I wouldn't mind being able to just "go through the motions" while running.
Mental
discipline is whole different animal. Of course running requires mental
discipline. If it didn't, I sure would find running easier.
Speaking for myself: Running requires great mental discipline ( I said as much before ) but still feels "mindless" at the same time. Now, this could be a mother tongue / second language barrier thing, but I'm meaning "mindless" in the context of "requiring little attention or thought; especially : not intellectually challenging or stimulating", to borrow from Merriam-Webster. Sure, running is intellectually
challenging because of the discipline part, but it isn't intellectually
stimulating, at least not for me. Perhaps mindless is the wrong word to use for it, but since I don't like the lack of stimulation, I concentrated on that part of the definition.
So, for me, running requires mental discipline. More than I can offer, usually, which is part of why I don't really like it. But, for me, because I don't get the endorphin rush ( and you article established not all people do ) it isn't a stimulating activity.
Example:
I did two things for exercise this morning: I took a run around campus, and then I entered the rec center and used a rowing machine.
When I run, my body just ... does it. I am a recreational runner - well, not even really recreational. More ... obligated.
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/77tongue.gif)
( After my most recent yearly physical.
![MrGreen :D](./images/smilies/icon_mrgreen.gif)
) I don't have to think about the running itself, the motions of it. In that regard, I would describe it as a "mindless" activity. I don't have to pay attention to keep running in the physical sense, not the way that I would have to pay attention to, say, keep playing a tennis game. And again, I do have to apply mental
discipline to
keep running. That is because my brain is whining "I'm bored. Can we stop now? No? OK, what about after that tree? No? Okay, only to the side walk. No???? Come onnnnn ..." Listening to that gets boring after a while. I can't use that time to think.
So, I have to keep forcing myself to run, and "all" I get out of it is improved heart function and lung capacity, in the long run. Also time with the above "mindless" monologue in my head, which I can do without.
The rowing machine, though? Different. My brain *likes* that kind of exercise for some reason. It is the kind of thing where it would actually be "Oh! Oh! Let's go!" Asterisk: actual rowing on an actual body of water is slightly different because a part of me is still worried about all that water below me. A holdover from a childhood and early adulthood spent being completely unable to swim. I can swim a little bit now, so I'm not scared of water anymore, but a vestigial part of my brain still goes "What the heck are you DOING???" when I'm paddling on actual water. In the gym I can just get up when I'm tired. Trying to reach shore with a headwind and choppy water is a bit scarier. Still, I like rowing.
Anyway.
My point is, some forms of exercise requires much mental discipline from me, others do not. All of them gives me the fitness I need to more joyfully pursue physical activities I actually like but have limited time to do.
Therefore, I gravitate towards the forms I enjoy. Exercise by itself does not shower me with endorphins. I wish it would! I do like that relaxed, pleasantly tired feeling in my body, and the clarity in my mind, so I do get a little bit of endorphins, but nothing like a rush - and I only get that after exercise, not during. I guess you can say I like
having exercised!
For getting into that wonderful mental "zone" where creativity flows and my mind is freed, I much prefer gardening or hiking or even just walking around the neighborhood, or failing that, something chore-like such as cleaning will work, too.
Am I a worse person for not expending that mental discipline on, for instance, running? For not honing my mental discipline that way? Well, maybe. But I do have different ways to hone it, and it does get tapped on a daily basis keeping my nose to other grindstones - for instance the one that keeps the lights on. I don't feel the need for a daily or weekly challenge beyond that and the exercise I already do.
This is just what works for me, though. More power and admiration to people who run, and run intensely. I respect the mental discipline that it requires. But if I were to expend great mental discipline on an athletic endeavor, I would much rather do
this. Or
this.