Good songs for jumps are usually strong on the 4th or 8th beat. Here are some of the ones I return to again and again. Not sure what jumps are? See my explanation in a comment, below.
Last Night a DJ Saved My Life (WMC Miami Studio Club Edit) – 54 (3:46)
Rag Doll – Aerosmith (4:25)
Keep the Car Running – Arcade Fire (3:29)
Motivation (Hands Up) – Astro and Glyde (4:52)
Magic [feat. Rivers Cuomo] – B.o.B. (3:16)
Get Up (Sex Machine) – James Brown (2:50)
You Can’t Stop the Beat – Amanda Bynes, Elijah Kelley, John Travolta, Nikki Blonsky, Queen Latifah and Zac Efron (Hairspray) (5:03)
Keep On Rising – Ian Carey feat. Michelle Shellers (5:41)
Beautiful U R – Deborah Cox (3:52)
A Change Would Do You Good – Sheryl Crow (3:51)
Soak Up the Sun – Sheryl Crow (4:53)
Infinity 2008 – DJ Team (3:13)
Barbra Streisand (Original Mix) – Duck Sauce (4:57)
Stranger – Hilary Duff (4:08 )
Calabria 2008 (feat. Natasha) (Radio Edit) – Enur (3:17)
Not Going Home (Armin van Buuren Remix Edit) – Faithless (5:00)
Emerge – Fischerspooner (4:48)
Right Round (feat. Ke$ha) – Flo Rida
Stacy’s Mom – Fountains of Wayne (3:18 )
Hey Julie – Fountains of Wayne (2:37)
No You Girls – Franz Ferdinand (3:40)
Speed Up – Funkerman (4:58 )
What is Love? – Haddaway (4:34)
Somebody’s Watching Me (Freakmatique Cut) – DJ Brian Howe (3:23)
I Like It [feat. Pitbull] – Enrique Iglesias (3:52)
Black Cat – Janet Jackson (4:51)
Blah Blah Blah [feat. 3OH!3] – Ke$ha (2:52)
We R Who We R – Ke$ha (3:25)
Bang Bang (feat. Adam Levine) – K’Naan (3:07)
What a Night (DJ Control Journey Mash) (feat. Claude Kelly) – Kontrol and L’il John (3:34)
Telephone [feat. Beyonce] – Lady GaGa (3:41)
Are You Gonna Go My Way – Lenny Kravitz (3:32)
Where Are We Runnin’? – Lenny Kravitz (2:41)
Poker Face – Lady GaGa (3:57)
LoveGame – Lady GaGa (3:32)
Dance 2Night – Madonna (5:03)
Body Body – Massari (3:42)
Sweet Dreams (Doug Laurent Mix Edit) – Overdub (3:15)
Ghostbusters – Ray Parker Jr. (4:05)
California Gurls [feat. Snoop Dogg] – Katy Perry (3:56)
Sober – P!nk (4:12)
Raspberry Beret – Prince (3:46)
Buttons – The Pussycat Dolls (3:46)
When I Grow Up – The Pussycat Dolls (4:05)
Ringa Ringa – A.R. Rahman (4:15)
I’m Too Sexy – Right Said Fred (2:49)
Disturbia – Rihanna (3:59)
Ease on Down the Road – Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, and Quincy Jones (The Wiz) (3:56)
Let it Rock – Kevin Rudolf and L’il Wayne (3:56)
Fake It – Seether (3:14)
Cry For You (UK Radio Edit) – September (2:48)
Ancient World (Roger Shah Long Haul Flight Edit) – Roger Shah and Signum (4:33)
Hips Don’t Lie (feat. Wyclef Jean) – Shakira (3:38 )
Le Disko – Shiny Toy Guns (3:23)
Piece of Me – Britney Spears (3:32)
Break the Ice – Britney Spears (3:16)
Radar – Britney Spears (3:49)
Gonna Make You Sweat (everybody Dance Now) – Supershake (3:30)
Cobrastyle [feat. Mad Cobra] – Teddybears (3:00)
The Way I Are (feat. Keri Hilson and D.O.E.) – Timbaland (2:59
Sandstorm (DJ Cobra v. Doug Laurent Electro Edit) – Tunnel Alliance (3:33)
Black Horse and the Cherry Tree – KT Tunstall (2:52)
Lady Killer – Kreesha Turner (3:35)
Bounce with Me – Kreesha Turner (3:08 )
Dance Hall Days – Wang Chung (4:00)
Girl With the Pretty Name – Sketch Williams (3:17)
Last Updated: January 24, 2011
S p i n n i n g M u s i c 
For jumps i like:
I like to move it and Chihuahua by DJ Bobo
Get Loose (Tiesto Remix) – Showtek (5:44) . Fantastic jump track!
Thanks MK! I think it would work well as a climb, too.
Yep definitely. I’ve used it for both as well and it works well either way :).
I’ve used My Sharona by The Knack for jumps. My class is ready to kill me by the time that song is done. we do 4 counts.
I think this song is great for lifts/jumps Showtek ft. We Are Loud & Sonny Wilson
Folks, the song is Booyah and it’s got a bit of Basshunter, a bit of Calabria 2008 and Julie’s right – a great jump song.
i love Dropkick murphys- shipping off to boston for jumps- class loves it too : ) thanks for all the ideas above!
Definitely Rachel! They are a staple in my St. Paddy’s ride but Irish music is huge in Nova Scotia, where I live so the Dropkick Murphys play well anytime.
I like Gentleman by psy, almost by bowling for soup, higher by travey mccoy, and Rolling Stone T-shirt by dada life
I can not tell you how much your blog helps me out! I work a full-time job, to support my hubby in PA school, and teach spin part-time. My full-time job is very demanding on time and energy, so it is hard to come up with new routines weekly for my classes…this blog of yours provides me with great ideas to speed up my planning process, which in turn helps me have some free time with my hubby :)
Thank you!
Eminem ft. Rihanna – Love The Way You Lie (DJ Nejtrino & DJ Baur Mix) – for jumps!
Hey Cynthia, Just learning the spinning stuff. How would you do jumps to Rihannas S & M song? What count beat would you use? Thanks for your help in advance!!! Love the playlist/blog
Hey Simone, I would use 8 counts for the verses and 4 for the choruses but you could do 8 throughout.
Wow this site is amazing!! This will really add some variety to my spinning playlists!
A couple of tracks I use for jumps are “She’s got me Dancing” by Tommy Sparks and “Brim Full of Asha” by Cornershop. =)
Thanks Phil! They both have a great British invasion feel to them. When I looked up Sparks on Wikipedia, it turns out he lives in Kilburn, London. I spent more than my share of time on the Kilburn High Road when I lived in London.
Two great tracks to share with my fellow Spin instructors: Madonna – Jump and Flo Rida – Low. Both have even beats where you can divide the track up into 2, 4 or even 8 counts in and out the saddle!
We use Billy Idol- Dancing with Myself for jumps.
Ooh, that would be a very challenging jump song, I think. Fast legs!
Tubthumping – Chubawamba
Down – on I get knocked down
Up – I get up again
Thanks Tom – agreed.
You can also ad in leans to the left and right when drinks are mentioned
One of my readers put me on to a song called Painkiller by the Freestylers in which every time you hear the word “painkiller” you have to do a 2 or 4 count jump. There are a LOT of painkillers in the song and it is tough, tough tough.
I Kissed a Girl by Katy Perry. I have my class jump for 8 counts, then 4 counts, then 2 counts, sit for a little break, and then repeat twice. I play this at least twice a month – I’m pretty sure they hate this song by now!
Thanks for all the great playlists – can’t wait to put some of them together when I get my new computer this week!!
Hey everyone! Thanks for all the ideas! I LOVE LOVE LOVE jumps! I use LOTS of different songs for jumps! I will be back later to post what songs I have used! I have been teaching since 2004 and enjoy it alot! I have people coming back looking to see if I can make it harder since I have been told that I am one of the “harder” instructors…I come to this website to get ideas :) I surprise my classes all the time :) Keep posting ideas!!! I will do the same
Jump – Van Halen! Very literal, but fun!
Thanks Emily! This song has huge nostalgia value for me. The summer it was a hit my friends and I would drive from our home town down to Niagara Falls and cross the border, then come back, blaring the stereo the whole way (as 16 year olds are wont to do).
try “pump it” by black eyed peas – fab!
Val, for all the times I’ve heard that song I can’t believe I never thought of it for jumps. Love it. Thanks.
Madonna – Revolver (Madonna vs. David Guetta One Love Remix) (3:16) is a great song for doing lifts! It’s catchy too!
Another great one – thanks Tim! (Somehow I missed this comment when you first posted it… sorry it took so long to reply.)
Hi Daniela,
Lifts or jumps are controlled movements where you lift yourself out of the saddle for a certain amount of time, then return to the saddle. Some are done rhythmically to the music (e.g. 16 counts, 8 counts, 4 counts, or 2 counts) up/down – so the instructor would count something like “up, two, three, four, down, two, three, four.” In others, it is for a certain number of seconds and is accompanied by increased cadence.
I usually use the rhythmic type. Once everyone has the rhythm, I’ll indicate up and down with a thumbs up/down signal. I usually vary the count within a song, so we might start with 8 counts for the verse, then 4 for the chorus, then back to 8, etc.
Key to doing proper lifts/jumps: (1) sufficient resistance – similar to a standing climb; (2) using your quads to lift and return to the saddle, always controlled, not plopping down; (3) not pulling up with your hands – it’s solely a lower body drill; (4) not going too fast. Quickie up/down up/down jumps are called popcorn jumps and are contra-indicated. Some songs will accommodate 2 count jumps, some won’t.
Jumps are similar to what you’d do on an outdoor bike if going over a bump in the road – if you don’t lift yourself off the saddle, you’ll get jarred or worse. They also remind me of posting – when riding a horse, English style, riders will lift up out of the saddle when the horse trots – much more comfortable than bouncing on the saddle.
That is a wonderful explanation! Thank you!!
I’m new to this spinning stuff.
What are lifts?
Thanks,
Daniela
Hey Tim, you’re right – another good one.
I should have guessed that you would! I remember you saying that you liked music from Paul Oakenfold!
Here is another:
Britney Spears – 3 (3:33) (Hmm interesting song length!!). You’re probably sick of hearing it on the radio, but I think it’s a good song for lifts on and off the saddle, counts of 4 work best (although it’s harder with counts of 2!)
Thanks Tim. I’ve got Ready Steady Go. Don’t think I’ve used it yet. It would be a good, challenging song for lifts, especially the type that also involve increasing cadence out of the saddle.
I think this song is great for lifts/jumps. I don’t know why, but it’s really catchy
Ready, Steady, Go – Oakenfold (4:13) (there is also a version by Timo Maas which seems to be exactly the same).
Hi,
No problem going back…..just like riding a bike (haha)! Loved seeing the people again. My favorites range from deeper stuff such as; Moodswings and Deep Forest (I used when Spin first started) now I like using a lot of faster, upbeat stuff from today….lots of Rhianna, honestly there is some good fast beat from “The biggest Loser”. I like upbeat songs. My class likes the variety with older stuff too. ie. “World Keeps Turning”, Oldies such as Al Green, Fine Young Cannibals, Paint it Black (Stones) and Tom Petty. I’ll drop a play list soon for you, but honestly, I don’t know how you can break it down like you do. I just make up the routine as I go.
Personally, I go for speed and not too much slow climbing. I go for the burn and it has helped me trim down and I see results on others in class too. Loving it!!
Thanks for writing!
Hi Kelley, hope your first class back on the bike went well. 12 years! You must have been into Spinning from the very beginning in the early 90s. Come back and post a playlist or some of your favourite songs.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting,
Cynthia
Wow! I never even looked at anything like this. I’ve been teaching on/off for 12 years. I found your information so helpful. Good for you for sharing with everyone. Your so cool! Thanks Back to teaching tomorrow after 5 weeks off (surgery). It’s an hour class!
Thanks for you song suggestion and for stopping by the blog, Marc. I need more rock ‘n roll in my playlists.
Another great jumping song is “Do You Wanna Touch Me” by Joan Jett. Fantastic beat. I go from an eight count, to a four count…two count on the chorus.
If your riders don’t mind raunchy music, try “Piss On The Wall” by J. Giles or “The Spicy McHaggis Jig” by Dropkick Murphys. Amazing jumping tunes!
Dana, I downloaded the Spicy McHaggis Jig – it will be perfect for my St. Paddy’s day ride in March. Thanks!
Try George Thorogood & The Destroyers_One Bourbon, One Scoth, One Beer you will have some funny.
Thanks for your blog it will help me to choose some good songs for my lessons
Ciao from Italy
Marcp