Running. Some people hate even the sound of it. Others are addicted and can’t get enough.
Those who don’t enjoy running may wonder what it is about running that so many people are so obsessed with…
Running has many health benefits. According to this article from Runner’s World, running makes you happier, helps you maintain weight, strengthens your knees and bones, helps ward off age related mental decline, reduces your risk of cancer, and helps you live longer.
Yet my favorite thing about running is different than the list above. While it certainly makes me happier, my favorite thing is that it clears my mind and helps me to focus.
This is a lot like the benefit of meditation. In fact, running gets my head to the same place that meditation gets me, but in a more powerful way.
Running = Meditation Backwards
I meditate regularly. Nearly every morning. Meditating is a nice way to quiet my “monkey-mind”.
What’s a monkey mind? You know the feeling. You are trying to focus on something, but it’s as if there is a small annoying monkey chattering in your ear. You keep remembering or thinking of different things you need to do. You can’t concentrate. You are like a dog trying to focus on your owner’s commands, but you keep getting distracted by those darn squirrels!
Meditation quiets the mind by having you focus on one thing (maybe your breath), and hold that focus for a period of time. Every time you realize you’ve been distracted by thoughts (quite often for me!), you bring your focus back to your breathing. Meditation is a wonderfully effective and relaxing thing to do. I usually feel calm and able to focus when I’m done. But there is something even more powerful… running!
For me, running is the opposite of meditation. Instead of focusing on your breath, you are focusing on nothing. Instead of redirecting your mind when you find it wandering in thought, you just let it wander. Your legs and breathing are on auto-pilot. The blood is pumping to your brain. It’s one of the only times when there is nothing you need to think about. Your mind is free to go where it wants.
By giving your mind time to wander, it is free to think things through. You can find closure on all the thoughts it’s been wanting to have.
Every other moment of the day you are scolding and redirecting your mind whenever it veers off course. Daydreaming while driving? Not a good idea! Lost in thought instead of getting work done at your job? That’s not productive! … Lost in thought on a run? No big deal.
Your conscious mind usually has your subconscious mind caged. The interruptions are your subconscious slamming against the cage door trying to get out. If you just let it out for awhile, it will run around, get some exercise, feel satiated, and then go back to sleep.
When you go for a run, there is nothing you have to think about, so you can let your mind go wherever it wants. My brain will typically start cycling through all of the things that have my attention. It’s always interesting to see what bubbles up.
- The project that is off track.
- The negative feedback I got from a coworker.
- The aesthetic ridge linking those 3 sexy peaks in the Pioneer range that I would like to traverse.
- The tricky connection detail that I don’t know how to make work, what to do with our friends who are going to be in town this weekend, etc.
- A friend I haven’t spoken to in ages, and I’m feeling guilty that I haven’t so much as said “hi” in a long while.
- Replaying cute things that my kids did recently, or realizing that it’s been awhile since the MRS and I have been out on a date.
I don’t direct the thoughts. I just take my brain off its leash and let it go.
Then, provided it’s not too short a run, a funny thing starts to happen. All of the emotions associated with these loose ends burn away. My brain starts running through all the possible I things I could do about them, and comes up with the best course of action for each thing. Then, even if the action is not something I like, I know what I need to do, and I stop fretting. There is nothing else to worry about. I know what my next action is so my mind let’s that thing go.
When I come up with a particularly clever or inspiring solution, I will stop and email it to myself on my phone. I do this a lot so that I don’t lose any of the wonderful ideas I’m having.
If I run for long enough my mind will actually work its way through all my current loose ends. At this point my mind becomes deeply quiet. I had forgotten about the actual running for awhile, but now I become acutely aware of my surroundings. The beauty of the view from the trail, the smell of sage brush or pine trees, the feel of my feet gently striking the dirt.
The clarity of my mind after a long run is the same thing I strive for in meditation, but probably 10X more potent.
Running goes the opposite direction of meditation but arrives in same place. Instead of consciously controlling your focus and resisting the urge to think about all the things on your mind (as in meditation), you give your mind free reign to go where it wants. You are going in the opposite direction, but you end up in the same place. Running is meditation backwards.
How to Run for a Clear Mind
When it comes to clearing your head, not all running is created equal.
What you are trying to do is run somewhere that your legs can just go onto autopilot. Somewhere that you can run without having to think about where you are going, or paying attention to your surroundings. Bike paths and trails that are not too rocky are both great.
No Headphones: First off, if that delightful feeling of a clear mind is what you seek, then leave the headphones at home. You want to create a state where your mind has nothing to focus on. If you play music or a podcast then that will have your mind’s focus and you won’t get the wandering thoughts to bubble up.
Not too Rocky: If you are running on trails, pick one that is not too rocky or technical. I’ve noticed that on rocky downhill trails my mind doesn’t wander at all because it is focused 100% on keeping me upright and avoiding tripping. Rocky running is a ton of fun! It’s just probably not the best choice if the goal is to clear your head.
Run Slow: Don’t run too fast. A good slow to moderate aerobic pace will do it. Trying to run fast (anything 10k pace or faster for me) takes too much concentration to maintain. For me thinking of a pace that I could maintain for an hour or longer does the trick. Intervals are great for building speed and fitness, but long steady runs are what will clear your mind.
Run Long: When your are stressed or overwhelmed, even a short 30 minute run can help to sort things out, but the longer you go the more time your mind has to put things right. How long is long enough? That depends on how much is on your mind. An hour often does the trick for me. If I’m really flustered though, I may need more time.
For a real head trip, try signing up for an ultra-marathon. If you are feeling really brave, try a 100 miler. The thoughts that come to you when you run for more than a day straight are amazing. The mental transformation that you go through is profound. Once your mind has been clear for awhile it dives into even deeper areas of your subconscious. Things and people you haven’t thought of in a long time will come to the surface.
When I ran the Wasatch 100, things were bubbling back into my mind that I hadn’t thought of in years, but that were apparently still there bothering me. After sorting through everything I became deeply present and aware. I can still remember how bright the stars were that night. And how ablaze the aspen trees looked when I got to witness my second sunrise of the race.
Meditation vs. Running
“If running is so great, then why do you meditate at all?”
I certainly don’t mean to bash meditating. It has done wonderful things for me. Also, I am not an expert. It’s possible that if I studied further the effect would become more potent.
Even though meditating is less potent for me, it is much more time efficient than running. I can calm myself down and create a good level of focus in 5 to 20 minutes. Running could take me hours.
Conclusion
If you are feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or unhappy, then do something about it! Whether you run, meditate, or do something else, there are a lot of ways that you can improve your state of mind. Just realizing that you DO have control, and that there are things that you CAN do is quite empowering.
If you really want to nerd out on why running has such a powerful effect on your mind, check out this article. It you don’t want to nerd out on the bio-chemical reasons for the mental benefits, then skip the article, lace up your running shoes, and get moving!
What about you? Have you used running (or something else) to clear your mind, improve your mood, or be a happier person? Let me know in the comments below!
Just another example of how different we all are. I’ve been running almost as long as you’ve been alive. I usually run with a group so we have conversations as we run. If I run alone or run a marathon I have to have headphones and listen to audiobooks, podcasts or mix tapes made just for the race. Although I have run tens of thousands of miles so far I never liked running, still don’t. I like being a runner though, a great deal. It has all the physical benefits, I can eat what I want and never gain weight, I’m never sick and my wife and I, she’s a runner too, can outhike most millennials even though we are both past 60. I do think it helps release stress but it never helped clear my mind, all I could think about was how unpleasant running was unless I had the distraction of a conversation or something to listen to on headphones. It was just so boring and monotonous. I’ve tried running with no noise many times, its the worst thing in my opinion. But glad it works for you. On many marathons I had to smuggle in the headphones because they aren’t allowed, but that isn’t enforced after the race starts so I just hide them.
Sounds like you found your own reasons to stay motivated and enjoy running. Different strokes for different folks! Great job on sustaining the sport for so long!
I like to run in groups most of the time too. And to run hard sometimes with headphones. Sometimes I also like to throw in some of these head-trip runs where I can be alone with my mind.
I hear you on the boredom aspect, especially when running on roads vs. trails. I don’t think I could handle an all-road ultra! That said, I think being bored may be part of the reason my mind starts to wander and give me this effect.
I also agree 110% with enjoying the ability to eat what you want when you’re running a lot! Chocolate milk is the best “recovery drink”, and pie is just “carbo loading” 🙂 The problem I have is that I tend to keep eating this way, even if I’m taking a hiatus from heavy training… I’m currently just starting to dive back in and train for some upcoming goals and I can feel every slice of pie I ate over the holidays! 🙂
Cheers and happy running!
Great post – and huge congrats on the 100-miler! Running is primeval, our ancient ancestors had to do it to eat and stay alive. I’m convinced that when we run it taps that connection, it brings us back to that. That feeling is still inside of us all.
I agree! The book Born to Run talks about this. My favorite part was the discussion about anthropology and the idea that we evolved to be the way we are now because our ancestors had access to so much nutritious meat due to their success with persistence hunting. Interesting stuff!