With New Year's fitness resolutions already beginning to fade, Dr Costas Karageorghis of Brunel University has joined with Spotify to analyse more than 6.7 million ‘workout’ playlists and create the ultimate fitness soundtrack.

As the excesses of the Christmas season fade into memory, New Year resolutions to stay fit and healthy become increasingly difficult to maintain.

So sports scientists at Brunel University has joined forces with music-streaming service Spotify to create the ultimate workout playlist - after studying more than 6.7 million fitness compilations to find out which tunes are motivating the country.

The playlist is based on the global popularity of tracks together with music that are proven to make you work harder based on their tempo (bpm), style and lyrical content.

It features tracks from Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Daft Punk, starts with a warmup and leads into a high intensity and strength training section, and ends with a warm down.

Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton was the most frequently featured track on workout playlists followed by Wake Me Up by Avicii, ‘Till I Collapse by Eminem and Don’t You Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia feat. John Martin.

Dr Costas Karageorghis, Deputy Head (Research) of the School of Sport and Education at Brunel University, London and Reader in Sport Psychology said: “When synching your movements to the beat of the music, increase the intensity of your workout by raising the music tempo by one or two BPMs beyond your comfort zone – this will increase your workrate with the added benefit that the difference in effort will be almost imperceptible.

"A suitably motivational playlist can help to 'colour' the symptoms of exercise-related fatigue, like breathlessness and a beating heart, in such a way that they are interpreted in a more positive manner.

"This means that at the point when your body is shouting 'STOP', the music has the power to lift your mood and beckon you on.

"This is why your choice of music for exercise has important implications for how likely you are to stick to a New Year exercise regime."



During the study, the team found that men and women exercise to different tunes to help them break through the pain barrier and not give up.

Men prefer to pump iron to the Rocky III theme tune "Eye of the Tiger" but women work out to Rihanna and Lady Gaga, a survey found.

It seems women are more likely to work out before breakfast to rhythmic pop and dance beats.

But men prefer lunchtimes or evenings gym sessions to classic rock songs like 'Eye of the Tiger' by Survivor or aggressive hip hop numbers like Till I Collapse by Eminem.

Spotify's Angela Watts said: "It's no surprise that everyone is hitting the gym hard after Christmas and New Year.

"Combining an analysis of Spotify's 6.7 million workout playlists with Dr Costas' research, we've created The Ultimate Workout playlist to help give you the best motivation possible to keep that New Year's workout resolution."

The Ultimate Workout playlist

1. Roar - Katy Perry - 92 BMP (Mental preparation)

2. Talk Dirty - Jason Derulo ft 2 Chainz - 100 BMP (Stretching)

3. Skip To The Good Bit - Rizzle Kicks - 105 BMP (Stretching)

4. Get Lucky - Daft Punk ft Pharrel Williams - 116 (Aerobic/Warm up)

5. Move - Little Mix - 120 BPM (Aerobic/Warm up)

6. Need U 100% - Duke Dumont ft A*M*E - 124 BMP (Cardio training, low intensity)

7. You Make Me - Avicii - 125 BPM (Cardio training, low intensity)

8. Feel My Rhythm - Viralites - 128 BPM (Cardio training, moderate intensity)

9. Timber - Pitbull ft Ke$ha - 130 BPM (Cardio training, moderate intensity)

10. Applause - Lady Gaga - 140 BPM (Cardio training, high intensity)

11. Can't Hold Us - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft Ray Dalton - 147 (Cardio training, very high intensity)

12. Happy - Pharrell williams - 160 BMP (Cardio training, very high intensity)

13. The Monster - Eminem ft Rihanna - 110 (Stength training)

14. Love Me Again - John Newman - 126 (Strength training)

15. Get Down - Groove Armada ft Stush and Red Rat - 127 BPM (Strength training)

16. #thatPOWER - will.i.am ft Justin Bieber - 128 BRPM (Strength training)