The “Asics Blackout Track” is not like the one that sits next to your old high school football field. It’s a temporary indoor structure, built in a large warehouse on the outskirts of London. At only 150 meters, you have to complete 11 laps in order to finish a mile. The most noticeable difference, though: Inside, it is dark.
How dark? If it weren’t for the presence of a small traveling spotlight, runners wouldn’t be able to see more than a few feet in front of them at any given moment. In June, I ran 33 laps on this specially-built track as part of a study designed to determine how things like mental fatigue could impact performance.
To be completely honest, sometimes I have real hard days and I feel like I just dreamed the whole thing. I was in the zone the whole time so much so that when I departed from that place, it seemed surreal. That whole Half Ironman was like a dream for me. I had a hard time taking a piss before the swim, then finally went back to the bathroom and pissed before my heat and felt ok, downed my coconut water and 100mg expresso clif shot, and hit my stopwatch on my watch crossing the wire at the swim start and then 3min into the swim I had this feeling of kind of ummm well… just ‘fuckkkkk’ as I thought I was 1/2 mile into it and only 1/10 mi and just thought, damnnnnnnnnnn I have 5.5-6.5 hours ahead of me … pretty much into the zone at that point from 3min to 5:59… came out of the zone into the arms of papa johns pizza and bud light …
It has been proven in psych studies that music can be not only therapeutic, but exhibits qualities that change the body’s function similar to steroids for 5-10% performance improvements at times.
the first thing I thought when I saw the subject was running back to do mat warmups in BJJ when you get all dizzy after rolls — lol sometimes I feel like I’m running while blacked out
I run with music when I’m doing boring slow distances just to pass the time, but I don’t when I do speedwork or run a race bc I find it to be too distracting especially when I’m huffing and puffing.
Sometimes I like to think when I run, like if I have a big professional event or need to work something out, and in those cases I run without music. When I run long and early morning I listen to something super chill like Nils Frahm, jazz or classical. When it’s day time and I’m long and steady I like reggae. When it is more intense or a race I listen to something with a beat, Daft Punk Alive 2007 is a fave, as well as some mixes and mashups of rock and hip hop.
I do all of my running in silence and alone. Thats not out of discipline, just my preference. Sometimes I am just thinking about my training objectives but other times stuff that is on my mind bubbles to the surface. I like thinking out problems when I’m running because it feels unpressured. The thoughts just kind of bounce around in there…sometimes connections/ conclusions happen…sometimes not. When some people ask me how I don’t get bored on my really long runs I tell them its like when you are on a long road trip in the car. You are on the highway and get into that daydream/ thought trance. For me being in motion is something that creates a ideal environment for thought and contentment. It guess music is to ACE as motion is to me!
I noticed almost no professional runners run with music, even in training. I had some friends who ran the 5th Ave Mile with headphones. I’m like u can’t even go 6-8 minutes without music??
I’m surprised anyone would wear headphones in competition. Would be like having a stereo system in a race car. Wouldn’t you want to shave every single gram of weight that you can?
I do all my thinking with music and in solo training. If I have heavy burdens in my life, I can’t always do group training as I need to focus on my path in life and the movement just follows, whether it is bag striking or cycling or running.
