Nothing destroys the running pace quite like a slow track from your Spotify library. To deal with this, the music streaming platform has built a new personalized mode that aims to keep your soundtrack aligned with the workout from the first step to the final cooldown.
Spotify has introduced Running Mode, a Premium feature that builds a workout and accompanying playlist around your pace. From your music taste to your preferred tempo, it wants to keep up with your fitness journey. The feature offers 25 curated running presets right off the bat. These can be further customized according to workout type, duration, genre, and beats per minute.
As of right now, the available training formats include steady runs, intervals, and even pyramid sessions. Runners can also enable English-language audio prompts that deliver timely instructions and motivation without constantly interrupting the music.
Running playlist meets the workout plan
Running Mode brings Spotify’s personalization system into your workout structure. Rather than relying on a generic public playlist titled “Running”, you can tell Spotify how long you plan to exercise and the kind of session you are planning. It can also be instructed based on the music you want to hear and the tempo that would elevate your running experience. The real twist is that these running playlists are still based on users’ individual music tastes. So two runners choosing the same preset can expect to hear vastly different soundtracks.
The feature builds on Spotify’s Prompted Playlist technology. That system uses listening history alongside a user’s instructions to generate highly specific playlists. Spotify adds that fitness requests became one of its most popular use cases. Its own example prompts previously included a 30-minute 5K playlist that maintains a steady pace before moving into calmer cooldown tracks.
This isn’t the first time Spotify has tried this
Spotify launched an earlier running feature over a decade ago that used a phone’s sensors to detect rhythmic movement and automatically select music matching the runner’s current pace. However, this was retired in 2018. Running Mode builds on this in a more refined manner. You define the workout and target tempo beforehand rather than having Spotify continuously detect your pace.
To clarify, this isn’t Spotify becoming a fitness tracker. There is no announced GPS route recording, distance tracking, or any of those other workout/health metrics involved here. The feature is available today through Spotify’s Fitness hub for Premium listeners using iOS in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Sweden. Spotify has not announced Android availability or a broader international rollout.
