Run Naked Simply to Watch Everybody Around You Freak Out
The sheer joy of running naked will make an immense difference in your running.
The morning routine had become…too routine.
Roll out of bed, throw running clothes on, lace up the shoes, step out the door, and turn the GPS watch on.
Nearly every day during the week, it was an hour run working on pace, strides, and gait. Occasionally there’d be a lunch run or evening run with a run group, but not a lot of variation or change.
Then one morning, to my wife’s horror, I announced:
“I’m running naked today!”
She probably wouldn’t have batted an eye if we were still living in a tiny town in Wyoming. However, we had recently moved to a condo complex in a huge metropolis in Virginia.
“Dear, we have neighbors. Lots of neighbors and it’s light out.”
I was steadfast and peeled it off though, dropping it beside the door. Stepping outside, I breathed a deep breath and took off for my normal run. It was so freeing and I felt like I could run forever.
Thus began an annual tradition of a weekly reset in my running routine where I run naked for an entire week.
Do You Really Run Naked?
The short answer is yep!
The longer answer is more of a question. What do you mean by naked?
If you’re trying to picture me running with no clothes on, sorry to disappoint you.
What running naked entails is running with no GPS watch, no phone, and no earbuds.
Leave the electronics at home for an entire week.
Look I know your Strava © and your GPS training watch are going to freak out and tell you that you’re a slug, but I promise you that once you do this, you’re not really going to care that you didn’t get any kudos this week.
In fact, I’m going to show you that running without being focused on pace, heart rate or any other run data will make a huge difference in your running routine.
The Argument for Running Naked
There are lots of reasons to run with your GPS watch, but here are a couple of reasons why it is also important to take a break from the watch every now and then.
Run Naked Week has become my summer specialty simply because it is the easiest and most relaxing reset I have discovered in my twelve years of running.
Reason # 1: When the temperature is 84, the real feel is 100 and the dew point is 79, all of that adds up to a much easier pace. I find that when I am using my watch, I tend to obsess about my pace, but when I am just running relaxed and I have no idea what my pace might be, the run feels much better.
My article on dew point from 2022, Why Runners Should Pay More Attention to Dew Point Than Humidity, goes into a lot more detail on why that number means more in heat and humidity.
Back off, relax your pace, and enjoy these summer runs.
Reason # 2: 90% of us runners are only going to see a podium finish if we trip every other single runner out there. Just kidding, don’t do that. The point is that running is supposed to be fun and relaxing.
Make Running Fun Again! was my answer to all the strange injuries my running friends were suffering through. If you’re not having fun running, go back to the basics.
One of the biggest basics of running is to just run, don’t worry about pace. Don’t worry about how you’re stacking up compared to everybody else. Just run!
Reason # 3: A mental reset is often exactly what you need in order to get back on track with your training plan. I watch people slugging it out with their training plan and then I listen to them whine because they’re not getting faster or running longer distances.
Often, it is more mental than physical. Yogi Berra once famously said, “Baseball is 90% mental. The other half is physical.” This is true in running also, even if the math doesn’t quite add up. Or does it actually?
Mixing it up mentally by unplugging may just be the secret to that Boston Qualifier you’re chasing. You’ll never know until you try it.
I could come up with many more reasons to run naked but I decided to save the best reason for last.
Best Reason to Run Naked: You are absolutely going to freak your family and friends out when you tell them you’re going for a run naked. The looks on their faces will be priceless and you’ll chuckle about it your whole run.
Happy Running Naked!