I think we can all agree on these three words: Music is powerful. There are few things that can evoke memories, stir the emotions or heighten the senses, but music can, all at the same time, even!

There’s something else music can do, though, something you probably already believed but didn’t necessarily know. Scientists say that music can improve one’s ability to perform when exercising by increasing endurance and enhancing enjoyment.

To test music’s impact on athletic performance, researchers from Brunel University in London, England had 30 participants run on a treadmill for a specified amount of time while listening to upbeat, motivational songs that had been pre-selected based on a number of “scientific principles” (whatever that means). Compared to the participants running performance when not listening to the inspirational music, the participants increased their athletic performance by 15 percent (i.e. endurance improved). They were also better able to handle rigorous cardiovascular tasks, like sprinting, because they felt more positive about the experience.

This is just the latest round of findings regarding music’s impact on athletic performance, as Dr. Costas Karageorghis from Brunel’s School of Sport and Education has been looking into this phenomenon for 20 years now. This particular study is set to be published in the Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology soon.

Would Sylvester Stallone’s series of Rocky movies be what they are today without those inspiring tunes like Eye Of The Tiger or Hearts On Fire? Would we be inspired to go out and train like Rocky did in Rocky IV? I think not. Music touches the soul and fires our competitive juices like nothing else. It’s why whenever I go out for a run, I always have my iPod with me.

Now, some people can go out for a run and listen to nothing but the chirping of the birds, the hum of the traffic or their own breathing pattern. Not me. While I have run without my favorite companion (i.e. my iPod), I find my runs to be much more enjoyable with earphones in than earphones out. Further, just as the researchers found in their study, I seem to perform better. Now I know that it’s not just me that thinks that.

The researchers say that “carefully selected” musical choices, choices based on “scientific principles” improve athletic performance. Like I said, I don’t know what that really means. To me, the best musical choices are those that are inspiring to each individual’s taste and preference. What’s inspiring for Joe Shmoe might not be inspiring for Jane Doe. While Joe might find hard rockers like Disturbed and Godsmack stimulating, Jane might find them to be entirely off-putting and dissonant. Jane might prefer harmonic ballads like those from Sarah McLachlan or orchestral anthems like Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture or Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major. It doesn’t matter what it is, as long as it gets you moving, then that’s the music for you.

Music links us to our past by recalling great memories, but it also links us to our future. Because exercising today makes for a healthier you tomorrow.