Friday, 14 November 2008

Running Podcasts (Plodcasts?)

The Running Lounge, a running blog network I follow has this week launched a podcast all about running (http://blog.runnerslounge.com/files/episode1.mp3). The first episode is basically an interview with the creators of the Lounge, but in the future they plan to publish more of the reader-led discussions which fill their site with inspirational running chat.

The news of this podcast got me thinking about listening to podcasts whilst out running. I have actually tried this before. Once when I had a long, lonely run ahead of me and was bored of my music I decided to download some podcasts from radio 4, thinking some stimulating discussion or some comedy would make the time pass quickly. But it turned out this approach didn't work for me at all. It could have been the talk-heavy nature of the podcasts I chose, but I found the slow rhythm of the voices lulled me into a dull plod, and because each episode was only around 25 minutes long, having to stop and select the next one on my ipod was irritating and made the 90 minute run seem much longer. Perhaps running with podcasts would work for those people who like to workout in front of the Simpsons at the gym, but I would rather run to uplifting music or with nothing. Mostly I am quite happy drifting into my own dreamworld as I run and don't feel the need to be doing something else at the same time.

The exception could be running-centric podcasts, as I can imagine listening to other runners might be quite motivating. It could be like having a running pal who never expects you to break your breathing pattern to join in the conversation. Either way, I enjoyed listening to the Lounge podcast whilst making tea, and will keep listening out for their recordings and other running podcasts as they are yet another way to feel part of the ever-growing community of runners.

1 comment:

Iain said...

Hey Laura, congrats on the Athens finish :)

Have a look on here if you're after some running stuff to listen to ( http://www.runningpodcasts.org ). Having to spend 30-40 hrs a week driving I find that I get through loads of them. The quality varies greatly as does the content and the release dates of them.
Some are very factual, some are just people going out for a run and chatting while they do. There's probably something for most tastes.
They're 'almost' all just amateurs like us who want to put something back and share their runs so you'll find that sound quality and intellectual content may not match you're Radio 4 stuff. Being a bit of a thicko that may be why I like them so much though ;)
What's the next race on the horizon? Cornish Marathon is tomorrow, that's a beauty.