[LUM#1] Let the music play

[LUM Magazine] - Published on November 17, 2015 in Science-Society

It can improve athletes' performance. Music has hidden virtues, which researchers at the EuroMov center EuroMov center are also using for therapeutic purposes...

Take two marathon runners of exactly the same level. Put them together at the starting line, one with music in his ears, the other without. Some 42.195 kilometers later, the first will cross the finish line 3 minutes ahead of his opponent. Why?

Run faster and walk better

“Music has a motivating effect and helps you forget the pain, but that’s not the only explanation. Athletes synchronize their stride with the tempo of the music, which stabilizes their running and reduces oxygen consumption by 4 to 5%,” explains Benoît Bardy, founder of the EuroMov center and coordinator of the BeatHealth project. The aim of this international project, launched in 2013, is to study the benefits of rhythmic stimulation in improving gait and mobility.
What could be the link between music and running? "The brain structures involved in movement and perception mechanisms are the same," replies Simone Dalla-Bella, scientific director of the project. The BeatHealth project is studying these same stabilizing properties of music in another context, this time therapeutic. The aim is to help patients with Parkinson's disease to move around. Forty patients took part in the experiment and are delighted with the improvements they have seen."We hope this will reduce the number of falls, and the results are promising," say Benoît Bardy and Simone Dalla-Bella enthusiastically.

A question of tempo

Is listening to music enough to improve athletic performance or the walking ability of Parkinson's patients?"Not so simple," say researchers. To achieve these results, the music's tempo, known as "bpm" (beats per minute), must be adapted to that of the run."When runners encounter an incline, they slow down and their rhythm is no longer synchronized with the music, which then has the opposite effect and destabilizes their running. Similarly, if a Parkinson's patient has to go around an obstacle, they change their walking rhythm and the music can destabilize them."
The solution? A smart app that adapts the rhythm to movement to enhance motor performance. "We want to offer a smartphone app for athletes and a tablet version that is more suitable for older people." The researchers hope to bring this product to market by the end of the BeatHealth project, scheduled for late 2016."The app will not only be designed for runners, it will also enable other athletes such as cyclists and swimmers to stabilize their pace and improve their performance," explains Benoît Bardy. The app will have a powerful selling point: scientifically proven effectiveness.

Keywords: Innovation, LUM#1, LUM Magazine, Research, Health, Sport