While you’re exerting your muscles in the gym, make sure you aren’t overexerting your ears at the same time.
Some people can’t get through a session without listening to motivational music, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But cranking your stereo or iPod to a 10 just isn’t good for your ears, even if you can barely hear the amped up music amongst other gym rats and equipment.
Adults can only bear less than 85 decibels over an eight-hour day, suggests the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. That eight hours shrinks as the noise gets louder too; for example, adults can tolerate 94 decibels for only one hour before it becomes potentially damaging to their hearing.
And the music that’s played in some workout classes is as loud as 99 decibels, a new study finds.
Related: 5 Things That Could be Damaging to Your Hearing, and What to Do About It
Now, that won’t deter most people from going to their weekly class, which may be under an hour anyway. So if you are a part of one of these loud classes, see if you notice any ringing or buzzing afterwards (tinnitus). If you do, you should seriously consider earplugs to prevent long-term damage, or potential hearing loss. The earplugs will muffle the noise, but you’ll still be able to hear the tracks.
This applies to when you’re working out on your own, and listening to your music via headphones. As a general rule, if someone in your vicinity can hear the residual sounds of your David Hasselhoff mixtape, it’s too loud!
Photo Credit: Iryna Tiumentseva/Shutterstock
