Easterner Work Out Playlist

Whether students are trying Kanye West’s new workout plan or rocking their body to Justin Timberlake, the perfect music selections can be the key to a successful workout regimen.

Walking the halls of the Phase building in the morning, students may hear anything from Metallica blaring from the boxing area to Coldplay in the racquetball court. In the strength and conditioning room, Seether’s “Back to the Remedy” plays from the radio. Amir Owens, assistant strength coach, said that the staff usually puts on whatever students request, which he said could be anything from country to modern hip hop to KoRn.

Naecha Roberts, an EWU sophomore, said she prefers to listen to upbeat music while she runs on the treadmill.

She said her go-to Pandora station is Beyoncé Knowles or the YG station, which plays this artist as well as those like LMFAO and The Dream.

Joshua Bell, a senior at EWU, said he usually runs outside or lifts and works out with a variety of equipment pieces at Snap Fitness on the South Hill in Spokane.

While he does not have a set playlist, he said he typically listens to music that motivates him lyrically or “through the intricacies of the instruments.”

His favorite songs include “Dance Gavin Dance” by Alex English, “A Lot Like Birds” by Vanity’s Fair and “Every Time I Die” by Underwater Bimbos from Outer Space.

Justin Abel, an EWU graduate student, works out at the URC. Abel said his playlist consists of songs which are “kind of a cosmos of stuff I already have, patched together for that unce, unce, unce.”

He said songs he prefers to listen to include “Judas” by Lady GaGa, “Immigrant Song” cover by Karen O and Trent Reznor, “18 and Life” by Skid Row, “Midnight City” by M83, “You Could be Mine” by Guns N’ Roses, “Chainsaw” by the Ramones and “In for the Kill,” Skrillex’s remix of La Roux.

Briana Lummus, an EWU student, says that she prefers to let Pandora select her workout tunes. She said her go-to workout station is usually The Beastie Boys.

“It starts off with classic and well known Beastie tunes like ‘Fight for Your Right’ and ‘No Sleep till Brooklyn’ and then mixes in Run-D.M.C, Vanilla Ice, MC Hammer and The White Stripes,” said Lummus.

“When I’m in the car or on the bus to school, I like music that’s more instrumental and upbeat,” she said. “Once I get to the gym though, I feel like I need music to help me keep going. I tend to start with weights … and [I] don’t listen to any music while I’m doing that. After weights, I go straight for the treadmill. I usually run between 20 and 30 minutes and crank up the Pandora Beastie Boy’s station when I do. Mostly, I try to concentrate on the song and not the time or distance, but when I start to get tired towards the end, I run in sync with the beat of the song. If MC Hammer’s ‘Don’t Touch This’ is on, I run in time to the song until it’s over. If I have to speed up to keep up, I do.”

“I always wonder about the other people running on the treadmill beside me,” Lummus said. “Is the big beefy guy next to me jamming out to Megadeth? Maybe he’s rocking out to Enya? Who am I to judge?”