Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

For the next few weeks every Monday, I’ll share a playlist of songs that I have in my Workout Playlist on my iPhone. I’ll include clips to listen to, where you can buy them and why I have them in my list. Just so you know, I do get a portion of the sales of these songs from Amazon, so if you buy them, you’re helping me out.

Shining Light by Annie Lennox: This is a great warmup song. I like to think that maybe someone thinks this about me. I love the lyrics, “You are a force, you are a constant source, yeah you are a shining light.” When I’m starting my workout, I like to listen to this song to get me ready to work hard.

Move It Like This by Baha Men: This song is so fun that I just can’t help but run a little harder on the treadmill when I hear it. I know they are talking about dancing, but it makes me want to do better.

Everybody But Me by Lykke Li: This song reminds me how hard it can be to be fat and want to have fun with everyone, but you don’t. “Everybody’s dancing. I don’t want to. Everybody’s joking. I don’t want to. Everybody’s laughing. I don’t want to. Everybody but me.” Pushing past that anxiety has been the most helpful thing I’ve done for myself and my health.

Beautiful by Moby: If Lykke Li reminds me of how being fat can be, Moby wrote this song to make me feel beautiful. I prefer the Benni Benassi remix, but this one has the same lyrics and upbeat mood.

Working Overtime by New Order: This song reminds me that if I concentrate on work so much that I neglect myself that I’ll be like the guy in this song. It’s alright to take an hour a day to exercise. It’s worth it.

Think I’ll Go To Saks by SkinnySongs: I love this song. I’ve never been able to shop at the expensive stores like Saks or Neiman Marcus because those clothes just never came in my size. I love the idea of being able to try on the clothes in those stores, feel them fit me perfectly and just not buy them.

With Every Heartbeat – with Kleerup by Robyn: This song has a great beat to run to, but I really love the lyrics. “So I don’t look back/ Still I’m dying with every step I take/ But I don’t look back/ Just a little, little bit better” It doesn’t hurt that it has the word heartbeat in the lyrics, so it reminds me that it’s okay to hear my heart pump a little harder.

Movement In Still Life by Bt: “Dance to the beat! Shuffle my feet!” I don’t know why songs that tell me to dance get me running, but they work every time.

Don’t Give Up by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush: This is a great cooldown song. I really like how she tells him to keep going, “Don’t give up because you have friends. Don’t give up, you’re not beaten yet. Don’t give up, I know you can make it good.”

Listen to the clips for these songs. If you find just one song this week that motivates you to exercise, then buy it and make it your powersong when you’re working out this week. I bet you’ll find that you’re more willing to get your butt to the gym and your workouts are easier.