What do you think about when you Run?

13

Replies

  • beautifulwarrior18
    beautifulwarrior18 Posts: 914 Member
    I think about trying not to die lol
  • oddtrees
    oddtrees Posts: 13 Member
    I love that feeling of zoning out, but I only ever get it when I jog outside. On the treadmill, I'm doing Couch to 5k, so I focus too much on the clock haha. Every now and then, I'll get distracted by the TV or my music and end up running through the walking portion of c25k by accident.
  • alondrasilva10
    alondrasilva10 Posts: 63
    I'd give anything to zone out while I run. Anything.
  • amandzor
    amandzor Posts: 386 Member
    I try to zone out. Sometimes I'll stare at the numbers on the treadmill and count with it. Other times, I'll crank my EDM up to drown out all the doubts in my head. If I can't internally hear "but my legs hurt, you should stop" I'm likely to run longer.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    I zone out the entire 10km. I love it. Where I run I don't need to worry about traffic at all. Worst thing I have to worry about are people on bikes who think they own the whole path and push me onto the grass...or the snakes or rabbits. I've had to avoid a swan and a frog once. But apart from that I tune out, thats my whole love of running right there. I don't even have to think about steps.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
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    The Oatmeal! I totally loved this whole thing. :heart:

    "When I run, the world grows quiet. Demons are forgotten, krakens are slain, and blerches are silenced."


    I love the blerch. He's there often.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Sometimes I zone out for parts of it, but I try not to because I want to be aware of my surroundings! :tongue:

    But I generally think about
    the route I'm taking
    alternate routes if needed (has happened several times - construction, creepy person on the path, gut feeling, whatever)
    BREAKFAST
    the music on my playlist
    updating my playlist
    should I stop and take a picture of that?
    awwww, baby cows!!
    a bunny!
    form check
    breathing check
    I need coffee
    hope that light turns red before I get there, I need a break
    almost there
    did I start my app??

    and so on... :drinker:
    wow corn grows fast
  • ronrstaats
    ronrstaats Posts: 294 Member
    What do I think about when I run? Please don't let "What ever is chasing me" catch me!
  • willandjaye
    willandjaye Posts: 37 Member
    I tend to zone in and out. I think about lots of random things like all the dead animals I'm going to pass while running (and hoping that I don't see any living ones). I don't run to music but I like to form a rhythm with my foot falls and breathing so it's almost like a song...I focus on that a lot. If I'm not thinking or focusing on breathing, then I'm checking my hrm to see if I'm pushing myself hard enough or if my heart is about to explode (but that's usually at the end of my runs).

    Man, I sound like a pretty boring runner.
  • MadDogManor
    MadDogManor Posts: 1,541 Member
    One, two, three, four... All the way to twenty. Sometimes fifty. Then I start over.
  • mortuseon
    mortuseon Posts: 579 Member
    winning stuff and being successful in general
  • dlr165
    dlr165 Posts: 118 Member
    I wish I could just zone and then realize half my run was over! Instead, I keep looking at the mileage on the treadmill. If I run outside, I don't think about much other than how much better I'll feel once I'm done running. LOL



    This is exactly what I do!
  • JustSomeEm
    JustSomeEm Posts: 20,284 MFP Moderator
    I think about everything and absolutely nothing all at the same time. Totally zoned out, but I swear I could solve all the world problems if they existed in my run world. LOL! Oh - and Zombies... Love the Zombies, Run! app... though I might run tomorrow just listening to my music. I haven't done that in a while. :)

    When I run on a treadmill, I think about how much running sucks. Running outside is my absolute nirvana. I will face rain/sleet/snow/ridiculous heat/tornadoes/hurricanes/the hounds of hell, so long as I don't have to run on a treadmill.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    I wish I could just zone and then realize half my run was over! Instead, I keep looking at the mileage on the treadmill. If I run outside, I don't think about much other than how much better I'll feel once I'm done running. LOL



    This is exactly what I do!

    On the very few times I ran on a treadmill (hated it totally & only did it 3 times) I would grab my towel & cover the whole front part up with it so I could not see. That made me focus less on the time/speed/calories & more on the 'run'

    It still sucked on it though, it was harder for me to get into it. 10km on there feels like a lifetime & was actually taking me longer to get done.

    Nothing beats outside running.
  • buzzcogs
    buzzcogs Posts: 296 Member
    As a math nerd, I think about how far I have left to go in terms of percentages. This happens whether I swim, run, or bike. I also think about my problems or life in general. I also think about how great I'll feel when I am done and that usually takes me to the end of my workout. When I start to get tired, I glance more at my phone in my arm band to see how much farther I have to go. I use an audio coach that clicks off at so much time and/or distance and I TRY to only rely on that for my stats.

    I also plan meals out in my head and try to figure out how they budget into my caloric limit. Anything to keep my mind off of any pain, discomfort, or tiredness I may be feeling at that time.

    That's so funny I do that to. If I'm on the treadmill I break my run up to a set of sequences and I also calculate percentage done, etc. If I'm running on a trail I use the mileage indicators to calculate percentage done or left to do. If I'm running in the neighborhood I'll try to guesstimate distance of different parts of the run.
  • Beaconkitty
    Beaconkitty Posts: 5 Member
    I love when I zone out when running. This is my goal
  • baba_helly
    baba_helly Posts: 810 Member
    sex
  • raintail8
    raintail8 Posts: 18
    myself…gasping for breath and not collapsing, motivating myself with the thought of cheesecake :P
  • kcmcd
    kcmcd Posts: 239 Member
    How long it is until I can stop running. lol. It's not for me. Sometimes I run past the barns of an equestrian center, and then I think about how ... fragrant ... horses are.
  • Pictureclepto
    Pictureclepto Posts: 9 Member
    As a math nerd, I think about how far I have left to go in terms of percentages. This happens whether I swim, run, or bike. I also think about my problems or life in general. I also think about how great I'll feel when I am done and that usually takes me to the end of my workout. When I start to get tired, I glance more at my phone in my arm band to see how much farther I have to go. I use an audio coach that clicks off at so much time and/or distance and I TRY to only rely on that for my stats.

    I also plan meals out in my head and try to figure out how they budget into my caloric limit. Anything to keep my mind off of any pain, discomfort, or tiredness I may be feeling at that time.

    I do the mental math too, especially when I'm struggling or there's a lot of distance to cover, it's kind of calming.
  • aliakynes
    aliakynes Posts: 352 Member
    My mind drifts a lot when I'm running. I kind of process through things in my day, week, or life --sort of similar to what I catch myself doing when falling asleep. It can be pretty zen most of the time. I guess you can call that a zone, never thought of it that way before. I kind of assumed that's one of the reasons why runners run.

    Those of you who are exhausted or gasping for breath are attempting to run too fast. Slow down your pace. You shouldn't be able to sing but you should be able to talk (without gasping). Speed comes later once your endurance builds up.
  • Atrocity108
    Atrocity108 Posts: 328 Member
    I usually just think about what I am going to write next, or relationship issues. Some times I conduct great stories when I am running/walking and forget how I got there.
  • carrieous
    carrieous Posts: 1,024 Member
    that's part of why I rarely run outside- unless its on a track. I don't want to get lost or hit by a car. I usually run on a treadmill and I think about what Im going to do this weekend- or I jam out on my tunes and fantasize
  • carliekitty
    carliekitty Posts: 303 Member
    I zone out to. In fact I zoned out and ran through a Bush.....I was spitting out dirty Bush for miles! I zone most of the time, I'll look at my garmin and 6 miles will have flown by.
  • Myhaloslipped
    Myhaloslipped Posts: 4,317 Member
    I think about recipes, ways to improve my lifts and sex. I have no idea why I think about this randomness during runs.
  • Michelle_Padgett13
    Michelle_Padgett13 Posts: 417 Member
    When I run, my brain feels like a dog that's out for a walk for the first time in days. Going from thought to thought like it's chasing a squirrel. I think about everything, all at the same time. It's brain overload. Then, about 20-30 minutes into it, my brain starts to relax. Then it sort of empties out and all that's left is breathing and moving, breathing and moving. It feels like how some people describe meditation. I love it.

    The only problem I run into with this is that I have to watch out for venomous snakes on the trails where I run. In both mental states (crazy then zen), I find it difficult to keep my mind on this task. I don't fear for my life or anything (these are well traveled trails with no fatalities that I know of), but I did make the mistake of mentioning to my mother how many copperheads I've seen in the last few weeks, and now she won't stop bugging me about it. Me and my big mouth. :grumble:
  • MelisRunning
    MelisRunning Posts: 819 Member
    I mentally write the days blog while I run. Is that zoning?
  • Froody2
    Froody2 Posts: 338 Member
    I think "pharrrrgue this hurts, I want to stop, pharrrrque I hate this"'

    Then, when I stop "I FEEL GREAT, I LOVE RUNNING, YAY ME!!!".
  • doctorsookie
    doctorsookie Posts: 1,084 Member
    Not cleared for running yet but when I'm walking I think of my next 5K and how some day I WILL run one (as opposed to walking).
  • civilizedworm
    civilizedworm Posts: 796 Member
    owever, I ran 10k last night and my mind was all over the place. I suddenly realised that I'd gotten to half way and couldn't remember how I'd got there. It was odd but pleasant. I guess I just zoned out.
    This is what I thought running today:

    "I see your serpentine rack fixed against the wall as I run endlessly toward you on the treadmill. Glinting in the sun, your curves beckon me forward, calling me to hang with them, touch them. I can not take my eyes off of you, as your bosom stares back at me, transfixing me with a desire that wishes to be coated with my love. I feel like a deer in the headlights looking at you, but you don't turn away, enjoying my overt advances. I must have you. Get to you. Have you. Coat rack."

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