“Run Bitch!” playlist of the week

I have always been a bit of a health freak; I have gone months without as much as a square of chocolate and hit the gym on a regular basis before my big move to Vancouver. However over the past six months or so, thanks to a very hectic schedule and little motivation as a result of the ensuing exhaustion, I haven’t exactly been my usual gym bunny self. I finally made the decision to get my act together literally one week ago today and joined a gym downtown. I am most definitely the kind of person who has to be listening to music while working out, watching TV just doesn’t work for me.I have previously researched online sites that offer suggestions as to the type of music you should listen to in order to motivate yourself to give ‘your-all’ while exercising and many of those featured included techno/dance/electronic music by renowned artists such as David Guetta, Deadmaus and Daft Punk. While I appreciate why songs such as these would succeed in gearing an individual up for a productive super sweaty work out, the type of music that really gets me going is Heavy/ Alternative Metal/ Post Grunge/ Rock etc – music my best friend has dubbed my “Angry Music” for years. Here are the Top 10 tracks that appear in my “Run Bitch!” playlist 1. Chevelle – Face to the Floor From their newest album Hats off to the Bull, the steady drum beat throughout this song from Chicago band Chevelle is great to use a rowing machine or lift weights to. 2. Flyleaf – I’m so Sick So much noise from such a tiny girl! Lacey & Co have kept me company at the gym for quite a number of years now. 3. Russian Circles – 309 This instrumental song is great to begin a workout to. It begins quite delicately and builds up to that fantastic “F*ck the world” metal that patiently awaits you 29 seconds in. 4. Refused – New Noise This Swedish group are more Punk Rock than Metal, but New Noise is a good tune to sweat it out to. 5. Chevelle – Forfeit You guessed it, I have it bad for these guys. This track has just the right amount of heavy alt metal vs. smooth melodic vocals supplied by Pete Loeffler and is perfect for reaching a good rhythm on the treadmill during a run. 6. And so I Watch You from Afar  – Set Guitars to Kill One of my favourite bands of the past five years, the Belfast based boys of Instrumental Rock band ASIWYFA belt it out in this fantastic track that I will never ever get sick of listening and/or running to. 7. Deftones – Minerva A classic, I prefer to listen to this track when on a stationary bike as it is a bit slower. 8. Metz – Headache It took a while for me to warm to Sub Pop signed band Metz. As they grew on me, so too did the size of my ass. Adding them to this playlist was an easy choice. 9. 65 Days of Static – Retreat! Retreat! This instrumental 4 minute, 22 second long creation from English band 65DOS will help you work up a sweat without being screamed at for a change. 10. Billy Talent – Saint Veronika Upon first listening to the music of Billy Talent, I felt it would be a fleeting relationship. I loved their music, but lead singer Benjamin Kowalewicz’s voice annoyed the bejesus out of me. Again, it did grow on me and this song among a few other Billy Talent’s efforts hold high ranking on my most listened to tracks on my iPod. To prove my initial statement, in seven days I have seen my energy levels rise significantly, arrived home tired but content after ridding myself of the day’s work stress at the gym, and dropped 5lbs of weight. What better reason do you need to have angry music screaming at you from your headphones?