Effect of music and time of day on cardiorespiratory responses during aerobic exercise

Purpose: For a proper exercise (EX) prescription, it is necessary to consider the individual needs, such as the effect of regular training at a specific time of day1 or of listening to music while exercising2. The evidence regarding the combined effect of music at different times of the day do not seem to be sufficiently investigated. The aim of the present study is to examine the effects induced by music listened during the aerobic exercise on oxygen consumption (mV_O2), in males and females, in two different intensity domains (moderate and vigorous), at two different times of day (morning and evening). Methods: Forty university students were recruited: 20 males and 20 females (age 22.7 ± 2.6 yrs; BMI 21.8 ± 2.5 kg m-2; mV_O2max 39.7 ± 7.9 mL kg-1 min-1). All subjects performed 4 training sessions at two different times of day, with and without self- selected motivational music3: 2 in the morning from 8:30 to 9:30 am (MO ? M, MO-M) and 2 in the evening from 17:30 to 18:30 pm (EV ? M, EV-M). Each training session included 6 min of cycling at constant load corresponding to 60% (MOD) and 90% (VIG) of mV_O2max, interspersed with 10 min of recovery. The mV_O2 was continuously monitored, obtaining data averaged every 30 s (Fitmate, Cosmed, Italy). Results: At the end of MOD EX, females, regardless of listening to music, obtained lower mV_O2 in the evening (p = 0.03) (EV ? M 1192.0 ± 236.6 and EV-M 1203.4 ± 252.5 vs MO ? M 1232.1 ± 284.3 and MO-M 1216.5 ± 249.5 mL min-1, respectively); males attained lower VO2 while listening to music only in the evening (p = 0.04) (EV ? M 1876.7 ± 283.5 and EV-M 1915,7 ± 313,4 vs MO ? M 1896.8 ± 302.7 and MO-M 1867.7±316.7 mL min-1, respectively). At the end of VIG EX, regardless of listening to music, only females showed lower mV_O2 in the evening (p = 0.02) (EV ? M 1946.2 ± 390.6 and EV-M 1980.7 ± 464.4 vs MO ? M 1985.9 ± 453.3 and MO-M 1985.7±422.8 mL min-1, respectively). Conclusions: Regardless of listening to music, during both MOD and VIG intensity aerobic activities, females seem to achieve better aerobic performance in the evening, while males seem to benefit from listening to music only in the evening. For a proper EX prescription, the evening seems to be the most favourable training time of day. However, music remains an excellent tool for increasing enjoyment during EX and improving adherence2