By day, they are government workers, computer analysts and lawyers. After 7 p.m., this league of men and women morph into quasi-superheroes. At Primal Fitness’s Parkour Boot Camp in Washington D.C., gym short-clad participants cat-leap on to 8-foot boxes with the ease of lemurs.
Love was in the air this summer. No one planned it. No one was looking for it. Blame it on chemistry—or perhaps the gas prices.
Should you wear earphones while running?
Pro
I promise I didn’t always use headphones while running. It became habitual though when I found myself losing my running partner to burn out and facing the choice of distracting my mind from the miles I was logging with tunes or talking to myself. But I’ll admit the music became so comforting to have that it was a crutch I couldn’t live without during the miles of the marathon, especially because it helped me block out the cheering crowd. While I love seeing the crowd, I’m not a fan of the reminders of how many more miles I still have to run…
Besides, it’s not just music blasting into my ears. My
cousin says he listens to books when he runs—granted he admits he often has to
replay the selection after a marathon, but it’s a good way to multitask. If I’m
able to talk to the person next to me without gasping for air, I always thought
I wasn’t running fast enough. Or if listening to music or an audiobook (run ‘til
the chapter’s done?) gets me running instead of vegging in front of the TV,
isn’t it better to fight talk of obese America than fall victim?
When the USATF banned headphones and the rule was strictly
enforced at the 2007 Grandma’s Marathon, I honestly was shocked. I’d feel safer
running with my headphones during a race than on the Lakefront path on my own
terms. For the most part, the course is closed to traffic, and I’m surrounded
by other runners all running to the same place. When I’m training on my own,
there’s other traffic to worry about: cars at street crossings, cyclists
passing on the left, walkers to run around, dogs to dodge (a little yipper
scared me when he jumped at my legs a few months ago). And in the back of my
mind, there’s always the fear of encountering creepy characters looking to harm
solo runners.
But cyclists riding the city streets with headphones in
their ears—and sometimes lacking a helmet? That I don’t get.— Kate Bongiovanni
Con
Think of the iconic faces of American running over the last several decades: Frank Shorter, Bill Rodgers, Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson, Deena Kastor, Khalid Khannouchi. Do you see any white cords dangling from their ears? Of course not. Sure they’re illegal in competition, but more importantly, they distract serious runners from the business of running. Some runners claim that’s exactly why they like them—to help pass the time while running. But running is more than putting one foot in front of the other. It’s a complex relationship of trying to get the most out of your body without crossing the red line.
Well, you may say, I’m not in it to go fast. Doesn’t matter.
The race is against yourself, whether you’re trying to break a four-minute mile
or 15-minute mile. To me, earphones mark you as profoundly unserious about the
sport.
Even if you ignore concerns about safety (what car?) and
hearing loss (what’d you say?), earphones take away from your understanding of
your body and the sport. It turns running as something that needs a
distraction.
But for me, the most important reason I abhor earphones is
that running is one of the few times I can escape the general background noise
of life and think clearly. I don’t know how it works, but I get more good ideas
for the half-hour I’m running than in the 23 and a half I’m not. I don’t think
that would happen with Def Leppard screaming in my ear.
From the looks of things on the Lakefront path, I may be in
the minority. But I’m holding out. To get earphones on me, you’ll have to pry
them into my cold, dead ears.—Jeff Banowetz
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