Playlists for Exercising With Your Dogs

Posted by Amy Hempe on Mar 31, 2020

These days we’re all in the same boat – or rather, we’re all in similar boats floating at least six feet apart from one another. Many of our boats include subscriptions to Netflix. This means we float along watching Love is Blindand Tiger King. Nothing against these bizarrely fascinating shows, but if these are our connection to civilization, then our boats might start sinking to the bottom of a very deep ocean.

Too much sedentary time on the sofa is not good for our mental health. Rules and restrictions will vary depending upon where you live, but you ought to be able to take your dog out for at least a decent walk once per day, if not more. There is nothing wrong with going a few extra blocks, as long as you continue to social-distance. You might see something new, and your dog will be thrilled. My girl Sophie loves going for walks. She patrols our backyard against all things squirrel and mailman related, and her vigilance has not let up one bit. But she needs to see what’s going on in the neighborhood or she begins to get antsy. I get it. Ants-in-the-pants is a common condition these days. (Maybe I’ll start doing daily AITP updates in the manner of Andrew Cuomo.)

If you need your heart rate to go up (in a good, non-anxiety prone manner), try some Zumba. There are plenty of extraordinarily fit people leading classes on YouTube. These are fun, but they often involve wide spaces. I have also found that there are occasionally some dance moves that are simply confounding for a non-dancer like myself. So while sometimes I will use the YouTube option, other times I just free-style my own Zumba routine in my living room.

This, of course, creates a few new challenges. The big one is my other dog Rufus. We play outside with something called a flirt-pole. It’s a PVC pipe with a rope tied through one end. On the other end of the rope is a strong toy. He chases this toy as if the fate of the world depends on it. And as a high energy Rottweiler/Boxer/Shar Pei mix, he loves exercising with me. He thinks it is a hoot to run between my legs and to go after my sneaker during various dance moves as though my leg were a vacuum cleaner.

So I am proposing a playlist of songs that can get your groove on without getting too crazy. The thought here is the crazier you get, the more your dog is likely to think an invisible monster is after you. If you can keep your movements contained that don’t look like you’re being attacked by a swarm of bees, the calmer your dog can remain.

Safe songs for a workout with dog:

“Get Lucky” by Daft Punk
“Night Fever” by The BeeGees
“Lovely Day” by Bill Withers
“Fever” by The Black Keys
“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac
“Freedom” by George Michael
“Everlasting Love” by Gloria Estefan
“ABC” by the Jackson 5
“Push” by Madonna
“Got to Give It Up, Pt 1” by Marvin Gaye

Use At Your Own Risk:

“Head Over Heels” by the Go-Gos
“Work It” by Missy Elliott
“U Got the Look” by Prince and Sheena Easton
“Shoop” by Salt-N-Pepa
“Tainted Love” by Soft Cell

Under No Circumstances Workout To These Songs With a Dog in the Room. Your involuntary movements of fist pumping and fancy footwork will launch a frenzy of pooch pyrotechnics.