Do you feel like you keep coming back to the same songs and artists over and over for your playlist? Then it's time to freshen up your music offering! We asked around with fellow gym and studio owners to get the scoop on the top five songs playing for each genre of exercise offered at ClassPass. You may be surprised what new artist or song you discover.
DANCE
Amy L., instructor and owner of Jazzercise of East Brunswick in New Jersey, believes that music can make or break a workout. She makes sure her playlists are always fresh and trains instructors to combine the latest dance moves with the newest music in order to shake things up and keep the workouts fun and exciting in every class. At the moment, Amy’s top five songs are:
- Bailar - Deorro feat. Pitbull & Elvis Crespo
- Believer - Major Lazer & Showtek
- Money Maker - Throttle feat. LunchMoney Lewis & Aston Merrygold
- What You Need - Britney Spears
- Woman Up - Meghan Trainor
KICKBOXING
Alyssa M., Regional Director at Sweat Fitness Philadelphia, tries to mix her playlists up according to who is in her class, catering to the 80’s hits that are big with some of the older students, the 90’s hits that the younger students love, and Top 40 songs that have the BPM she needs throughout the class. While she incorporates classic hits on her playlists, she also integrates new music from kickboxing playlists on Fit Radio. Her top five songs of the moment:
- Let Me Love You – DJ Snake feat. Justin Bieber
- Party – Chris Brown feat. Gucci Mane and Usher
- Tearin’ Up My Heart – NSync
- What Is Love – Haddaway
- What Do You Mean? – Justin Bieber
STRENGTH TRAINING
Barry’s Bootcamp has been on the HIIT scene before it was even a scene and describes its class as a mix of cardio (treadmill running) and floor work (weight lifting/resistance exercises) in a, “thumping music-filled environment.” Needless to say, their playlists are extremely important to the flow and energy of the workout itself. Barry’s Bootcamp instructor Alex S. (LA) and Alycia S.(NY) shared their top five combined here:
- We Found Love VS. I Wanna Dance with Somebody – DJ Nandi Mashup
- Fade – Kanye West (Freejak remix)
- False Alarm – Matoma feat. Becky Hill (Hook and Sling remix)
- Watch Out For This – Major Lazer (Bumaye)(Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike Tomorrowland remix)
- Kill The Lights – Alex Newell, Jess Glyyne and DJ Cassidy with Nile Rogers
CYCLING
In a cycling class, the music can motivate people to push through the final hill or to sync with the beat during sprints and intervals. In other words, cycling instructors are basically half DJs half instructors. At REV Cycle Studio in Baltimore, the Marketing Manager Jennifer R. surveyed cycling instructors to come up with a list of some of their favorite tunes for the new year. The top five songs pulsing at REV Cycle Studio right now include:
- Kiss the Sky – The Knocks feat. Wyclef Jean
- Feet Don't Fail Me Now – Foxes
- Team – Krewella
- Vengeance On My Mind – G-Eazy feat. Dana
- Light – San Holo
YOGA
New York City yoga instructor Meg McNeal works at Equinox, Brooklyn Yoga Project, and The Jivamukti Yoga School. She composes all of the playlists for her vinyasa classes on Spotify, utilizing the “Discover Weekly” playlist to keep her music fresh. Since her classes are about focusing on breath and movement, she tends to pick instrumental music that has a beat but won’t be too distracting. Her top five songs include:
- Dusk – Gidge
- Colomb – Nicolas Jaar
- Immunity – Jon Hopkins
- Near Light – Olafur Arnalds
- Swim High – Rivka
BARRE
Bodies by Pilates studio in Phoenixville, PA refers to its barre class as “standing pilates” because it incorporates many of the fundamentals of a pilates class, especially core strength. When it comes to music, barre instructor Carol W. tries to stick to upbeat, pop songs that are catchy and fun because that music tends to appeal to a wider range of tastes. And while music is important, she also needs to be sure that her students can hear when she is giving instructions about form and the next sequence! Carol shared her top five songs right now:
- 24K Magic – Bruno Mars
- Don’t Wanna Know – Maroon 5
- Shape of You – Ed Sheeran
- Marvin Gaye - Sexual Healing (Kygo remix)
- Faith – Stevie Wonder feat. Ariana Grande
ROWING
At the San Francisco-based RowClub, classes combine indoor rowing with light weight exercises in order to incorporate core strength training and functional movement in a dynamic, challenging class. RowClub Manager Maggie S. shared the top five songs they play the most in classes:
- Row – Smith & Thell
- Lush Life – Zara Larsson
- Summer – Paris Jones feat. April Kelly & B.A Scott
- Something about You – Hayden James
- Heads Will Roll – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
