The music we listen to is not indifferent to us and it’s not just about musical tastes. Music affects our body, mind, and mood. It is worth consciously including it in our daily activities and using it to achieve our goals more easily and effectively. Two types of music are most often used in music therapy because of their function. Relaxing music is supposed to calm us down and activating music is supposed to stimulate us.
Activating (stimulating) music
Activating music is based on the biological heart rate, i.e. 120/140 beats per minute. It is characterized by a fast pace, rhythmicity, and a major key. That’s why it makes the listener perceive it as alive and joyful.
This type of song improves our mood and strengthens our self-esteem and agency. Listening to it raises blood pressure, makes breathing regular and rhythmic and increases muscle tone. Therefore, it is worth using stimulating music for physical activity. Base your training on it (e.g. fitness, dancing), listen to activating music not only during sports (e.g. running) but also when you find it difficult to start exercising. Whenever you need to increase your motivation. Training with music is perceived as more pleasant. It reduces the feeling of exertion by about 10% during moderate-intensity exercises and increases our endurance to 15%.
Activating music improves rhythmization, supports coordination, and integrates movement, which is why it will be perfect in combination: dance + music.
While listening to joyful, dynamic music that we like, neurotransmitters are released: epinephrine, norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. They are responsible for our good mood, support memory, and concentration, and strengthen immunity and motivation to act.
Activating music: when to listen?
- during exercise and physical activity,
- when we want to wake up
- when we want to be positively tuned,
- if we need a boost of energy,
- when we want to support rehabilitation, e.g. in people after a stroke,
- when we need a motivator.
Relaxing (calming) music
The tempo of relaxation music should be between 50 and 70 beats per minute. This corresponds to the rhythm of our heart at rest. The music is calm and melodious and puts you in a good mood. Relaxing music lowers blood pressure and slows down the heart rate. It also reduces muscle tension, so it is perfect for stressful situations. Studies have proven that relaxing music is effective in reducing stress and anxiety levels, and restoring peace of mind.
In addition, relaxation songs help to relax and regenerate the body and mind, calm the emotions after a day full of excitement and soothe the thoughts. We should listening relaxing music before going to bed. As a result, it makes falling asleep easier and improves the quality of sleep. This kind of music can be an effective and safe cure for insomnia.
Calming music reduces the feeling of pain and makes us feel happy. That’s why you can often hear it in beauty or doctor’s offices.
It is also great for meditation, strengthening our concentration, and making it easier to dive deep into ourselves.
Music therapy is also recommended for pregnant women because it positively affects mother and child. It calms them down, stimulates the development of the child’s brain, and builds a bond.
Music for relaxation can be chosen by ourselves if we know what sounds soothe us and put us in a good mood. We can also use ready-made playlists or music applications, such as Muzaic. It will compose for us the music perfectly matched to our goal (relaxation), but also body parameters.
Relaxing music: when to listen?
- Before bedtime,
- during meditation, mindfulness practice,
- while doing yoga or exercising,
- when we need to calm down, calm our thoughts and emotions,
- in stressful situations.
Benefits of listening to relaxing and activate music
In conclusion, both activate and relaxing music can bring many benefits to our body and spirit. It is worth keeping this in mind when creating our playlists or choosing music to accompany us in our daily activities. Thanks to music, we can give them power.