Mindless vs. Mindful Running

I've been reading Meb for Mortals in small sips over the past couple weeks. Meb, like most professional runners, is a big believer in being mindful during a run

Being mindful means keeping track of your body. Does anything hurt? Are you on pace? Is your form good? What needs fixing?

This kind of running is beneficial when you're training and looking to improve. But is there ever a time for mindless runs?

I think so. 

Constantly being mindful can be exhausting, and sometimes we run to energize ourselves. 

We run for the pure joy of it, for the freedom it gives us. We run to remember how strong we are and how far we've come. 

Especially when training, running can become a chore. I think a nice, mindless run once in awhile can be cathartic. It helps to reset and recharge our bodies after days of over-analyzing every step.

I think it's hard to find balance between being mindful and mindless when in the midst of training, and I think leaning too far toward either end of the spectrum means possibly losing sight of your ultimate goal - to enjoy running and to make progress.

I've been having a really hard time running lately; it was honestly the last thing I wanted to do this week. It felt like too much time to think, because I've been running mindlessly. But after a more mindful run Saturday night, I remembered that when I engage my mind and push myself, running can be a good distraction.

And with that, I think I finally turned a corner.

Do you enjoy running mindfully?
How often do you run mindlessly?

ABK