Working Out to Les Miserables

"Do you hear the people sing? Singing the songs of angry men. It is the music of a people who will not be slaves again. When the beating of your heart echoes the beating of the drums, there is a life about to start when tomorrow comes..."

If that doesn't motivate you to finish your HIIT workout, I don't know what will.

Working out has never been something that comes easy for me. Up until my sophomore year of high school, I played sports, so I never really worried about getting exercise in those days. And in college, I told myself it was fine that I never went to the gym because I walked so much. There was a little bit of truth to that; as most college students know, you get plenty of steps from walking to and from classes. Aside from that, I'm someone who doesn't gain weight easily. While this is very much a blessing, the downside is, I had little extrinsic motivation to start working out, because I wasn't seeing the physical effects that lack of exercise was having on my body. But that doesn't mean that there weren't effects. And more important than the physical effects were the mental effects.

I remember being alone in my dorm room one day, sitting on my bed, TV on in the background. I had a sudden urge to get up and do some jumping jacks. So I did. I might of even done a few sit-ups or something too. It wasn't much, but I realized it was the first time I had actively decided to exercise in a long time.

I decided that the next day, I would go to that ridiculously nice gym that the college provided us with free access to. I wasn't going to push myself too hard; the important thing was to go and spend some time there, and then, maybe start making it a habit. I went and I rode on the elliptical for about ten minutes. Again, I wasn't pushing myself. But it felt good. It felt good to get out of my room in the evening. It felt good to give my mind a break from school work. I felt good to do something for my body, even if it was just a little bit.

The next thing I needed was music. I knew I would never make it past ten minutes on the elliptical if I was simply bored. I put together a playlist of a few upbeat and motivational songs that seemed like they might make good workout jams. While browsing my liked songs on Spotify, I scrolled past "One Day More," and thought, "yup." That's what I need. And I was right. "Sunflower"by Post Malone and "The Funeral" by Band of Horses were nice to listen to, but nothing made me increase my rotations pace like the opening violin notes before Jean Valjean starts singing.

This is the original playlist I made (it's a bit of a strange mix, you've been warned):

Pretty soon I ditched the aforementioned playlist for the Les Miserables cast album. Something about the mood, the tempo, and the story of the songs inspires me, pushes me to work a little harder, and at the same time, makes the work out more enjoyable.

As I started to make little doses of exercise a bit more habitual, I realized that I felt more motivated in other areas of my life too. What I was missing in a lot of ways was the ability to push myself. But at the same time, I learned that working out doesn't have to be too painful. It can even be an excuse to jam out to one of your favorite Broadway cast albums. And, maybe that Broadway cast album will help you feel motivated to run a little faster, do a few more push ups, or lift a set of weights that's just a little heavier. When it comes to working out, I can't think of music that motivates me more than Les Mis does. So, without further ado, here is the Workout playlist that I recommend to all of you: