Whether you’re just starting out in the world of aerobics or a seasoned professional, finding the best music for aerobics classes can have a huge effect on your clients’ motivation.
Music has been proven to have an effect on us when exercising, with some studies showing that the right music can have positive physical and psychological effects like pushing you to exercise harder for longer.
In this blog, we’re going to go through the relevant licensing you may need to play music during your class and how to choose the best music for aerobics—but before we do, what exactly is aerobics?
What is aerobics?
Aerobics can include cardio, stretching, and strength exercises set to the rhythm of music. It usually involves using your body’s large muscle groups with the goal of improving your overall fitness.
Aerobics has several health benefits, such as strengthening your heart and lungs, burning calories, and increasing your serotonin levels. It’s a great way to maintain good health and have fun.
The clue is in the name ‘aerobic’, which literally means ‘with oxygen,’ as this form of exercise should also improve the cardiovascular system.
What licences do you need to play music in an aerobics class?
You may need a PPL and a PRS licence to play music during your aerobics class, depending on the type of music you want to play and where you’ll be playing it.
A PPL licence permits you to play music publicly on behalf of the recording rightsholder (such as the original artists and record companies), and a PRS licence permits you to play music publicly on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers. If you need both licences, the two organisations have joined to create TheMusicLicence.
The three things which will impact the licences you need to buy, are:
- Commercially available music: This includes any song performed by the original artist and requires a PRS and PPL licence to play during your classes.
- PPL-free music: Thisrefers to music that is a cover of the original artist and only requires a PRS licence.
- Licence-free: As you might have guessed, this covers music that does not require a PRS or PPL Licence, including any music that is copyright-free.
Finding the best music for aerobics classes
Now we’ve got the legal bit out of the way, let’s look at how to find the best music for aerobics classes. The best music for your aerobics class will depend on several factors, including your planned exercise routines, what you and your class enjoy most, and how fast you want to move!
Take a look at some of our tips below on how to choose the best tracks to get your clients moving and keep them engaged:
1. Check the beat and rhythm
Arguably, the most important aspect of selecting the right music for any kind of fitness is the beat and rhythm of the music. The right BPM (beats per minute) works great as an audible cue to your clients for when to speed up or slow down their exercises.
Changing the BPM of your songs can also help give your clients a breather between some of the faster-paced songs. Take a look at the list below from CNET which includes some of the best BPM scores for different types of exercise. We’ve even added some well-known songs as examples for each.
Forms of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training): 140 to 180+ BPM
Examples:
Steady-state cardio: 120 to 140 BPM
Examples:
Weightlifting: 130 to 150 BPM
Examples:
Warming up for exercise: 100 to 140 BPM
Examples:
- Seven Nation Army – The White Stripes
- Rather Be – Clean Bandit feat. Jess Glynne
- Where Have You Been – Rihanna
Cooling down after exercise: 60 to 90 BPM
Examples:
2. Consider your clients’ preferences
One of the easiest ways to choose the right music for your aerobics class is to head right to the source. Ask members of your class what their favourite genre of music is or their favourite song and see if you can find a song that you can add to your playlist.
Of course, you might have a large number of people in your class, so including a mix of music genres in your playlist could be an easy way to ensure that everyone will hear something they like. This will also help ensure you regularly update your playlist to keep your clients engaged.
3. Try something new
Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone when choosing your music, as not everyone in your class will like the same music that you do. You could even try and find songs that your clients might not have heard before, but that you think they’ll enjoy.
Another great way to keep refreshing your playlist is to pick a new genre each week. You and your class might even find a new favourite genre in the process. Asking your clients which workout routines they like best will ensure that you’re always providing them with the content they enjoy, and then all you have to do is find a new song to match it.
4. Remember that lyrics matter
It’s not just the beat and rhythm of the music that can help our exercise performance; listening to music with motivational lyrics can also boost our confidence and output.
Therefore, you should try to find songs with a positive message to play for your class as further encouragement. You’ll have everyone leaving your class on a happy note.
5. Pre-plan your playlist
Once you’ve picked out the songs for your class, you need to plan out the order in which you’ll play them. A good place to start is by bookending your playlist with your warm-up and cool-down songs.
Then, it’s entirely up to you how you order the songs you’ll play for the rest of your class. You could gradually increase the intensity of the exercises and the music or start strong and gradually decrease the speed of your routines, or you could alternate the intensity of your workouts.
Specialist fitness instructor insurance through Insure4Sport
As an aerobics instructor, you can help people reach their fitness goals and have fun while doing it, but it’s not without its risks.
Whether it’s damage to your equipment or an injury to yourself or one of your clients, specialist fitness instructor insurance can give you the peace of mind you need should the worst happen.
Specialist insurance for fitness instructors through Insure4Sport can protect you against third-party claims, theft and loss of or damage to exercise equipment you own, and even loss of earnings should you suffer a personal injury that results in your inability to work.
Learn more about specialist fitness instructor insurance through Insure4Sport here, or get a quick quote today.
