A change in the weather is sufficient to recreate the world and ourselves.
-Marcel Proust
As I’ve mentioned, we had a wonderful break in our miserably hot and humid weather this week. When I headed to the trail for my long run, it was in the upper 50s. 50s!!! This was completely different from our recent “feels like” temperatures of 90 degrees at 5:30 am.
When I got to the trail, I felt a surge of excitement and thought, “I can’t wait to explore!” That was odd, because I’ve done many, many long runs on this trail- but I’ve never done one in this weather.
It really did feel like a different trail. It was definitely a different experience. Usually my whole run is about managing the heat- stuffing ice in my bra and pouring cold water over my head. This time I could just… run.
I recently read an article on Raptitude called “How To Make Your Mind Maybe One-Third Quieter.” The suggestion was to go for a walk with the intention of noticing rather than thinking. Thoughts will still crop up, but the idea is to let them go and listen for the next sound. “Be interested in how things look and sound. A good way to frame this practice is that you’re looking at and listening to the world as though it’s saying something to you.”
Well, this was lovely! The trail is beautiful, and there was plenty to notice.
Most of the trail was pretty clear, but there were parts that were overgrown…
This didn’t bother me too much- it just reminded me that I’m running through the wilderness. Trails don’t appear on their own; someone had to clear this and then keep it maintained. It’s probably hard to keep it all clear in the summer, because things grow so fast here in the rainy season.
Thank you, kind people (whoever you are) for keeping this trail clear!
Oh wait- I’m not supposed to be thinking. Back to noticing.
But do you know how many times I had that same exact thought (“Trails don’t clear themselves! Someone is maintaining this trail, etc.”) Oh, about… 1000.
Okay, I get that thoughts will creep in- but why do we think the same thoughts over and over again? This sentence from the article stood out to me: “The world is a lot less repetitive than the mind. The mind goes on about the same stuff forever.”
Honestly, I was so bored thinking that same thought, it was a relief to put my headphones in after five miles. Don’t get my wrong- I loved this run. I loved being out in nature and I really did appreciate the trail and the weather. But doing that exercise made me aware of just how repetitive my thoughts are.
I was curious about why we do this, so I looked it up. But all the articles I found dealt with ruminating, negative thoughts, and anxiety. What if I want to stop repetitive good thoughts? If I’m going to think, why does it have to be the same thing over and over again?
Since the goal, according to the article, is to make your mind “maybe one-third quieter,” maybe I have to keep noticing- listening and seeing what the world has to tell me- and hope that I only think the same, boring thoughts two-thirds of the time. That seems like a doable goal, although still a tedious waste of two-thirds of my time. Well… baby steps!
Do you notice your repetitive thoughts, good or bad? Anyone found a way to STOP DOING THIS???
32 Responses
Every time I go for a run I catch myself at odd times singing the BINGO song from my childhood in my head. I don’t know why. It’s very weird. Our minds are funny sometimes.
Okay…I really laughed at this (in the happiest of ways).
Oh great. Now I’m going to be singing “Bingo” in my head during my run tomorrow!
I don’t know, I think that by noticing the trail, that triggered your thought about maintaining the trail. So I think that you were doing the exercise of noticing. You’re noticing how maintained the trail was! You’re noticing the overgrown foliage, the bridge, etc. I think when you’re doing a moving meditation – which it sounds like you were – thoughts can pop in triggered by the noticing of the world around you. Meditation, moving or not, is a practice. We don’t become perfectly zen with quiet minds just immediately, these things take practice and time.
I’m so happy for you that the weather has cooled down – it sounds like you are so energized by the change in weather! Mind you “feels like 90” at sunrise seems like A BIT MUCH!!! So no wonder you need that nice fresh air. Enjoy your weekend, Jenny!
PS When I’m walking and I’m noticing the leaves, etc., or the pretty creek or how cute Rex is, I think of that lyric from Hamilton “look around, look around, how lucky we are to be alive right now.”
My mind is definitely prone to repetitive thoughts – mainly negative or neutral (although the repetition of something like song lyrics gets negative pretty fast!).
Going for walks in nature is one of my favorite things but I find it doesn’t quiet the thoughts, it gives them free rein. Which can be good but sometimes not. Something like weight training is much better for me at tamping down the thoughts.
Love that quote at the beginning of your post. When I am really enjoying nature I think of that Edna St. Vincent Millay poem: “O world! I cannot hold thee close enough!”
Hmm, interesting point. I think you’re right- when I’m lifting weights it’s so intense, I’m focused on what I’m doing instead of random thoughts.
I think the repetition of anything gets negative eventually!
Same as Suzanne. I tend to think about what’s wrong and try to fix things… so I often put on a podcast and try to concentrate on what others are saying.
I listen to podcasts all the time, although recently not quite as much because I’ve been running more in the dark, and i don’t use headphones then. But generally I am listening to other people talk.
I tend to walk/run WITH people and so I’m generally focussed on the conversation. But I do definitely struggle with ruminating and spiralling in negative thought patterns.
I so agree with this: A change in the weather is sufficient to recreate the world and ourselves.
A change in just about ANYTHING can do this. A sunny day at the end of a rainy week. Comfy clothes after I wore an uncomfortable outfit. A good sleep after a stressful day. Little things can make a big difference. And I really can see why cooler weather makes a BIG difference for you.
I think one of the things I’m increasingly reminding myself if that I need to put myself in the path of things that will make me happy/bring joy. Sometimes I get locked into negative thoughts and don’t feel like I deserve something nice/pleasant. If my feet are cold, heat the magic bag. If I’m tired, lay down. If I want to spend time strolling to the mail instead of power-walking…take the stroll.
This reminds me of Gretchen Rubin’s advice- “treat yourself like a toddler.” If something is wrong, fix it. Don’t just suffer through the day. I agree- little changes can make a big difference.
I never want just silence. Haha . But sometimes music can be nice – not so much ‘content’ like a podcast just sort of part of the experience to immerse into and enjoy , and something to focus on so maybe i don’t have to hear my own thoughts!
I’m so dying to get out there and run again already with our weather improving. Hoping to get to try this weekend but might take a bit longer, TRYINGGGGG to be patient ( <– not a quality I have ever had)
Well- I suppose the good news is, the weather is warming up again so you’re not missing much. There’s plenty of beautiful weather ahead of us, and it will be there when you’re ready to run again.
I love putting on music for the last few miles of a long run- it really peps me up, and by that point I’m tired of podcasts and hearing people talk!
I think so much of all the “thinking” is relative to what we have happening in our lives. I’ve had a lot of personal stuff I’ve been processing for awhile, and it’s tough to put it aside at times, but being out in nature definitely works as a great distraction:-)
I agree- being out in nature is definitely therapeutic. You do a great job of getting outside every day- hope that’s helping you work through everything!
You hit the trifecta! Beautiful weather, beautiful trail, and beautiful run. I hope that fall has more of this in store for you.
I say bring on all of the repetitive good thoughts that your brain has to offer! I’ve found that guided mediation helps with the negative ones, to an extent.
Well, good point- repetitive GOOD thoughts aren’t the worst thing in the world. It still gets kind of boring though!
I’m going to admit something to you. I almost always am actively working/reading or I have earbuds in and am listening to a podcast or audiobook. This is because if left to silence, I will just have a series of racing thoughts about everything on my to-do list and everything I’ve ever done incorrectly in my life. I just block out those thoughts with other people nattering away. Things can be slightly better if I practice meditating regularly, but I am not great at incorporating meditating into my life, so…coping strategies for the win!
I TOTALLY GET IT, because when I switched over to a podcast on this run, I was so glad to be away from my thoughts. Sigh… I knew people were going to suggest meditation. I’m also not good at making time for it.
I like the ideas from that article. I’m definitely an overthinker, and tend to dwell on certain thoughts, especially those related to self-doubt for some reason! A friend uses the expression to “put on another record” and I think that’s a clever way to describe it, when we need to switch thoughts in another direction. I need to teach myself to do that more often.
It also made me think of a YouTube video by a photographer named Alex Kilbee, in the context of losing one’s creativity in photography. He talks about going out with the camera but NOT shooting our usual subjects but instead having an open mind, teaching ourselves to SEE, to discover new things out there.
Well, I’m not a photographer (which I’m sure is painfully clear here) but that video sounds really interesting. And I like “put on another record.” Especially because a record reminds me of thoughts going around and around.
Ever since I started running, I’ve wondered about what people who run really long distances listen to – and also – do the batteries in wireless earbuds last long enough for them?
I had a director friend who would lead yoga sessions on our lunch breaks and she would always start with us lying with our eyes closed and she would say, “Notice what you notice.” Which I never could figure out how to do that. I felt like my brain was always teeming with too many thoughts to notice things. Or maybe the teeming thoughts *were* the noticing? I’m not sure that my brain aways distinguishes between noticing and thinking.
I have a book called “The Art of Noticing” which has a whole series of “noticing” exercises. I haven’t read the whole book, but some of the exercises are interesting. Things like, “Pick something to look for in your surroundings.” (He looks for security cameras), or, similarly, “Go on a sound hunt” or “Look for the oldest thing around you and the newest thing.”
I read The Art of Noticing newsletter! It’s great. I think they’ve been accumulating in my inbox lately- I’ll have to go back and read some of them.
I don’t know about REALLY long runs, but my headphones have plenty of battery life. I try to mix it up between nothing, a podcast, and music. If I did all music or podcasts I would get sick of it, and if I don’t listen to anything I get sick of my thoughts.
I have worked on ruminating in therapy which was super helpful. I don’t tend to have positive repeating thoughts. It’s always negative ones and I’m trying to puzzle something out by obsessively thinking about it. So I have tried to recognize that and stop those ruminating thoughts, especially at night.
I feel like being around kids can be an exercise in experiencing instead of thinking. Like last night I took Taco for a stroller walk after dinner and I was looking for things to point out to him – look at Mr moon, look at that beautiful tree full of orange leaves, look at the skeleton he’s waving at us! There are so many wonderful Halloween decorations out so there is lots to point out and discuss. It’s very different from my runs when I listen to podcasts and do a lot of thinking, so much so that I will completely miss minutes of a podcast because of my deep thoughts!
I am so glad you got to run in cooler temps finally!!!
I agree with both your points- obsessing over negative things can be your mind trying to work things out. I’ve had something negative happen and I keep going over and over it- I think it’s my mind just trying to make sense of it.
Being around kids is GREAT because they don’t have those obsessive thoughts. They really live in the moment. I wonder when that ends? I remember obsessively thinking by the time I was in fifth grade.
The repetitive thoughts made me laugh, because of a recent visit with my Great Aunt. She is 99 1/2, and her memory is horrible. She forgets what she is talking about. So my cousin and I were there with her, and she was talking about how she likes to try to think of flattering words (especially when describing a baby), that start with all of the letters of the alphabet. So she explained her thought process to us, then started – A – Adorable. B – Beautiful. C – Cute. We got through the entire alphabet, and enjoyed laughing at some of the more difficult letters (we had to say Exceptional for X), and then she started over again. As though we hadn’t JUST spent 15 minutes on it. Explained how she enjoys this game, started with Adorable, everything. We had been there for a couple of hours at that point, and decided it was time to leave.
Omg that’s funny. And, I would agree that was a good time to leave!
I really love this idea of noticing the things around me, rather than getting stuck in my repetitive thought patterns that typically happen if I’m out on a walk without any podcasts to listen to. I’m going to try it on my next walk! I don’t think I spend enough time noticing my surroundings and finding gratefulness in all of it. Thanks for the inspiration!
Ooh, I’ll be interested to hear how that goes for you!
I don’t know that I have repetitive thoughts, but my brain never shuts up lol. And no, I have no idea how to make it stop. So annoying!
Yes, it is really hard to stop and yes it is annoying!
I am not sure if it’s repetitive thoughts but just the fact that we “think” something all the time is tiring sometimes… I find that the right kind of music in yoga or meditation can really help come the mind.
Also, upper 50s is perfect running weather. We had the same temps when I left for my run this morning. Perfection!
Yes, putting on music definitely helps. i love to put on music for the last few miles of a long run.