London Marathon: Best running songs from Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar to 'Uptown Funk'

Our pick of the best tunes to get your heart pumping during a big race

Runners reach the nineteen mile mark of the London Marathon (Getty Images)

Thousands of people have been training all year to tackle one of the ultimate tests of human endurance - the marathon.

Nervous doubts of “Am I fit enough?” and adrenalin-fuelled excitement to get going guarantee an electrifying buzz at the starting line in London's Greenwich Park on Sunday 26 April.

London Marathon 2015 start time and route changes

Other runners are just starting out on their personal missions to hone and tone while many newfound joggers are aiming to stop getting a stitch after five minutes.

Music is a great motivator so many runners compile an iPod playlist to give them a boost as breathing gets harder and legs start to ache.

But what are the best songs to run to? Here's our pick of some top tracks guaranteed to get your heart pumping, from recent chart-toppers and all-time classics to a few less obvious tunes.

11) “King” - Years & Years

12) “Cheerleader” – Omi

13) “Feel Good Inc” - Gorillaz

14) “Hold My Hand” – Jess Glynne

15) “Greyhound” – Swedish House Mafia

16) “Good Feeling” – Flo Rida

17) “Firestone” – Kygo

18) “Uptown Funk” – Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars

19) “Lean On” – Major Lazer ft. MO & DJ Snake

20) “Light Me Up” – Birdy

21) “Gecko (Overdrive)” – Oliver Heldens, Becky Hill

22) “Love On Top” – Beyoncé

23) “Say Something” – Karen Harding

24) “Bloodstream” – Ed Sheeran, Rudimental

25) “Chandelier” – Sia

26) “Turn Me On” – Kevin Lyttle

27) “Feel the Love” – Rudimental

28) “Money For Nothing” – Dire Straits

29) “Mozart’s House” – Clean Bandit ft. Love Ssega

30) “King Kunta” – Kendrick Lamar

31) “Ghost” – Ella Henderson

32) “We Are the Champions” – Queen

33) “Start Me Up” – The Rolling Stones

34) “Family Affair” – Mary J Blige

35) “When Love Takes Over” – David Guetta, Kelly Rowland

36) “Pump It” – The Black Eyed Peas

37) “Blame” – Calvin Harris ft. John Newman

38) “Can’t Hold Us” – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

39) “Waiting All Night” – Rudimental ft. Ella Eyre

40) “Heatwave” – Wiley ft. Ms D

41) “Proud” – Heather Small

42) “212” – Azealia Banks

43) “Breathe” – Sean Paul ft. Blu Cantrell

44) “Keep on Movin’” – 5ive

45) “Not Afraid” - Eminem

46) “Wild Ones” – Flo Rida ft. Sia

47) “You Get What You Give” – New Radicals

48) “Chariots of Fire” - Vangelis

49) “Maniac” – Michael Sembello

Then of course there’s number 50, Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger”, but surely that’s on there by default?

(This article has been updated from 11 April 2014)

10 best headphones for running
Paula Radcliffe reveals race against time for London Marathon
'I'm running the London Marathon in memory of my partner'