Benefits of Unplugged Exercise for Athletes — Triathlete

We are being bombarded with information. In fact, our senses receive 10 billion bits of information per second, but the brain can only process a finite amount of it. In this modern world of digital overstimulation and information overload, there’s a legitimate case for unplugging and using exercise as an analog island.

Unplugged exercise is physical activity that’s done while completely disconnected from digital stimuli, such as phones, TV, podcasts, or digital tracking devices. While there is certainly value in plugged-in workouts (think: guided training sessions, motivational music, or heart rate tracking), there is also the risk of digital temptations, such as texting, scrolling, checking email, or fixating on metrics that are not immediately useful.

How your phone impacts your workout

The beauty of triathlon is that it naturally invites us to unplug and engage with the environment around us. Some aspects of training, such as swimming or cycling outdoors, simply aren’t conducive to cell phone use. However, that natural boundary isn’t present for strength training or trainer/treadmill workouts, so it’s easy to bring your phone along. The goal is to be cognizant of how you’re using your smartphone while training.

When you stay plugged-in during a workout, the way you engage with your device matters. One study examined the effects of cell phone use on exercise enjoyment, rating of perceived exertion (RPE), and intensity. Participants who texted while on a stationary bike perceived their workout as more intense than the control group’s perception. However, participants who listened to music had higher heart rate scores than those who texted or talked, suggesting that music might push us to work out harder.

Another study found that smartphone use (e.g., texting, using social media apps, playing games, checking email, and/or talking) during a 30-minute lower body resistance workout lowered both enjoyment and perceived productivity. The group that used their phone only to listen to music while exercising reported higher enjoyment and productivity scores.

Plugged-in workouts may also contribute to mental fatigue, which can backfire by making your workouts less effective. Research on endurance athletes suggests that mental fatigue can make workouts feel harder by increasing RPE and reducing the motivational drive. So, when the brain is already worn down by the cognitive demands of daily life and has spent hours filtering digital noise and shifting attention between tasks (i.e., task switching), a workout may feel less like a reset and more like an additional demand on an already taxed system.

The power of being present

Keep this in mind: One of the reasons why gritty workouts feel so good is because physical exertion forces us to be present. With so much of the day spent shifting between competing distractions, it’s almost a relief to be where your feet are. So, perhaps we can all benefit from leaning into that more. What if you used more of your workouts to restore your mental energy, refocus your attention, and reconnect with your mind and body?

Tips for unplugging during workouts

Create a digital buffer zone

The physical and mental effects of a training session partially depend on what you do before you even start sweating. It turns out that scrolling before a workout can negatively affect your performance. One study found that people who scrolled on social media apps for 30 minutes before a strength workout felt more mentally fatigued and performed worse (as measured by volume-load) than the control group. So refrain from scrolling to protect your mental energy in those 30 minutes before your sweat sesh. If you’re looking for inspiration, check out Travis Mundell’s tips for setting better digital boundaries around workouts.

Put your phone out of sight

To completely unplug, leave your phone in another room. Researchers found that the mere presence of your phone can reduce cognitive functioning on complex tasks, even if notifications are silenced.

While certain endurance workouts may not be cognitively demanding, they can serve as a form of mental recovery, a benefit that’s missed if your brain is devoting some of its resources to “monitoring” your phone.

Use rate of perceived exertion

Instead of relying on data from your watch, bike computer, or phone while training, use rate of perceived exertion (RPE). RPE ranges from 0 (no exertion) to 10 (maximal exertion) and is a way to subjectively assess how hard you’re working during a training session that doesn’t rely on any external devices. Cooldown laps in the pool may feel like a 2 or 3; bike hill repeats may feel like a 9 or 10; and a steady state run effort may feel like a 7.

Your RPE values are unique to you and will require some practice before you feel confident using this metric as a way to track your workout productivity.

Be a (jelly) bean counter

If you’re going analog, you might as well sweeten it up. Take off your watch and count laps in the pool using the jelly bean method, a favorite of Triathlete editor Susan Lacke when doing 100×100 swim workouts. Place a container of jelly beans on the pool deck next to an empty container. After each lap (or 100, if that’s what you’re counting), move one jelly bean over to the empty container, or shake it out of the container and into your mouth for a little treat.

If that feels messy, or you’re averse to jelly beans, try the alphabet method. For each letter/lap, repeat a positive quality you want to embody as a triathlete (e.g., ambitious, bold, composed, disciplined, etc.).

You don’t need to unplug for every workout; that’s neither realistic nor necessarily useful. But unplugging at least once a week will likely benefit your mental wellbeing and your growth potential. Unplugged workouts can reduce the load on your nervous system, improve your body awareness, and train your mind to stay present through discomfort.

So incorporate some digital silence and notice your experience – it might be just what you need to get more out of your workouts.