Before we start, take a moment to set the mood. Got that playing? Swell. Let’s proceed.
In news that come as absolutely zero surprise to anyone who has seen the inside of a gym in the past decade, Eminem’s music has been scientifically proven to give you a legit athletic boost to the tune of up to 10%.
The findings come as the result of an in-depth study on ocean-swimmer/nutter Ben Hooper by the Hartpury University Centre; Hooper, who intends to be the first person to swim the entire Atlantic ocean, apparently performed markedly better in training when blasting the Detroit rapper’s music in preparation for December’s trek.
Double Tng day: cooler at 86F, only thunder & lightning to worry about & 85% humidity! #waterinstinct #Swimthebigblue pic.twitter.com/cU9DYZmZXx
— Swim The Big Blue (@SwimTheBigBlue) July 15, 2015
Surprisingly, the rhythm and melody of the tunes had little effect on performance, while the lyrical content – and let’s be honest here, Eminem’s flow could hype up a funeral – had a “highly motivational edge” and fended off fatigue during the swimmer’s extended training sessions.
Lead researcher Richard Collins said “this could be because these emotionally-tied songs help Ben muscle down and push through the pain and monotony of swimming so many lengths during such an ultra-endurance event,” and that Eminem’s music (read: entire career) deals with “triumphing against the odds.”
Of course, these findings only build on the knowledge that working with Marshall Mathers helped turn Jake Gyllenhaal into an absolute tank for his film Southpaw. Oddly, the The Script also made an appearance on the list of certified hype-bringers – we’ll leave it up to you to decide if the Irish rockers inspire you to swim across the bloody ocean.
Story via ABC.
Image: Kevin Mazur via Getty.
Image: Kevin Mazur via Getty.
