As you all know, we’ve been in the throes of an intense crowd-funding campaign with Fundable (unless of course you’ve been living under a rock). It’s getting close to the end and we want to see how far we can get this thing to go. If you are a part of the small group that has no idea what I’m talking about or just need a little refresher, we’ve launched a campaign that allows our users to be a part of FIT Radio’s progress. The pledges made by loyal users and adoring FIT Radio fans will go toward improving the app, new and exciting features within the app and expanding the platforms in which FIT Radio can be used like Windows and Blackberry! We are super excited about this custom “swag bag” full of FIT Radio goodies and those sunglasses alone are enough to get any competition fired up. We want to see how many people you can reach out to about our Fundable campaign. The person with the most combined likes/RTs (across the Social Media board) wins the ultimate “swag bag.” We think you have what it takes, don’t let us down!

Here’s what your post needs to contain:

- A brief description of what we’re doing (describe the Fundable Campaign and talk about how much you love FIT!)

- The link to our Fundable page: www.fundable.com/fitradio (the www can be omitted if you run out of characters)

- And make sure you tag us so we can count your likes/RTs! @Fitradio (Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram)

Pretty freakin’ simple right? You’re going to look so good walking through the gym with that custom gym bag. So get to work! We look forward to seeing who comes out on top as our #1 Supporter!

The starting line was packed with people and the music was going hard as the heats were released after a dramatic countdown. Once it was our turn to start the race, we were more than pumped and ready (there were so many people there so you want to get to the race early so you can start early!) Once the race was underway I was surprised by how fast i was running and not getting tired (I am not an avid runner) but something about the lights and the music gave me energy I didn’t know I had! I stopped a couple times, but I had to so I could capture some of the track

Unfortunately after a mile in to the race, the rain started to come down a little bit so I upped the speed and tucked my phone away. At the end of the race they had a fun water station set up so you could hydrate yourself

All in all, minus the rain, the race was awesome. Never knew how motivating running through glowing enter-tubes and bubbles could be! To find a race near you, check out their website! www.electricrun.com

Each event is unique. Depending on the event you participate in you may experience many of the following:

If you haven’t signed up yet, don’t stress, there’s still time! Register as an individual or save money and have more fun by registering as a team of 4 or more. The race takes place at 8:50 pm, May 11th, at Atlanta Motor Speedway! If you’re not from Atlanta and want to run, there are plenty of dates to come on their website.

Check out their video and you can see what I’m talking about!

http://youtu.be/MVTSvaNGrXE

Yea and we heard that there was a re-call on Lulu Lemon Yoga pants because they were too revealing. Just in case you all didn’t do your downward dog test before sporting them at the gym. So you’re already spending at least $60 to keep that fine body of yours in shape, why deprive your workout of the only thing that keeps it going? We’ll be your motivation if you’ll be our monitization Help us expand and be the best app we can be. The proceeds from Fundable will go toward helping to keep FIT Radio ad free, adding new and exciting features, and expanding to multiple platforms.

Looking for a perfect tune for your workout?

Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” has the optimal beat. So does “Gangnam Style” by Psy and Lady Gaga’s “Edge of Glory.”

Research has found that at the right tempo, music can reduce the sense of exertion as well as boost motivation. Costas Karageorghis, deputy head of research at the School of Sport and Education at London’s Brunel University, says the “sweet spot” for workout music is between 125 and 140 beats per minute when people aren’t trying to time their movements to the music. Previously, experts believed that the faster a person exercises, the faster the music tempo should be.

Other new studies have shown that when athletes synchronize their movements to a musical beat, their bodies can handle more exertion: Treadmill walkers had greater stamina and cyclists required less oxygen uptake. And swimmers who listened to music during races finished faster than others who didn’t

“Music can alter emotional and physiological arousal much like a pharmacological stimulant or sedative,” says Dr. Karageorghis, who has worked as a consultant psychologist to music and sports-equipment companies and for Olympic athletes. “It has the capacity to stimulate people even before they go into the gym.”

The benefits of music seem most pronounced during low-to-moderate-intensity exercise—in other words, it’s more effective for recreational exercisers than elite athletes, scientists say. And finding just the right beat isn’t difficult, as a lot of popular music falls within the optimum tempo range and most other musical genres also have music in that range, Dr. Karageorghis says. For classical music buffs, two pieces that work for him are Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, known as the “Eroica” symphony, and Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 in G minor. Other qualities that make music ideal for workouts are motivational sounds and lyrics—think the theme from “Chariots of Fire” with its associated image of men running on the beach.

Sylwia Wiesenberg, owner of Tonique Fitness in New York City, says she keeps tempo in mind when compiling playlists for her two-hour cardio and body-sculpting class. “The hardest part of the class is the first 15 to 20 minutes,” she says. “I use music as my powerful instrument to push people harder,” she says.

Ms. Wiesenberg starts the class with songs that have 115 to 117 beats per minute—such as “The Longest Road” by Morgan Page—then increases that to about 125 beats. Finally, the workout peaks with music at about 135 beats per minute, including “Beautiful World” by Tiësto & Mark Knight featuring Dino. A month ago when the speakers in her studio weren’t working, “the class had a totally different atmosphere and energy,” she says. “People were stopping.…I’m so dependent on the music that I don’t even see a point to doing a class without the music.”

A study published last year in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness found that cyclists who synchronized their movements to music reduced oxygen uptake by as much as 7%. The study tested three different musical tempos on 10 men who cycled for 12 minutes at 70% maximal heart rate.

Another experiment, involving 30 people walking on treadmills, found that exercising at the same tempo as the music boosted endurance. One group of participants walked with motivational music, another with neutral music and a third with no music. Endurance increased in both groups listening to music, although the motivational music had the greatest effect. The study was published in the Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology in 2009.

Experts say most of the benefits of working out to music come from psychological factors. “When people run with music their rate of perceived exertion is lower than if they don’t use music or other devices,” says Gershon Tenenbaum, director of the graduate program in sport and exercise psychology at Florida State University. These benefits tend to evaporate once a person begins exercising at very intense levels, he says.

Dr. Tenenbaum says similar benefits have been observed when athletes are told to imagine they are in a certain location, such as at the beach, or are exposed to particular smells, such as lavender.

David-Lee Priest, a researcher at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England, says music is able to divert attention through a neurological mechanism. The unpleasant feedback from exercising, such as difficulty breathing, sweating or stiff muscles, is transferred to the brain using the afferent, or sensory, nervous system. Listening to music interferes with the transmission of those sensations, he says. “Before you become aware of the fatigue the music will block out the sensations of fatigue and effort so you won’t fully notice them,” he says. That blocking occurs only up to a point—about 70% of one’s maximum capacity, he says.

With resistance training, the benefit of music occurs more before one starts exercising or in between sets, Dr. Priest says. “It’s like taking a mild stimulant.…It will increase your heart rate and blood pressure slightly.”

In a recent study, Dr. Karageorghis and colleagues tested the effects of music on swimmers. After three weeks in which the athletes got used to swimming with ear buds, the researchers conducted three experiments using 26 collegiate swimmers who completed the 200-meter freestyle trials. They listened to motivational music, neutral music and no music. Both music groups saw a three-second improvement in performance compared to their race times without music. Although this represented just a 2% improvement, Dr. Karageorghis says it’s enough to make a difference in the realm of competitive swimming.

Swimmers listening to music also reported a 10% jump in their level of motivation, compared with swimming with no music. The study, scheduled to be published in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise, was sponsored by swimwear company Speedo International Ltd.

This week we are posting about something a little different but it’s still in the realm of motivation and perseverance.  At FIT Radio we come across people who motivate us whether it be the DJs through their mixes, the athletes, trainers and fitness models through their will power and healthy lifestyles, or our friends who persevere in such competitive atmospheres that most of us are in awe of their success because most others have failed. We are featuring a young woman who worked her way from the bottom to the very top in a field where not many can say they’ve done the same. We’re talking about Mary Kay and the revolutionary make up line that’s changing women’s lives. One life in particular is Keara Murphy!

(Keara is on the left)

Keara Murphy moved from New Orleans to Atlanta 3 years ago (2010) after a break up, only knowing her sister and brother-in-law, and what better way for a fresh start than moving to a new city?  She began her Mary Kay business just a few months before moving to help herself branch out and grow her network. Within four months of being a Mary Kay Representative she earned her first free Mary Kay car, a brand new Cheverolet Malibu! Keara says:  ”I loved the person I was becoming in the process of the challenges I had to overcome being a business owner in a new city. My confidence in the business and in myself grew to the point where I honestly believed I could earn one of those gorgeous pink Cadillacs!  So I did what my mentors who had earned Pink Cadillacs before had told me to do. There were a lot of no’s, a lot of cancellations, a lot of things deterring me from the goal, but every set back is a set up for success.  If growing a business was always easy then everyone would do it. I made mistakes and learned from them. I didn’t dwell on the small things and I kept my eye on the prize!”  Then it happened,  just 21 months from beginning her Mary Kay business Keara had done it, she earned the gorgeous Pearl Mary Kay Pink Cadillac! Keara says:  ”It’s almost been a year and every day I drive around in my trophy on wheels and I feel like a million bucks.  Every day I get positively affirmed from perfect strangers and people who didn’t always believe in me.  The thing I love the most about my Mary Kay business is the person I have become in the process; I am more confident and I get to help other women grow their successful Mary Kay businesses as well!” A feeling that is a reward in itself if you ask us.

We like to think that some of Keara’s success is due to the fact that she plays FIT Radio at her Mary Kay parties

Check out Keara’s contact information if you are interested in pursuing a future with Mary Kay Cosmetics! And make sure to check out her video!

To start a Mary Kay business it all begins with a Starter Kit!  From there we go over your dreams, your goals, how much money you want to make, how much time you want to spend then make a business plan for each woman individually!  It’s exciting to have control of your financial future!

Thanks to everyone who shares FIT Radio with anyone they meet, we’re sure that you might have a little something to do with this

I got to chat with one of our most popular hip-hop DJ’s on Fit Radio, Nacho Vega! Nacho Vega got his start learning from some fellow DJ friends (he was only 14!) and since then has been creating awesome hip-hop and house mixes and spinning around the US! Read on to find out more about one of our favorite DJ’s, Nacho Vega…

• Entrance to LivingSocial’s Buckhead Beer and Wine Festival!
• One General Admission Ticket, Including:
• • Unlimited Tastings of More Than 100 Beers and Wines
  • Souvenir Tasting Glass
  • Live Music from Girlz Girlz Girlz and FIT Radio DJs
  • Food Trucks
  • LivingSocial Sunglasses
• One VIP Admission, Including:
• • One Hour Early Entry
  • Everything Included with a General Admission Ticket
  • Lanyard Beer Glass Holder
  • GoVino Go Anywhere Wine Glass
  • Meet-and-Greet with Winemakers and Brewers from Noon to 1 p.m.
  • Exclusive Tasting Lounge with Four Hand-Picked Wineries and Two Craft Breweries