The New York Times reports that recent studies have began to shed light on the function of music during exercise, finding that there may be a significant change in physical performance depending on what a person is listening to during their workout.

One study that was cited was conducted in Britain, where scientists monitored 12 college males who listened to music at different tempos while using exercise bikes. They found that a higher tempo increased heart rate and mileage, while slower tempos had the opposite effect.

The researchers concluded that when "the music was played faster, the participants chose to accept, even prefer, a greater degree of effort."

A close analysis of this study, and others like it, have led some psychologists to claim that, not only does music have a physical effect on the body, it can also enhance the state of mind of the listener by offering a distraction from other thoughts.

This hypothesis seems to be proven by another study, which examined basketball players who performed poorly under pressure. The news source states that, after the researchers played an optimistic, catchy song, they noticed a significant increase in player performance.