If you are used to exercising with music, you may think that turning down the volume in your fitness classes will affect the intensity of your training., but a new study published in the journal Noise & Health states that it is NOT so.
It’s common for fitness instructors to turn up the volume, sometimes to levels high enough to damage hearing, because they believe it will help students work harder.
However, authors and researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine (United States) found that there is no link between the volume of music and the intensity with which people exercise.
“Participants were more likely to report that the music volume was satisfactory in classes where sound levels were lower,” said Dr. Ronna Hertzano, study author and associate professor of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery at the aforementioned faculty.
“Importantly, the gym where we do our work chose to keep the music at a softer level after we reported the results of our study to them.”stressed the expert.
For the study, Hertzano’s team surveyed participants (median age 31) in hour-long spinning classes at a Baltimore gym.
In classes with music, it was 2 to 3 decibels lower than the louder classes (approximately one 20% reduction in perceived volume), the participants did not report differences in exercise intensity, the study discovered.
Learn more: Training at home to work all muscles
Those in the classes with the lowest music volume had a slight drop in training intensity, but only two participants reported below average intensity.
More than one in four study participants told researchers they had symptoms of hearing damage after the spin class, including ringing in the ears or muffled hearing.
In the classes with the loudest music, almost a third of the participants said the volume was too high, and almost as many said they would prefer it to be lower.
Only three participants reported wearing hearing protection, such as earplugs.
“Our results support a strong case for reducing the volume of music in fitness classes to protect against hearing loss without sacrificing training intensity »Hertzano pointed out.
It’s common for average sound levels in group fitness classes to exceed 90 decibels (as loud as an approaching subway train) and even exceed 100 decibels (as loud as an electric lawn mower), according to previous research. .
An hour’s exposure to noise should not exceed 94 decibels, and exposure to levels of 100 decibels should be limited to 15 minutes to protect against permanent hearing loss, emphasizes the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Via: Health Day News
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