We are absolutely and completely not allowed to have mp3 players or any other kind of tune-age on the ride. This is fine, because for my actual get-on-the-bike rides I have not had tunes. I have, however, had tunes in the gym.
Tunes are not optional in the gym.
My gym is loud: the music is drowned out by all of the inane chatter. I was getting ready this morning (I had two beers last night, ergo, gym this morning) and outside the ladies’ locker room it sounded like a cocktail party was in full swing. Tunes are a defensive movement.
Fortunately, I have an iPod shuffle, a friend named Kevin, and a thing for old 80’s tunes. The shuffle was purchased with eleventymillion Thank You points (Thank You, Expedia!), Kevin provided enough music from his personal collection to literally require me to procure an external hard drive, and the iTunes store is chock-a-block full of that 1980’s goodness.
You have to be very careful when picking out your 80’s songs, though.
Here are good examples of workout 80’s songs:
- The GoGo’s, “Our Lips are Sealed”
- Aha, “Take on Me”
- Kajagoogoo, “Too Shy Shy”
- Julian Lennon, “Too Late for Goodbyes”
- Violent Femmes, “Blister in the Sun”
- Nails, “88 Lines about 44 Women”
- Frankie Goes to Hollywood, “Relax”
Here are some bad songs to have in your shuffle, when you’re trying to maintain 115 rpm:
- Morrissey, “Every Day is Like Sunday”
- Berlin, “Take my Breath Away”
- Bad English, “When I See You Smile”
- Anything by Air Supply
- Almost anything by Journey
- Almost anything by Naked Eyes
More often than not, I find myself reaching over and clicking |> madly in an attempt to get to something a little bit zippier. Fortunately, I have quite a lot of 90’s Grunge. Tell me you can’t do 115 rpm to Nirvana, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”.
Bobbie Conti 