Sex Differences in Response to Listening to Self-Selected Music during Repeated High-Intensity Sprint Exercise

Kendall J Rhoads,Sierra R Sosa,Rebecca R Rogers,Christopher G Ballmann,Thomas J Kopec

doi:10.3390/sexes2010005

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine possible sex differences in high-intensity exercise performance, fatigue, and motivational responses to exercise while listening to music. Physically active males and females (ages 18–24) were recruited to participate. Participants completed two separate repeated sprint exercise trials each with a different condition: (1) no music (NM) (2) self-selected music (SSM). During each trial, participants completed 3 × 15 s Wingate anaerobic tests (WAnTs) while listening to NM or SSM separated by 2 min of active recovery. Following each WAnT, rate of perceived exertion (RPE) and motivation to exercise were assessed. Relative power output, fatigue index, RPE, and motivation were analyzed. There were no significant sex differences for relative power between music conditions (p = 0.228). Fatigue index was significantly lower in females while listening to SSM (p = 0.032) versus NM while no differences were observed for males (p = 0.246). RPE was lower while listening to SSM versus NM in females (p = 0.020), but not for males (p = 0.277). Lastly, motivation to exercise increased in the SSM condition versus NM in females (p = 0.006) but not in males (p = 0.090). Results indicate that listening to SSM music did not result in superior anaerobic performance in either sex, but females responded more favorably to subjective outcomes (i.e., RPE and motivation) while listening to SSM, which may have in turn influenced indices of fatigue during the tests. These results suggest that females may respond more positively than males to exercise-induced fatigue while listening to SSM music during repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise.

Highlights

Listening to music during exercise can serve as an external motivator and has been frequently reported to induce ergogenic effects in multiple forms of exercise [1,2,3]
For relative power (w/kg) (Figure 1a), there was a main effect for test (p = 0.003; η2 = 0.053) but not for condition (p = 0.228; η2 = 0.009) or sex (p = 0.520; η2 = 0.022)
Pairwise comparisons showed that relative power during WAnT3 was significantly lower than WAnT1 (p < 0.001)

Summary

Introduction

Listening to music during exercise can serve as an external motivator and has been frequently reported to induce ergogenic effects in multiple forms of exercise [1,2,3]. Music may be important during high-intensity exercise as it may serve as a distraction from effort and discomfort during challenging physical tasks [1]. Evidence has suggested that previously mentioned performance factors may manifest themselves differently during exercise in a sex-dependent manner [6,7]. Few investigations to date have studied possible differences in high-intensity exercise response while listening to music between males and females. Given that music is generally used by both sexes during training [8], knowledge of possible differences in benefits from music could help to optimize training and performance for both males and females

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Discussion

Conclusion