With the Nike Women’s half-marathon approaching, most participants can be spotted training hardcore in their Lululemon stretch pants and neon Nike kicks. But physical training and looking good while you “just do it” isn’t the only thing that you need to do before the big run. You also need to prepare the perfect playlist with power songs that boost your energy to keep you going.
Before I clue you in, let me explain what a power song is. For all you runners out there, you know when you’ve been running for a while, and when you’ve reached about 4 miles, you start to loose your stamina? You run out of random thoughts to think about like how much you hated Stacy’s formal dress, and what Chester’s winky-face text could mean, and so you are forced to think about how sore your calf muscles are, how red your face must look, and how hot and sweaty it is in your tight sports bra between the twins (who coincidentally you have named Stacy and Chester.)
So in order to distract you, and keep you running, you need a power song, a song that would make you bust serious moves on the dance floor and makes you so pumped, you feel like you’re about to explode into a million pieces of sweaty confetti. But how do you find these perfect power songs for your playlist?
Below, I have made a list of the Six types of power songs you will need to keep you running, and get you through the finish line.
1.The “Throwback” song: The Throwback song is perfect, because who doesn’t love a blast from the past? A song that you haven’t heard in a while, but used to dance to on the regs, will make you forget that your running, and bring you back to yesteryear (as they say in Parent Trap) when boy bands were cool and scrunchies were a thing. Some good throwback songs include, “Stronger” by Britney Spears, “It’s Gonna Be Me” by ‘N Sync, and “Like a Boy” by Ciara.
2.The “Angsty Teenager” song: Remember in high school when you decided to be artsy and independent and tried to like, define your soul and paint your nails black, so all you listened to was angsty alternative music? Well, go into you iTunes, find your favorite, and boom, you have a perfect power song! These songs are perfect because the lyrics are filled with anger which gets you running hard and fast, and they’re also fun because you also weirdly remember all the lyrics. Some good angsty songs include, “The Phrase That Pays” by The Academy Is…, “Cosmopolitan” by Nine Black Alps, “The Curse of Curves” by Cute Is What We Aim For, and “I Hate Everything About You” by Three Days Grace.
3.The “Feels like Ecstasy” song: EDM music can fill a person with a feeling of ecstasy (without having to pop a molly) that is perfect for running. The slow build up keeps you at a steady pace, and once there’s that magical build-up and bass drop, you’ll find yourself sprinting with ease to the computer-generated electro beat. These EDM songs aren’t just for paint parties and neon ragers, they are tracks for when you hit the track as well. Some good Ecstasy-inducing songs include, “Cracks (Flux Pavilion Remix) [Feat. Belle Humble]” by Freestylers, “Iron” by Calvin Harris and Nicky Romero, and “Beam Me Up (Kill Mode)” by Cazzette.
4.The “Rap up when you want to Wrap up” song: Rap music is a great go-to for the perfect power song, because the beats are heavy, the production is always on point, and keeping up with the lyrics will distract you as you attempt to mentally rap along in you head. So when you’re about to throw in the towel, turn up the volume and rap it out. Some good runner’s rap songs include, “On to the Next One (feat. Swizz Beatz)” by Jay-Z, “Rap God” by Eminem, “Stronger” by Kanye West, and “Drop the World” by Lil Wayne & Eminem.
5.The “Top 40 for Top Speed” song: As much as we love to hate on top 40 music, we have to admit that it’s always catchy and always fun. This top forty music is great because you know all the lyrics because it’s always on the radio, and its popular for a reason and that reason is because it’s good. These top forty songs will give you that boost you need when you feel like your legs can’t move anymore and bring you back into the zone. Some Top Forty songs include, “Talk Dirty (feat. 2 Chainz)” by Jason Derulo, “Dark Horse (feat. Juicy J)” by Katy Perry, and “Turn Down For What” by DJ Shake & Lil Jon.
6.The “Better Put On Beyoncé Now” Song (Duh): Obviously, there is no better power song than a Beyoncé power song. All of her music is catchy, and upbeat, re-energizing, and inspiring. Any of her songs will work, but some of the best Beyoncé power songs include, “Drunk in Love (feat. Jay Z),” “Diva,” “Countdown,” and “Patrician.” Also, feel free to throw some Destiny’s Child into your playlist like “Survivor,” “Bootylicious,” and “Say My Name.”