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The Shuffler

Cognitive restructuring for anger management (Running edition)

April 30th, 2010

I’ve thinking a lot about “running rage” lately.  You know what I mean: Bitter complaints in website forums and anecdotes in magazines about pedestrians who inconsiderately take up the entire sidewalk, motorists who drive too close to the shoulder or cyclists who do anything at all. 

God knows, I’ve been the victim of these things often enough and they are legitimately annoying.  And, certainly, a good stream of expletives followed by the hand gesture of your choice can help relieve some frustration.  But the consequences of giving in to the anger can be problematic too.  For one, it sets up an “us vs. them” dynamic that can result in runners behaving inconsiderately towards others, thus perpetuating the cycle.  For another, it can ruin your mood, raise your blood pressure, leave you fuming for hours and ruin an otherwise pleasant run not to mention the rest of the day. 

This is where cognitive restructuring comes in, which is really just a fancy phrase meaning “changing the way you think about something” (psychologists have to use fancy words otherwise people won’t pay us ridiculously exorbitant hourly rates).  Here’s how it works: the next time you’re out for a run and someone annoys the living sh!t out of you (hopefully not your running buddy – that’s an entirely different matter), you could try using one of the following techniques to disrupt your negative thoughts:

-         looking for alternative interpretations or mitigating factors (i.e., “Maybe that motorist isn’t actually a jerk but he/she got horrible news this morning and are distracted”)

-         doing a cost-benefit analysis of getting irritated (i.e., “I’ll feel better if I give that person the finger but that could potentially start a fight that wouldn’t be worth the satisfaction of having given the finger”)

-         putting the situation into perspective (i.e., “That motorist scared me but no actual harm was done”)

-         positive reframing (i.e., “Yes, that family is taking up the entire sidewalk but at least they’re out doing physical activity together and that’s something to be encouraged)

-         anticipating future reactions (i.e., “How will I feel about this a week from now?”)

-         fighting overgeneralization (i.e., “Those pedestrians were inconsiderate but the vast majority I meet during runs are extremely polite)

-         borrowing someone else’s perspective (i.e., “How would my very positive and optimism friend [insert name here] react to this situation?”)

There are literally dozens of ways that you can disrupt your angry thoughts and the great thing is that you can try as many as you need until you hit on one that works.  Hopefully, you’ll be able to put the upsetting incident aside and enjoy the rest of your run and your day.

Do you have any running pet peeves that set your teeth gnashing and your blood pressure soaring?  What do you do to cope?

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5 Responses to “Cognitive restructuring for anger management (Running edition)”
  1. YogaGirl Says:

    I heart the integration of psychology with running…bringing togther the mind and the body on the shuffler :)

  2. Renee Says:

    Running pet peeve: people “racing” you. As in, you pass them, suddenly they accelerate, and if you take a walk break, they then pass you with a victorious grin. (1) These are PLANNED walk breaks! (2) I don’t care how fast you are and I don’t want to play with you. Bah.

  3. The Shuffler Says:

    @Renee: Can’t say that’s a big pet peeve of mine seeing as how I don’t pass people unless they’re running and I’m on my bike. And even then, it’s iffy. I feel your frustration, though.

  4. Skye Says:

    Mine is the dog walkers with the 20 foot-long lead right across the path. I look at it as hurdle practice.

  5. Chelsea Says:

    People who walk two (or three, or four) abreast on a sidewalk, despite being fully aware that you’re approaching them, constitute my #1 peeve. If I’m feeling saucy, I’ll play chicken with them (a little trick I learnt from the Shuffler); usually, though, I’ll just cave and jump onto the lawn or the road. I can’t help but wonder if these people would all drive beside each other on a highway…

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