The Capacity to Be Alone in Running and Swimming
Psychologist Laura Aliberti breaks down Winnicott's concept and how training in silence challenges an athlete's mind.
Being alone with your thoughts during training can be one of endurance sports' greatest challenges. In a conversation on Girls Who Run, psychologist Laura Aliberti explores the capacity to be alone and contrasts the sensory isolation of swimming with the stimuli of running.
Being alone with your thoughts during a long run is not always easy. Some days workouts feel effortless, but on others, facing your own company becomes a grueling chore. This struggle is no accident: in developmental psychology, the capacity to be alone is recognized as a psychological milestone built over a lifetime.
Achieving the capacity to be alone
Drawing on the theory of psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott, psychologist and runner Laura Aliberti highlights that learning to be alone does not happen overnight. It is a developmental process that begins in childhood, when a child—under the attentive care and gaze of their parents—internalizes the safety and security of that bond. Once affection and the reassurance of return are established internally, solitude ceases to feel like abandonment or emptiness.
In modern daily life, however, this ability faces relentless competition from screens and smartphones. At the slightest hint of silence, instant access to social feeds or messaging offers a quick—and often illusory—connection, cutting short genuine moments of self-reflection. Embracing quiet, tolerating boredom, and accepting days when your own company feels difficult are all crucial steps toward emotional maturity.
The comfort of groups and the role of structure
This dynamic explains why training with a running club or running alongside a pacer feels so comforting. When someone else sets the pace, breaks the wind, or navigates the route, the athlete's cognitive load drops significantly, allowing the mind to rest. Moreover, the structured rules and training guidelines of organized sports provide clear boundaries, bringing order to an otherwise demanding routine.
Pool silence versus outdoor stimuli
Comparing the two disciplines reveals how isolation takes on distinct characteristics in swimming. While road running offers visual stimulation, sunlight, ambient noise, and the option to listen to music, the swimming pool imposes a profound sensory cutoff. Submerged without headphones, a swimmer is left solely with the rhythm of their strokes, breath counts, and internal monologue.
The mechanics of breathing in swimming—inhaling through the mouth and exhaling into the water—also demand continuous neuromuscular and mental focus to avoid swallowing water, making the workout even more immersive. In running, while the treadmill can amplify the mental fatigue of repetition, outdoor pavement under the sun restores vitality and distraction, illustrating how each sport invites athletes to inhabit their own minds in vastly different ways.