What on earth do you think about when you run?!

While I was at BYU, almost every year the BYU Cross Country Teams maintained the highest GPA out of all of the sports. My coach said that such was the case on the women's team for the majority of the 20+ years that he had been the coach.

The reason I mention this is not because I think that cross country runners are smarter than everybody else; I don't. The reason I write this is because so often people asked us why. Is it just a coincidence that really great runners at BYU always happen to be really smart as well...for 20 some odd years and counting? No, reasoning would argue that such a coincidence is impossible.

In response to this question, we often attributed our academic success to dedication. To willingly average 50 miles a week, eat healthy, and go to bed early for 5 consecutive years certainly requires a lot of dedication. Naturally, the assumption can be made that the dedication learned from our running routine spilled over into all aspects of our lives. Running results in a desire to succeed, the need to set goals, and a conviction to never give up; all parallel traits of successful students.

Although I agree with the above explanation, I don't believe that dedication is the only reason for the consistently high GPA of the distance runner.

As a runner, the second most popular question I get asked (the first being if I have ever run a marathon...) is, "What on earth do you think about when you run?!" Well, let me...think about that. While I was on my run today, it occurred to me that thinking is an action. Thinking is not a passive experience, in fact, it is just the opposite. Thinking is a creative process, a reaction to something, an idea. We must choose to think, and such a choice only comes with a little work, a little effort...a little thought.

A quote by Sir Joshua Reynolds that hangs in my parents' house only now makes complete sense to me:

"There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking"

Why is all of this relevant to the BYU Cross Country Team GPA? If female runners average 50 miles a week, that means we spend about 6-7 hours of our week running. Just running. Assuming we run with friends half the time, that leaves 3-4 hours a week of solo running. This means that the BYU Women's Cross Country Team averages 3.5 hours a week of uninterrupted, solitary, thinking time. So, what do we think about when we run? Maybe the important point is not what we think about, but simply that we do think. We simultaneously excercise our bodies and our brains. We choose to think while we run.

Perhaps this daily brain stimulation, coupled with dedication, is an explanation for why distance runners achieve academic success.

Just a thought I had on my run the other day.