Note that I don't have anything against Ipods. I'm really excited about the new one I got to replace the one I lost (ugh). I just don't use it for training. I've been asked about this several times, so here are my reasons:
1) I like to hear what's going on around me. When I'm running on the roads or after dark, this one is obvious. But even if I'm running on the levee, with great visibility and no cars, it still feels weird to not hear my surroundings. I'd end up turning the music down so far that it wouldn't even be worth it.
2) I don't want to be distracted from what I'm doing. I know that part of the point of running with music is to take your mind off of the effort and make it pass faster, but I don't like doing that. Every workout has a purpose and a goal, and I need to be paying attention to make sure that I'm meeting it. I want to always be aware of what my body is telling me. I want to be fully in the moment, not taking myself out of it. And at most races you can't carry music anyway, so why not train the way you're going to race?
3) On the other side of the distraction issue- I find that listening to music makes me focus MORE on the passage of time. You know roughly how long each song is, so it becomes a recurring reminder that only about five more minutes have gone by. I'd much rather keep track of where I'm at by just checking my watch once in a while.
4) I always get nervous passing people on the levee who are wearing Ipods. I call out "on your left!" but they never hear me, so I'm always afraid they're going to step to their side just as I pass and I'll hit them. And sometimes they're blocking the path, so I have to wait until they actually see me before I can pass. That makes me NOT want to be one of those people.
5) I don't like carrying stuff. The flapping cords and the arm band holder or whatever you use would bug me. I already have a heart rate monitor, training watch, water bottle, Road ID, visor/sunglasses, keys sometimes... I don't want any more gear!
6) One of my favorite things about training is the "me-time". I get to be alone with my thoughts, I don't owe anyone anything, and I can think about whatever I want. I use the time to process things that I don't have time to think about during the rest of the day, I daydream, I visualize my races, and most of the time I just enjoy the quiet. I spend so much of my day listening to all different kinds of sounds that I'm usually not in the mood for any more auditory stimuli.
7) Most people use up-tempo, pump-you-up type music for training. I don't try to get myself pumped up for workouts. I save that for races. Workouts get done because they have to get done and that's that, so no pumping up required. And if I did get my adrenaline going for workouts all the time, how could my races be any different? I get really intense when it's time to race. I don't think I could do that every day.
So there are my reasons. The one exception to all this is watching treadmill TV. I reeeeally don't like running on the treadmill (aka Dreadmill). The ones at my gym have TVs in them which makes it slightly more bearable, although I'd still much rather just run outside. I have a treadmill workout on Tuesday- maybe I'll watch some inauguration coverage.
1 comment:
Amen! I agree with everything you wrote here. One other thing for me is that I enjoy music and running too much individually to combine the two activities because by doing so i'd be compromising one or both experiences.
Additionally, ear buds always fall out of my ears the second they get just the least bit sweaty, and outside-of-the-ear headphones have too much of an earmuff effect on me (by that i mean they make my ears way too hot) when i try to run with them. I can't even lift weights while listening to an ipod.
To me running with music is like hiking while watching a nature film on your ipod. well, not quite, but they are both are equally ridiculous.
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