# Impact of Music Selection on Motivation and Performance during Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing
## 1 Introduction
Although scientific research demonstrates the positive effects of exercise, the percentage of inactive people worldwide ranges from 20 to 80% [14], with approximately 50% of individuals giving up on exercise [17]. The main reason for quitting sports is lack of motivation [18]. For these reasons, many techniques used to promote physical activity and change exercise-related habits have emerged from psychological theories of motivation and behavior change [19]. From a motivational standpoint, music represents a significant element suitable for combining with physical exercise [20; 21; 22; 23], as it stimulates or inspires physical activity [24]. Music has been postulated to influence exercise performance through three main types of mechanisms: psychological (affect, mood, subjective fatigue), psychophysiological (arousal, dissociation, autonomic control), and physiological (VO\({}_{2}\), cardiac output/blood flow, hormonal response, lactate clearance) [25]. Research has shown that music of different styles leads to cardiovascular and respiratory responses in subjects that are associated with the tempo of the music [26]. The conceptual framework for predicting the psychophysical effects of asynchronous music (background music, where there is no attempt by the exerciser to synchronize their movements with the music's tempo or rhythm) in exercise and sports [27; 28] provides the starting point for investigating the motivational role of music during exercise, the framework on which this study is based. It answers the question of whether certain melodies, which have a satisfactory motivational score for the participants, lead to better results in physical load testing compared to testing without music at the same level of ability. Within this framework, four factors contributing to the motivational qualities of the musical stimulus were identified: (1) reaction to rhythm, which represents a natural response to musical rhythm and tempo (beats per minute--bpm); (2) musicality, which encompasses harmony (the consonance of tone combinations) and melodic line (theme); (3) cultural influence, which represents the penetration of music in society or a particular subcultural group; and (4) associations relating to non-musical experiences that a particular melody can evoke [24; 27; 28; 29]. These factors are hierarchical in nature and divided into internal, which relate to how the music is composed (reaction to rhythm and musicality), and external, which are associated with the personal experience of a specific musical piece (cultural influence and associations), with internal factors being much more important in predicting how a person will respond to the musical stimulus [27; 28]. Another conceptual framework, derived from the framework for predicting the psychophysical effects of asynchronous music, focuses on the sports context, postulating that the main benefits for an athlete from listening to music will be: (1) increase in positive and decrease in negative mood; (2) arousal control; (3) dissociation from unpleasant sensations such as pain and fatigue; (4) decrease in RPE; (5) increased work output due to synchronization of movement and music tempo; (6) enhanced acquisition of motor skills when rhythm or associations match the required movement patterns; (7) increased likelihood of achieving a state of flow; and (8) increased performance levels [28; 29; 30]. Music can be used in various ways during exercise, sports training, and competition: as a stimulant or sedative before performing a task, as asynchronous (background) music, or as synchronous music that is synchronized with movements in physical exercise and sports [28], which is the focus of this study. Synchronous music can be applied in aerobic and anaerobic activities, as well as with all participants, whether competitive athletes or recreational exercises. Synchronous music can increase neuromuscular or metabolic efficiency in cyclic activities.