25 Songs to Power You Through Your Monday

Article posted in: Lifestyle
woman listening to music

Mondays, right? No matter how much we want to quit them they just keep coming back around, week after week, sucking us back into reality. Whether we are exhausted from too much fun over the weekend, or stressed out by the thought of facing another week of too much work, we need to do things to get ourselves out of the funk. And the fastest, simplest mood booster to get the job done is good, old fashion music.

The effects of music have fascinated scholars for years. Many studies have explored the science behind this powerful art form. In short, studies reflect the notion that music is medicinal. It has the ability to lift your mood, aid in weight loss, relieve stress, increase productivity and motivate. Here’s how:

Music lifts your mood.
A study from The Journal of Positive Psychology explains that music affects the neurons in your brain, allowing them to trigger increased production of serotonin, a key component of an elevated mood.

Music aids in weight loss.
And since music has been proven to lift mood and relieve stress, the byproducts of such reactions allow the body to produce less of the stress hormone, cortisol, a main contributor to that stubborn belly fat. Plus, when you’re in a good mood you’re less likely to stress eat those pesky empty calories—talk about a bonus!

Music relieves stress.
According to a study out of New York published in the Harvard Health Publications, listening to music lowered heart rates in pre-operation patients. Similarly, patients who listened to music before going under the knife needed less sedation than those sitting in silence. Other studies have suggested that music may have the power to reduce chronic pain, depression and disability, and improve quality of sleep.

Music increases productivity and motivates you.
Music has its benefits in the workplace, too, as it tends to keep us present and prevent our minds from wandering. Dr. Lesiuk of the University of Miami studied the effects of music on IT professionals and concluded that music led the specialists to complete their work more quickly and produce higher quality work—all because of music’s mood-boosting quality.

So now that we’ve found the cure to your Monday blues, it’s time to rock out with these 25 mood-boosting songs sure to pick you up and carry you through your day:

  1. “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough” – Michael Jackson
  2. “Uptown Funk” – Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
  3. “Barefoot Bluejean Night” – Jake Owen
  4. “Shake it Off” – Taylor Swift
  5. “Steal My Kisses” – Ben Harper
  6. “California” – Joni Mitchell
  7. “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – Beach Boys
  8. “Sorry” – Justin Bieber
  9. “American Kids” – Kenny Chesney
  10. “Valerie” – Amy Winehouse featuring Mark Ronson
  11. “Me Too” – Meghan Trainor
  12. “Chicken Fried” – Zack Brown Band
  13. “Into the Mystic” – Van Morrison
  14. “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” – The Temptations
  15. “Come on Eileen” – Dexy’s Midnight Runners
  16. “On Top of the World” – Imagine Dragons
  17. “Wide Open Spaces” – Dixie Chicks
  18. “Runaround Sue” – Dion DiMucci
  19. “Pomp & Pride” – Toots and the Maytals
  20. “Rosalita” – Bruce Springsteen
  21. “We Were Us” – Keith Urban featuring Miranda Lambert
  22. “Best Day of My Life” – American Authors
  23. “Halo” – Beyoncé
  24. “Sun is Shining” – Bob Marley
  25. “Feel So Close” – Calvin Harris