Exercise & Fitness Articles

If you are like most people, you probably feel that any sort of extended exercising can get boring, whether it is walking, jogging or weight lifting. A portable Mp3 player is certainly a cure for those who don?t exercise because of lack of interest. Instead of carrying a bulky walkman or a CD player that skips, try investing in an Mp3 device to inject some excitement into your exercise routines or lack thereof.

Have a favorite CD? Load it on the Mp3 player and listen to it as you exercise. Better yet, my advice is to create a few categories. For example, have a rock category, a rap category, an oldies category etc. Most importantly, make a category of songs that really pump you up and ?get your juices flowing.? Add any song that makes you feel like a speeding bullet and that you could leap a building in a single bound just by listening to it. Any song on the Rocky soundtrack or Final Countdown by Europe should be the base of this exercising category on your mp3 player.

So which Mp3 player should you choose? The smaller is most definitely better in this instance, but make sure to get at least 2gb of memory. You will be able to fit well over 400 songs with that size and will be able to make in depth categories with your favorite songs.

I would suggest looking at both the ZEN Nano Plus by Creative and the Apple iPOD Nano. Either one will move with you as you exercise. Another tip is to make sure that it comes with an armband strap that will allow you to move unhindered. They are comfortable and will allow your Mp3 player to be placed conveniently on your bicep. If that doesn?t interest you, you can also use the belt clip accessory that will allow the player to snap right into place on your workout pants or shorts.

The next issue is what ear pieces to choose while exercising. I would not use the ear piece that comes with either of the players that I have mentioned above. The earpieces are too small and they are not designed for activity. Yes, this will cost you more money, but this does not mean you should break the bank to purchase the best ear phones on the market. I encourage you to focus most of your Mp3 investment on purchasing the player that best fits your lifestyle. I feel as if Sony has the best designed headphones for activity. Sony carries a lot of them, so make sure to choose a pair that is lightweight, flexible and most importantly fits around your ears for increased comfort.

If running isn?t your interest, you can always purchase a speaker system for your music player. After you have loaded all of the music on your Mp3 player and are ready to do some dead lifts or heavily hit the bench press, the speaker system will allow music to be played through the speakers so you do not have to wear earpieces as you are exercising.