When you go out for a run, do you think about what you’re doing?  Paying attention to how you move and making adjustments to help you be more efficient with your running technique would make you a mindful runner. So wouldn’t not paying attention to how you move make you a mindless runner?

Chi runners refer to paying attention to how they move as a “mindful practice”.

What are the benefits to mindless running? Letting yourself go, enjoying the experience without being held accountable, and maybe throwing caution into the wind.  This type of runner might wonder after the run how they got twinges or a niggle they are just starting to feel. I know that I really didn't used to give it much thought because I thought pain was just the price of running. Had I known that I could avoid potential injuries just by listening to my body and making slight adjustments while running could keep me going without the discomfort, I would have enlisted sooner into the mindful practice.

So if you’re wondering how you would tune into this type running, the first place to start would be to take in how you’re moving and where you could improve. If you have never listened to your body before, you might find it a little daunting at first.  Things to evaluate are how your feet, legs, and arms are moving. For example, are they going in the direction you’re headed or are they moving laterally causing other parts of your body to work harder or creating chronic injury patterns? Your posture is probably the most important assessment to consider but as we go from running to our day to day activities, most of us never give it much thought. We all have bad posture habits that have the potential to affect how we run. For example, I would shift my weight to my right leg while standing for a period of time instead of keeping equal weight on both legs. As a result, my right hip became weaker in holding the core evenly. Basically, I drop my hip on that side when I run. It has taken me some time to increase my ability to correct this flaw.

I didn't realize this was happening until I had a running video analysis done. The running analysis video is usually an awakening for most folks on how they really move.  You see we all have been moving and it feels normal to us but that doesn't necessarily make it efficient. Lifestyle and previous injuries can contribute to our misaligned gate patterns. The subtle changes over time have become a habit. Once you become aware of what your alignment and moving patterns are you can start the mindful practice of just paying attention. Through gradual process, the conversations between your body and mind will help you direct the changes towards effective movement. Sometimes we cannot feel if the movement we are trying to create is being done correctly.  Having videos done often as you instill the gradual changes will help you progress faster. Eventually, the new movement patterns will become the norm and over a period of time, your body will begin to recognize when you’re not moving efficiently. The body will communicate this to your mind through tightness or just a feeling of being “off”. The mindful runner then will tell the body to make subtle adjustments and listen for the intended results (relaxation in the tight muscle or the feeling of being synced up). It is through this course of action that the potential for running injuries are greatly decreased.

So what kind of runner would you rather be?  One that just moves without any thought or one that is completely aware of what is going on and is able to make adjustments as needed? Another way to put it is, do you run through the pain or do you make the necessary adjustments to make pain a thing if the past? You make the call.