2021 Playlist for Trail & Mountain Bike Rides
Ask any avid cyclist and he or she will tell you: You don’t listen to the same music mix on your Monday morning commute that you do when you’re tackling your favorite mountain climb on Saturday afternoon. Whether you’re rocking the same trail bike you’ve had for years or you’ve recently snagged the best e bike for hills, you need a playlist that can motivate you when the grade gets grueling and you want to turn back.
How To Keep Your Motivation as High as Your Climb
Bikes for trails and mountains are built for power. They’re big. They’re gnarly. They’re built for adventure. Your mountain-scaling soundtrack should reflect that. Here are 30 alternative, punk and hip-hop songs — with a splash of pop and soul for good measure — designed to keep your legs and your heart pumping, no matter how steep the hill or how loose the terrain.
- “Award Tour” – A Tribe Called Quest
- “Borrowed Time” – Parquet Courts
- “Mannequin” – Wire
- “i (Single Version)” – Kendrick Lamar
- “Immigrant Song” – Led Zeppelin
- “Been a Son (BBC Mark Goodier Session)” – Nirvana
- “Reunion” – M83
- “I Remember” – Bully
- “That’s Love” – Oddisee
- “Concrete” – Shame
- “River Deep, Mountain High” – Ike & Turner
- “Banquet” – Bloc Party
- “Corona” – Minutemen
- “Paranoid” – Black Sabbath
- “Police on My Back” – The Clash
- “B.O.B.” – Bombs Over Baghdad
- “Be the One” – Dua Lipa
- “Woman” – Wolfmother
- “Spirals” – Django Django
- “Lust for Life” – Iggy Pop
- “Final Form” – Sampa the Great
- “Love Is All Around” – Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
- “Debaser” – Pixies
- “Run Right Back” – The Black Keys
- “Egg Man” – Beastie Boys
- “Alex Chilton” – The Replacements
- “Paper Planes” – M.I.A.
- “Hard to Kill” – Bleached
- “POWER” – Kanye West
- “Pedestrian at Best” – Courtney Barnett
The main thing that most of these songs have in common is an elevated count of beats per minute, or BPM. While your pace varies as you pedal, especially on a climb, songs with a BPM of 135 or higher typically create the soundtrack for a productive, heart-healthy ride.
Why It’s Important To Keep Your Heart Rate Up
Climbing mountain trails on lightweight bikes with your friends is one of the best ways for you to elevate your heart rate. Here’s why that’s important:
- It teaches your body to carry oxygen and blood to your muscles faster and smarter.
- It strengthens your body’s most important muscle — your heart — which lowers your risk of heart attack, heart disease and other cardiovascular problems.
- It burns calories, which helps with weight loss and management.
- Studies have shown that people who regularly raise their heart rate are less likely to develop chronic conditions including kidney disease, diabetes, pulmonary disease and Parkinson’s disease.
- It can boost blood flow, improving attention, focus and mood.
Whether you bike, hike or simply take a walk around the neighborhood every night after dinner, lifting your heart rate for 30 minutes, five days per week, can yield serious health benefits.
When you’re ready to tackle your next mountain biking climb or thrilling trail, let all the good you’re doing for your heart be your motivation to keep riding. And if that doesn’t work, use your favorite playlist of pulverizing tunes to push you up that final ascent.
