When I first started running, I never ran without music. I used to work for IKEA in Southampton and every year they’d give all employees the same Christmas present and one year it was an iPod Shuffle – remember them? - and it was brilliant. It was tiny, clipped onto your shorts and was so light you didn’t even notice it was there. I’d get excited to craft perfect playlists of all my favourite music to go and do my runs with and, looking back, I’m sure this was a great motivator for getting me out the door, particularly on days when I just didn’t fancy it or the weather wasn’t great. And no surprise; studies have shown that music can be beneficial on running performance by dulling, or distracting from, the effects of fatigue. However, this is exactly why I’d suggest that if you are a headphone runner to try going tech-free at least some of the time.
I slowly transitioned out of listening to music during my training after getting fed up of fiddling around with wires constantly, and have therefore lost that need for a good playlist to get my trainers on. Wouldn’t you prefer to feel motivated purely by the joy and freedom of training rather than needing something to distract you from the pain of it? It’s a complete switch of mindset that allows you to view your run as a positive, fun or even meditative experience to be focused on, or in, rather than trying to tune out from. Leaving the music at home allows you to listen to your body much more effectively as all of your senses are available to you. With your favourite motivating tunes in your ears it would be all too easy, for example, to run too fast on what should be an easy run, perhaps leaving you tired for your quality session the next day.
Plus, runners these days aren’t carrying around mini iPods, but instead bigger and bigger phones, and often store them on the arm which certainly isn’t conducive to good running form as there’s a significant weight being carried on one side of the body. My relatively small iPhone SE + case + arm band comes to 186g which is nearly the weight of another typical running shoe!
So this week, if you don’t normally, why not try going tech-free on at least some of your runs? It may be tough at first, but you’ll be lighter and likely to run more smoothly. You’ll be better tuned into your body, allowing you to execute specific sessions, paces or efforts more easily whilst also having better spatial awareness of what’s going on around you. It will also provide great practice for racing when you likely won’t be allowed to wear headphones.
And even if you do eventually make the transition, you can still dig out the headphones sparingly as your ‘super-power’ on those days when getting out the door seems like too much effort. For example, I occasionally go for a podcast when I really want the miles to disappear on extra-long runs, in a similar way to running with a friend. As with most things in life and running though, do what works for you.
Running with headphones – yes or no? Let me know what you think below.
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