If you are watching the Sochi Olympics, you may have noticed the large number of athletes who pluck their earphones just before competitions. The truth is that there are several studies about the positive influence of music on physical performance, but are competitors actively using this trick to improve their brands?

To answer this question, Asap Science YouTube people have created an animation to explain how far a specific selection of songs may or may not make any difference in winning a medal. You can check out the following material and enable the relatively understandable Portuguese subtitles in the video menu. And don't worry, as soon as you can find a description of the content!

According to the animation, the music does have the power to “create a mood”, making us feel calmer or agitated depending on the style chosen. So much so that the rhythms of some songs coincide with the repetitive movements of certain activities, and these are the ones chosen for the practice of sports that, besides involving these repetitive actions, also require resistance, as is the case of cross-country skiing, for example. .

Studies have shown that music can act as a cognitive and physical stimulant, especially when the song is meaningful to the athlete. For individuals who suffer from anxiety before competitions, music can be used to improve self-esteem, confidence and mood. In addition, during the races, music can be used to distract athletes from feeling tired.

Pop

Image Source: Reproduction / Olympic.org

According to the video, research has shown that individuals who listen to pop music during warm-up and training often show an increase in heart rate and muscle strength compared to those who train in "silence." What's more, because music has the power to trigger emotional responses, it has also been documented that it can improve the formation of mental images.

This technique is used by athletes to imagine themselves winning in their modalities before competitions, something considered crucial, especially before important events. In fact, some coaches use music as a motivational tool, prohibiting sportsmen from listening to songs during practice until they reach certain levels of performance.

Ski-ba-bop-ba-dop

Image Source: Reproduction / Olympic.org

With respect to the best kind of music for sports, studies have shown that any rhythm can positively influence performance - compared to not listening at all - although compositions with musical tempo exceeding 120 beats per minute have offered the best results.

As for the question that opens this story, there is a famous music use case: Haile Gebrselassie, an Ethiopian athlete who is still considered one of the best long distance runners in history, has synchronized his strides with the rhythm of The Scatman. when it broke the world record of 5, 000 meters with almost 11 seconds ahead of the previous brand in 1995.