I used to listen to audiobooks when I would run/walk, but lately I’ve seen articles in my magazines and my husband’s magazines about studies that prove music can improve your performance.
The BPM zone that is the most effective is 120-140. This is according to a study from Brunel University and a brief recap from Women’s Health magazine. So I downloaded the running playlist from Women’s Health (I had some of the songs already, so I just snagged a couple of the songs I was missing from AmazonMP3), loaded it into my iPod Nano and hit the road this morning at 5:20 AM.
And you know what? It did actually help. I felt more energetic and it was fun to have different songs in all kinds of genres that differ from some of my normal listening. I need to keep playing with music and playlists for training. It was a great way to keep my pace plus it serves as a good motivator. Since I was looking forward to listening to this new list while out today, it wasn’t hard to pull myself out of bed so early.
Now I just need to find a utility that will help me figure out the BPM of the songs in my music library.
Jill Will Run 
I love running with music!! But it worked against me during my tri… USAT rules prohibit any electronic devices during all races. I was not prepared to run six miles while listening to my feet it the ground along with my panting 😦
Yeah, I would have a tough time with that too. That is why I am a little partial to the RnR series because at least there is music all along the route. (In addition to cheering fans!)