35 Awesome Workout Songs To Help You Go That Extra Mile

Need some new tunes to spice up your Spotify playlist at the gym or for when you’re going on that long run? Here are 35 tracks to refresh your workout, designed to put you in the zone and get you pumped up.

1. “All Night” by Icona Pop

An infectiously catchy song that deserves to be just as big as their ubiquitous lead single.

2. “January” by Disclosure

Your hipster friend’s new favorite band, Disclosure has an incredible range and this is their best, a electronic dance anthem harkening back to Earth, Wind and Fire.

3. “The ‘59 Sound” by The Gaslight Anthem

The Gaslight Anthem has yet to top this, their signature track about heartache, longing and nostalgia that does The Replacements and Bruce Springsteen proud.

4. “Roar” by Katy Perry

This song, while trite, is designed to pump you up — and dammit if it doesn’t work like gangbusters.

5. “Black Skinhead” by Kanye West

West’s lead single off “Yeezus” is the best of the year, a song that’s off-putting, mesmerizing and genuinely blood-pumping, a track that makes you feel like a total badass.

6. “Senses Working Overtime” by XTC

XTC is an instant burst of energy in your day, and this song is one of their most ebullient, an 80s classic about the consolations of humanity.

7. “Royals” by Lorde

Lorde’s number-one hit shows her in full “Rumour Has It” swagger with a tune about grooving to your own beat, no Cadillacs necessary.

8. “Mannequin” by Wire

Wire were known for their harder tracks, but their most infectious and electrifying tune is this post-punk put-down song that you can’t help but sing along to.
  
9. “Pyramids” by Frank Ocean
On top of being the best song of last year, this swirling, operatic masterpiece is nine-minutes long, meaning you won’t have to worry about changing the song.

10. “Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood

“Sweater Weather” works so well because of how sinuously sexy it is, a sleeper hit that works its way into your brain and stays there.

11. “Running” by Jessie Ware

Every Jessie Ware song can get it, and “Running” is perfect for just about any occasion, whether you’re hitting the treadmill or having an unexpectedly sexy bath.

12. “Everything’s Blue” by Architecture in Helsinki

Architecture in Helsinki generally sounds like Muppets on coke, but this song gives them a new rock swagger that’s a welcome surprise.

13. “Plastic Jungle” by Miike Snow

Miike Snow hit it big with “Animal,” and “Plastic Jungle” is in the same vein but a little darker, not as happy but just as catchy.

14. “I Wanna Destroy You” by The Soft Boys

Robyn Hitchcock has been an indie music mainstay for the past three decades, and this is one of his absolute best tracks, some of the nastiest fun you can have listening to music.

15. “Shot at the Night” by The Killers

By all accounts, The Killers shouldn’t still be making good music, but this is one of the best songs the 80s forgot to release, proof the aughties band still has a few tricks up their sleeve.

16. “Moonson” by Delorean

Delorean just released a great album this year, but for your gym needs, look back to this run-ready tune off their acclaimed 2009 EP, “Ayrton Senna.”

17. “The Mother We Share” by CHVRCHES

CHVRCHES’ “The Bones of What You Believe” is one of the year’s great indie electronic pleasures and this is the standout, sure to rank high on your year-end list.

18. “If You Didn’t See Me (Then You Weren’t on the Dance Floor)” by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.

A joyous number about the pleasure of losing yourself in music, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.’s track doesn’t really kick until after the minute-mark but patient listeners will be rewarded with one of this year’s sweetest dance tracks.

19. “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush

One of the British chanteuse’s best-loved tunes has been covered by Placebo and everyone under the sun, but the original still stands as its finest rendition — because you can’t top Kate Bush.

20. “Millions” by Pusha T and Rick Ross

The former Clipse member’s first solo album, “My Name is My Name,” announced the artist as a force to be reckoned with — giving us a record that’s ambitious, accomplished and fucking awesome.

21. “Paradise” by Coldplay

Coldplay is becoming the Thomas Kinkcaid of music, but this Xylo Myloto sleeper hit puts the band’s sentimentality to its best possible use, with a gorgeous stadium anthem reminiscent of “Viva La Vida.”

22. “I Wanna Be Adored” by The Stone Roses

The Stone Roses released exactly one great album they could never top, and with this tune, it’s easy to see why, a song that’s just about as good as music gets.

23. “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)” by Fall Out Boy

There’s a reason this song is now played at every sports game — because it fucking pumps you up, no matter how much you resist.

24. “Sugar Water” by Cibo Matto

This mid-90s trip-hop track was way ahead of its time, a song that remains as strange, hypnotic and wonderful today as when it made us scratch our heads two decades ago.

25. “Tom Ford” by Jay-Z

Most of Jay-Z’s new album is bullshit, but “Tom Ford” shows the rapper blazing new trails with this bouncy, trap-inspired track that doesn’t let its product placement get in the way of its success.

26. “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson

Clarkson’s been trying to replicate the success of this song her entire career, but this empowerment jam needs no imitations, a windows-rolled-down anthem that reminds you how good radio music can be.

27. “Teenage Riot” by Sonic Youth

As much as I adore this song, is it terrible to suggest that I wish there were a version that skipped over the Kim Gordon intro so I wouldn’t have to do it myself? Her “spirit desire” gets in the way of my groove.

28. “Alive” by Goldfrapp

From “Ooh La La” to “Rocket,” Alison Goldfrapp is skilled in the art of making you feel good and the title of this 2013 track tells you should expect the same here.

29. “Lose Yourself to Dance” by Daft Punk

Daft Punk’s newest album is a big love letter to disco, and this stand-out tune from “Random Access Memories” is the record’s best, reminding you just what a nimble performer Pharrell Williams can be.

30. “Electric Lady” by Janelle Monae

Monae only continues to mature as an artist, and this Cindi Mayweather tune finds the pop diva channeling Motown in one of the year’s biggest pleasures.

31. “Master of My Craft” by Parquet Courts

Parquet Courts’ new album is this year’s answer to Tame Impala, at times psychedelic but others oddly sinister, with a Lou Reed undertone that gives the pop an unexpected dark side.

32. “We Found Love” by Rihanna

If I were honest, I could put this song 35 times, the perfect track when you’re trying to hit your zone on the treadmill, finding that space to let your mind coast.

33. “Reflektor” by Arcade Fire

The first track off Arcade Fire’s new album shows them blazing unexpected trails with LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy as their producer, a great mashup of their respective styles that just so happens to feature David Bowie.

34. “Entertainment” by Phoenix

“Entertainment” sounds exactly like a Phoenix song, the best possible praise from a band who knows what they excel at and delivers the poppy goods.

35. “Set Adrift on a Memory Bliss” by PM Dawn

PM Dawn’s 1991 track is the ideal come-down song at the gym, when you’re just winding your run, a song just as catchy as it is ungodly sexy. This is baby-making music to put you at ease.

Bonus Tracks: “Sacrilege” by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and “Summertime Sadness” by Lana Del Rey

Most of the seminal band’s new album was a rare misfire, but this “Gimme Shelter”-esque jam stands as one of their finest, great company for your walk home. It’s a long walk home, Lana will help keep you warm.