How Does Music Affect An Athlete's Performance?

Imagine an athlete getting ready to step out on the court or track without getting in the zone using music. It’s hard right? As music becomes easier to access and download, it becomes more evident in everyday life and becomes more than just a background noise. Current studies by sport psychologists show that music is more than just a distraction while engaging in physical activity. It actually enhances performance. Many factors contribute to the enhancement like the memories affiliated with the song or the singers emotion through the lyrics (Jabr). With this being said, given the right type of music, an athlete’s performance level can increase up to twenty percent (Serendip).

Performance will vary depending on the type of music the athlete is listening to. Two types of music include synchronous music
Rhythm response is how you react to a song whether it is nodding along or not moving at all. Most people automatically synchronize their body movements along with the beat of the music like tapping their hands against table or nodding their head. Because everyone does not have the same taste in music, different genres can trigger this response depending on who is listening to it. Songs with a fast tempo tend to be more stimulating than songs with a slow beat. This is why most people fill their playlist with synchronous music to propel them through the workout or get them pumped up for a game (Jabr).

Dr. Costas Karageorghis, a sports psychologist at Brunel University, came up with four main divisions of the effects of music on an athlete’s performance. The first is that music can distract an athlete from fatigue and follows with music is a mood altering catalyst. The third states that music can synchronize an athlete’s rhythm and movement and fourth concludes that music can act as a trigger for learning certain motions and aid with muscle memory