Is it better to run with music, podcasts or nothing?
Image by Ilias Chebbe
Should I run with music, a podcast or just the sounds of nature?
The answer……it depends!
And it depends on a few factors
the purpose of your run
how you are feeling
the time you have available outside running
Let’s delve a little deeper into each of these.
The purpose of your run
Before deciding on what to listen to (or not listen to), think about the purpose behind your next run. Are you running to clear your head? Is your run part of a training block with a specific time or distance goal?
If you are running to clear your head, perhaps go “unplugged”, tune into the sounds of nature and focus purely on your movement and breathing OR select a Mindful Running podcast or playlist.
Have a specific time or distance goal as the focus for your run? Then consider creating or downloading a beats-per-minute playlist and run in time to the beat of the music. When we walk or run we tend to sync our movements to anything rhythmical we tune into. It’s almost impossible to run at a different tempo to something that is engaging our brain. The faster the song the faster you run. Try this 140bpm playlist from Runners Need to keep your pace up!
How you are feeling
Feeling strong, on top of the world and super-motivated to get out? It’s not going to matter whether you press play or run naked. Although, you may have to rewind that podcast or audio book to catch the bits you miss because you’re so focused on feeling awesome and gliding through your run.
Struggling to get out the door? Head to iTunes, Spotify or music platform of choice and find that track that always lifts your spirits, play it loudly while getting on your trainers and you’ll be pounding the pavement before you know it.
Or perhaps tune into a podcast to help remind you just how awesome you can be. Try WeCanDoHardThings with Glennon Doyle or The Big Leap with Gay Hendricks and Mike Koenigs
The time you have available outside running
If your schedule means that you need to double up exercise time with doing something productive, then running gives the ideal opportunity to do this. Our bodies are built to run, this means that we don’t really need to think about the action of running (unless you’re focusing on a particularly tricky trail) which leaves space in our brains to take in new information. Here are a few of my go-to podcasts guaranteed to get the grey matter working!
And if you don’t want to fill your ears but have a specific problem to solve? Use your run to think through the problem from different angles. Check out Edward De Bono’s Six Hats Thinking and work your way through each thinking style as you run.
As you can probably guess, I usually switch between music, podcasts and audio books as running partners although more recently I’ve been running unplugged. I’m currently training for an “undulating” off-road marathon and find being out in the hills in nature more than enough, that might just be because you can’t hear anything else over the sound of my ragged, uphill breathing though!
So will you be plugged or unplugged for your next run?