The Best Workout Songs

music is essential to working out: anything that distracts you from the burn in your legs or that cramp in your side surely benefits your inner gym rat. Only music – without having to concentrate like you do watching television or reading a book - has the rare ability to make working out seem a little less like work. However , some music is better to take to the gym than others.

Take the story of my sister, for instance. When she got her Ipod she was determined to fill it up with fist pumping, leg running workout music. Instead, she made an error and realized, once she arrived at 24 hour fitness, that the only song she had programmed was by Bette Midler. For some reason, she just didn’t seem to really strain and sweat to the powerhouse song that is “The Rose. ”

This brings me to my point, some songs belong in the gym and some songs, such as “The Rose” belong as far away from anything physical as possible (Dear Bette Mrs. Midler, please don’t kick my butt for saying so , even though I know you could).

The following is our list of the best work out songs, songs that are sure to help you get up and run, get up and bike, get up and go, or get up and row.

Eye of the Tiger: Yes, you all saw this coming. “Eye of the Tiger” is the epitome of a good workout song, one that can make you try just a bit harder without even realizing it. Released in 1982, this song has become the anthem of sports teams and organizations everywhere. It is also routinely played in gyms and athletic training areas. Putting it on your Ipod will make Rocky proud.

St . Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion): A song that is perhaps best known as being the theme of the similarly titled 1985 film “St. Elmo’s Fire” was originally written for Rick Hansen, a wheelchair bound Canadian athlete touring around the world to raise spinal cord injury awareness. Performed by John Parr and adapted for film, “St. Elmo’s Fire” became an instant hit, earning a Grammy nomination along the way.

Under Pressure: Who knew David Bowie and Queen would make such a nice combo? “Under Pressure, ” released in 1981, climbed the charts in several countries. Remembered for its baseline (no you youngsters, that wasn’t written by Vanilla Ice), “Under Pressure” is the epitome of a great pop song. It’s also one you can identify with as you work out, feeling that you are under pressure to run one more mile or lift one more weight.

Almost Anything by Van Halen: One of the Patriarchs of Hard Rock, Van Halen routinely releases songs that are sure to help you bust a move. A band with a sound like no other, each Van Halen song is uniquely livening. Try listening to “Jump” as you workout with a speed rope. You might be surprised the difference it makes.

You Shook Me All Night Long: Arguably AC/DC’s greatest hit, “You Shook me All Night Long” is regarded as one of the best songs of its decade. Released in 1980 and still great today, “You Shook Me All Night Long” is impossible to listen to without feeling a little more pumped…and ready to shake a little something yourself.

Jason Mraz - I Won\'t Give Up [Official Music Video]

The Best MP3 Tag Editor - Tuneup Your Music Collection

The TuneUp

There are programs out there that help with fixing your tags so they feature the correct information. One of the more complete programs is TuneUp due to its interface with iTunes as well as the extras that come with it, which allows users to have an experience similar to the one they would have if they had all of the album artwork and liner notes. It is one of those rare add-ons that truly enhances the iTunes experience.

For starters, TuneUp will automatically fill your iTunes ID3 tags by actively "listening" to the music through the individual acoustics of each song. From there, TuneUp matches its database of over 90 million songs to distinguish the exact artist and album. Of course , the exact artist and album may not be in the database. TuneUp gives users the option of declining what the database finds if the match is incorrect.

Cover art tends to be an issue, even with iTunes. Often times, such prolific artists like Bob Dylan have mislabeled album covers on iTunes due to there being special sets on iTunes that do not match up with the original artwork. TuneUp looks through its database of album covers and gives the user various options to match up with the respective album.

TuneUp goes further than just the basic tagging by providing links to extra content by the artist. Whether it be an artist bio or links to music videos, TuneUp brings an experience similar to what enhanced CD's would bring in the late 90's. Often , purchasing MP3's is a cold business, leaving some of the warmth and artistry that music was known for behind. This make an attempt to bridge that gap and it succeeds in allowing the user to learn a bit more about the people behind the music. There is also an option to find similar or related artists for those who wish to branch out in their listening habits.

Perhaps the best feature on the TuneUp program is the concert option, which brings live, personalized updates on local concerts featuring your favorite artists. All concerts feature links to StubHub and give a better picture of when bands are playing, something that often gets lost in the shuffle before too late.

Whether it be manually or through a program like TuneUp, fixing your tags on iTunes can be frustrating, yet ultimately can lead to a better iTunes experience.

Metallica - Nothing Else Matters [Official Music Video]