Running Without A Watch Benefits

Photo Credit Lonely Goat

My Fitbit tracking device is as much a part of my gear as shoes, and clothing, especially now in this techno-driven world. 

Running without a watch seemed not ideal. For instance, how would I know how well or how poorly I was running? 

What would be my heart rate, how many calories I would burn, and the list goes on. It was one day, my Fitbit needs charging and I had no time to wait.

I decided to just workout and not worry about time. I laced up my shoes and went for it. 

After my workout, it helped me to concentrate more on my breathing and overall running effort. I felt great and thought I will run/walk watch less again! 

At the beginning, I thought it would be mentally tough to not rely on my watch as it was my guide/tracker.

It was also perfect timing as coming back after a wrist injury, it also helped me to run without any pressure around the track which my physio had given me the green light. 

These days, my workouts are to run slowly around the track once and do walk breaks until I am fully recovered. 

Running watch less, it was a feeling of exhilaration as the pressures of time disappeared which allowed me to relax and just enjoy the moment.  

I didn’t really miss it on that day after all as I have a new training goal, to rely more on listening to my body instead. 

It can also help with your overall performance and an opportunity to recharge your batteries. 

Overall, what I learned from running watchless is that  I can still perform well without knowing exactly how fast or slow I am running. I would recommend it to others to try it. 

I am looking forward to participating in the Vancouver Sun Run without a watch and being in tune with my body. 

Our Fitness Friday weekly feature is submitted and written by Christine Blanchette so please follow her on Twitter as well as her Run With It Youtube Channel.