To get moving: Classic march songs for soldiers are 120 or 140 beats per minute, notes New York songwriter Richard Winter. Love disco? Try “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer. Popular energizing songs tend to be around 130. Winter suggests U2’s "Beautiful Day," which has a tempo of 136, or the punk rock band Green Day’s “Know Your Enemy” at 130. “It’s electrifying,” he says. “These guys are full of juice!” Or think about every wedding where you’ve seen women running to the dance floor when they hear ‘It’s Raining Men,’” the Weather Girls hit.

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You’re too private to wiggle on the subway?  You’re still getting some of that aerobic-mood-enhancing effect. Most languages don’t make a distinction between music and dance and when people are perfectly still listening to music, the neurons in the motor cortex—responsible for movement—are firing. We “dance” in our heads—even if don’t move.  

Also, it’s a mistake to resist singing along because you believe you lack talent. There appears to be no biological base for exceptional musical talent. Even people who consider themselves unmusical can attain close to perfect pitch, Levitin says. Humans are so naturally musical that we can identify familiar songs solely by the pitch and rhythm, even when they are played with power tools.

So next time you need a mood boost, simply turn on the radio to find your lovely groove.

In related news, check out this humorous take on what your taste in music says about you on a date.