Lim et al. (15), the subjects
completed three 10-km cycling time trials on an ergometer in
a control condition, or music delivered from 0 to 5 km or
music delivered from 5 to 10 km. The subjects reported
no difference in RPE, interpreting all the trials as being
equally difficult. As in our current study, the subjects reported
no difference in the bench press RPE between conditions,
which may have been so because of the extended length and
intensity of the exercise.
We found SSM to have a positive effect on squat jump
TOV, RVD, and RFD. Our findings are similar to that of
Eliakim et al. (8) who used the Wingate Anaerobic Test to
measure power of elite adolescent volleyball players. Their
subjects were exposed to arousing predetermined music
characterized by 140 bmin
21
for 10 minutes before
performing the Wingate test, and they found increased peak
anaerobic power in the first 5 seconds. Based on these results,
it appears that motivating and or SSM may be beneficial
during acute explosive, high-intensity exercise.
Previous research suggests that listening to music while
exercising provides dissociation from the fatigue and
discomfort that is inherent with exercise (1,9,10,12) by
altering the focus of attention to the external information
(17). Similar to the findings of Hayakawa et al. (10), our
subjects reported having increased vigor with SSM com-
pared with that in NM. Our subjects also reported greater
tension during the SSM condition compared that in NM
while reporting no difference in anger, confusion, or
depression between conditions. Different from the findings
of Hayakawa et al. (10), feelings of fatigue in our study were
greater in the SSM condition postexercise. This might be
partly explained by our study showing increased squat jump
explosiveness, which suggests that the subjects were
exercising at their maximal level during the SSM condition.
Therefore, the increased feelings of fatigue might have been
associated with the greater performance measures, which
were related to the dissociative focus of the attention effect of
the SSM as evident in their feelings of increased vigor.
Because the mechanism as to why the use of music may
improve performance is still unclear, some research has
suggested varied arousal levels or motivational factors.
Ferguson et al. (9) examined the effects of positive and
negative music on performance of a karate drill. They had
subjects perform a kata after a 1-minute exposure to positive
music, negative music, or white noise. Their results revealed
a greater performance on exposure to music with there being
no differences between positive or negative music conditions.
Postexperimental evaluation of the subject’s self-perceived
performance indicated that 11 subjects felt more comfortable
and 10 subjects felt more relaxed after listening to music.
Another study evaluated weightlifters for 6 months to 3
years while they listened to music during training (14).
Weightlifters were asked about their attitude toward training;
mood, quality of work, general state at the beginning of
training, general state at the end of training, intensity of
training, and satisfaction with training. The results indicated
that 89% of the weightlifters improved the quality of their
training with the accompaniment of music, with 97%
increasing the volume, and 98% increasing the intensity.
In conclusion, many studies have examined the potential
benefits of incorporating music into exercise, but this study is
one of the few to demonstrate improved anaerobic
performance. SSM was able to alter mood and enhance
acute explosive physical performance while decreasing
perceived exertion, yet it had no effect on reps to failure in
a multiple-set strength exercise. This incongruity of results
should be further investigated by having subjects self-select
music specifically for either a strength or power exercise.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Enhancing performance is a common goal for strength and
conditioning specialists, coaches, and athletes. Our study
demonstrates that SSM alters mood state, and it increases
acute explosive performance but provides no change in
strength training. Therefore, those interested in increasing
explosive exercise performance might want to allow athletes
to use SSM to enhance acute power.
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