Music, Patience, and the Runner’s Mindset
“Has it really been that long? Did I count the days wrong? Did we just go 'round and 'round / All the way to step one?” – “Patience,” Tame Impala
Runners are some of the most musically inclined people I know. Ask any runner what they listen to while they run, and at the very least, they’ll be able to name a genre or a mix that helps put them in the right mind space (ask me that same question, and I’ll watch your eyes glaze over as I end up explaining why Empty Country was the most underrated album of 2020… but I digress). They’ll tell you why they listen to a certain artist/genre when they run. In the end, they know what they like and they like what they know. Runners are very particular that way.
It makes sense though, right? There is an inherent relationship between music and running. Each involves a reliance upon rhythm… well, rhythm and time. Like a drummer keeping a steady beat, to be a good runner, you need to have a rhythm to your gait. The steadier you are, the more consistent of a run you are going to have.
But the physical act of running is only half the battle. Most of running is about gauging how you feel, both physically and mentally. One of the hardest parts about running is getting into the right mindset and staying there. Your run is going to reflect how good you feel. This is where runners, myself especially included, use music the most. The music you listen to on a run can act as a motivator and source of positive reinforcement. It can also act as a useful distraction, a space for your mind to use to stay balanced. Like the temperature gauge in a car, you want your mind to be right in the middle – not overheated and not running cold.
The psychological benefits to listening to music while running are numerous and well-studied. It doesn’t just relieve boredom — it can help improve the quality of your workout by increasing your stamina and putting you in a better mood (Markell). A 2012 study titled Music, brain, and health: Exploring biological foundations of music’s health effects by Altenmüller, E., & Schlaug, G. finds that the psychological effect of music – which on its own can lead to feelings of pleasure or displeasure as well as generally changes in thought processes/behavior – can be seen by physical changes in hormone levels. For example, a 2012 study showed that participants who listened to music they deemed “pleasing” had higher levels of serotonin, known as the “feel-good” hormone. The study suggests that the pleasurable experience of listening to a song can result in an increase in serotonin levels, which can put you in a better mood for your workout.
In these post-COVID times, I use my runs to catch up on music that I would’ve normally reserved for the car. Back in the day (i.e. pre-COVID), my day job used to have me travelling a lot by car and by plane. I would have hours upon hours to myself on the road or sitting in an airport waiting for my delayed flight while eating shitty terminal bodega sandwiches. Early last year, albums like The Menzingers’ Hello Exile, Loose Buttons’ Something Better, DIIV’s Deceiver, and Frances Quinn’s Likewise were my road companions while I travelled more than I ever had in my life. Then it all came to a screeching halt. I wasn’t travelling any more, and I had less time on my hands to devote to new music. So, the only time I had to myself really was when I was on my long runs, which I then started to use as my time to listen to new music. These albums became my running companions. I began to appreciate getting lost in these records while out on a run, and the way the music felt by the end of a long vigorous run. I wasn’t just sitting at my computer with my headphones on. I was taking these songs for a ride.
My relationship with running music has evolved over the years. When I first started running, I gravitated towards the likes of Japandroids, Sleigh Bells, Daft Punk, or hip-hop to keep me energized. Run the Jewels records are also great for ass-kicking workouts. I would also put on the classic mainstays like “Baba O’Reilly,” “Welcome to the Jungle,” or “Where the Streets Have No Name” to get me going like I was getting ready to play the Super Bowl or something. Corny, I know, but sometimes those songs just hit differently when you’re in the middle of a grueling run. I used to listen to a lot of those mash-up artists like Girl Talk and Bruneaux, which were usually an hour long and kept me to a steady beat. They kinda keep you on your toes too, especially if you don’t know what slices of songs are going to appear in each mix.
Mainly, however, running is an outlet and an escape for when I start to feel anxious or depressed. I need it to clear my mind, something I’ve never fully appreciated until 2020. So, while I still turn to some of that high-energy stuff to get out some frustration and jitters (RTJ4 was a Godsend last summer), I’ve lately gravitated more towards listening to music I can get lost in. At the beginning of my runs, I like to start out with slow-building or mid-tempo songs to keep myself from sprinting out of the gate like a greyhound. That first mile can make or break a run. It’s never good to run a super-fast first mile, because odds are you won’t be able to keep up that pace for the rest of the run. You need to think of it like a spaceship taking off. They don’t just shoot straight for the moon like a Looney-Tunes rocket. Rather, it slowly builds energy and speed as it sails upward. Running long distances is similar. You need to conserve that energy in the beginning order to reach that full stride later. That’s why I tend to use songs by The War on Drugs or more recently Wild Pink to start my runs out steady and get in the right headspace.
I remember reading a blog long ago by Heather Browne - one of the original music bloggers from the 2000s - about how she would listen to The National on her runs, which at the time I thought was strange. Drunken, slow-burning indie rock was never exactly my first choice for a positive running mindset. But now I get it. Our running music doesn’t always have to act like a Peloton instructor pushing you to the limit. As we grow older, so do our musical palettes. We also know what works for ourselves. Over time, we might become a little more refined in our tastes, and a little more introspective. And running is but a highly introspective activity. It’s about feel and learning to listen to your body. The brain also needs some sort of distraction. If you’re running 30 – 60 minutes, you need something to pass the time. I know some runners who don’t listen to anything at all when they run. Not even a podcast. I’m not sure I will ever understand why. I know they’re listening to their breathing and making sure it’s steady and all that, or maybe they’re listening to the sounds of nature or oncoming traffic. I for one do not want to know what I sound or look like when I run. I’m already well-aware that I probably look like a slow-motion video of a galloping donkey, but I’d rather not focus on that. I need the distraction, something I can live in while I run.
One of my favorite runs ever occurred in March of 2019, when I found myself in Charleston, SC for a wedding. It was one of those cities I had always wanted to visit, but never really had an excuse. My fiancé had left me to my own devices as she had to get ready to be in the wedding. I had lots of time on my hands, but for whatever reason I was feeling anxious and depressive that day. It’s just one of those things I can’t control, but I knew a good run would help. Plus, I wanted to explore Charleston, a beautiful city I had never been to before. That day also happened to be the same day Tame Impala released their first new song in 4 years “Patience,” a kinda laid-back, lounge-y club track, not necessarily something you would first think of when looking for a song to get your ass out onto the road.
But I pressed play, started out my stride, and right away, I felt like I could breathe again. It all worked. It absolutely fucking worked. I don’t know whether it was the warmer weather, the new surroundings, the music, or a combination of all three. Whatever it was, I had my best run in months. It was one of those runs where it could’ve gone on forever. I only intended on doing a short 2 miler but ended up doing 5. It was exactly what I needed.
Now, whenever I hear that song, I think of the warm southern sun sparkling along the Ashley River, thawing me from the bitterness of winter. I think about the old churches and southern bungalows along Broad St., and the way the Spanish moss sways over your head, the shade from their trees providing a brief respite from the early morning sun. I’ll remember it forever, and that song will always be part of that memory for me. That’s the headspace I strive for in every run. That’s exactly where I want to be.
IT KEEPS YOU RUNNING: Music for Your Miles
Music and running go hand-in-hand. Here’s what you should be putting on your running playlist this week.
Before I had to stop my travelling in late February last year, I spent a lot of time staring out plane windows. My day job used to send me flying to different parts of the northeast, and while I realize I was lucky enough to visit some new places I hadn’t before, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that the whole thing could get tiresome really fast. After a week of endless meetings and living in sterile hotel rooms, my mind and body would ache to be back home, and the only thing that could get me there (other than the plane of course) would be my music. In order to survive sitting in a cramped regional jet (those things were not made for people 6+ feet tall), I needed the musical equivalent of a warm hug before I made it home to experience the real thing. Sometimes you need to close your eyes and let your mind drift.
Philadelphia’s Lauren Davish makes the kind of music I would turn to in moments like that, when you just need a little comfort food. Her most recent song “Right About You” hits that sweet spot. After a decade or so spent finding her way in and out of bands and new cities, she has found herself back in her home city, ready to share what she has learned about herself along the way. The singer/songwriter’s latest single, “Right About You” is an old resurrected track of hers that reminds me a lot of Margo Price and Kathleen Edwards, two similar artists who also released invitingly warm albums of Americana last year. It’s a quick hit of lovely dream pop and indie-folk, like Stevie Nicks jamming with Wilco. The song follows her previous single “Misty Eyed,” which is a little more polished and would definitely sound right at home on a Jenny Lewis or Sheryl Crow album.
I also wanted to highlight a similar artist whose music came to my attention recently. Ashley Virgina, a singer/songwriter out of Greensboro, North Carolina, has released a lovely new song titled “To Be Dreaming” off her upcoming debut album And Life Just Goes On Living coming in August. Written in the early days of the pandemic when we are all just beginning to go slightly crazy, “To Be Dreaming” finds Virginia gazing within herself and daydreaming about better places. With it’s Laurel Canyon vibe and handclap sing-a-long chorus, living inside the head of Ashley Virginia doesn’t sound like such a bad place to be.
But okay, maybe this whole “Americana” thing ain’t for you. I get it. I feel like I’ve been talking about Americana and like Saint Cloud and all that fun stuff a lot here lately (or maybe I’ve just been thinking about this stuff more now that the weather is just getting warmer). While that stuff tickles me for summer sunset runs or simple outdoor hangout sessions, maybe you’re looking for something different. I mean, you’re reading this newsletter after all, so you obviously have impeccable and eclectic taste. Maybe you’re looking for something like Mannequin Pussy’s ripping new track “Perfect.” Seriously, have you listened to it yet?! Here, go listen to it and come back. I’m telling ya! You need it for the last minute of your run.
Might I also suggest trying this one on for size…
Doug Keller and the Dubbed Subs just released their debut LP Broom Room or How I Learned to Stop Caring and Love the Boss last week, and the album is an absolute trip. You want impeccable and eclectic? Here you go. The Dubbed Subs are another edition to the ever-growing universe of Manayunk’s E Street Band, The Tisburys. Riverby’s August Greenberg sings on more than a few tracks, as does main Tisbury Tyler Asay. And obviously, there’s Tisbury bassist Doug Keller at the helm. All of this is to say, with the Dubbed Subs, you know you’re in for a good time. From one song to the next, you never really know what you’re going to encounter. Songs like “Hey Stranger,” “It’s Gonna Always Rain,” and “Not For Show” explore the outer, weirder limits of power pop, and it’s fun to hear the band play around with different sounds here. It’s loose, but not totally out of control. Play it on your next run, you might end up forgetting where you are and running all the way to the Grape Room. This wouldn’t be a bad thing.
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