Affective responses to high-intensity interval training with continuous and respite music

Area of Science:

• Exercise Physiology
• Sport Psychology
• Music Psychology

Background:

• Music enhances affective responses during continuous exercise.
• The role of music during interval exercise, particularly high-intensity interval training (HIIT), remains unclear.
• Understanding music's impact on enjoyment during HIIT can improve adherence and training experience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of continuous versus respite music on affective responses during high-intensity interval training (HIIT).
• To compare music's influence on immediate affective valence and post-task enjoyment during HIIT.
• To examine remembered pleasure following HIIT sessions with different music conditions.

Main Methods:

• A repeated measures crossover design involving 18 participants completing three high-intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions on a cycle ergometer.
• Experimental conditions included continuous music, respite music (during recovery), and a no-music control.
• HIIT protocol consisted of 10 repetitions of 60-second efforts at 100% Wmax, with 75-second recovery intervals.

Main Results:

• Music did not significantly alter affective valence during either the work or recovery intervals of HIIT.
• Continuous music application resulted in significantly greater post-task enjoyment compared to respite music and no music.
• Participants reported significantly higher remembered pleasure when music was played continuously throughout the HIIT session.

Conclusions:

• Continuous music may enhance overall enjoyment and long-term recall of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) experiences.
• While music does not appear to buffer negative feelings during intense exercise bouts, it can improve the overall perception of the training session.
• This study provides novel insights into optimizing music strategies for interval exercise protocols.