Remixing Music For Running

Running with music that has the right tempo makes it easier to maintain a good Cadence. Sadly, there is not a lot of music that is at 180 BPM, but it is possible to change the tempo without changing the pitch. (Using music that is 90 BPM and running double time will also work.)

• Use MixMeister (free) to analyze the song to determine it's BPM (beats per minute)
  • Download from http://www.mixmeister.com/download-bpmanalyzer.php
  • Install the executable
  • Open the folder containing your music (there's no way of selecting an individual song)
  • Let the program run
• Use audacity to change the tempo
  • Download and install Audacity from http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
  • Download and install LAME (an MP3 encoder) by following the instructions at http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq?s=install&item=lame-mp3 (it's easier than it sounds)
  • Open the MP3 file
  • Use the Effect -> Change Tempo menu item
  • Enter the BPM from MixMeister as the from, and 180 (or 90) as the to BPM
  • Export the result as an MP3 using the File -> Export menu
• Import into your favorite player

You can also do bulk changes to tempo using these instructions, but it will apply the same percentage offset. I've written some code to read the MP3 tags from MixMeister and then batch update the temp. Email me if you're interested in the details.