How about just going out for a run without caring about the time it takes?

Many people swear that doing just that has done them nothing but good as the "stress" of having a good run by reference to time is thrown out of the window. Instead one can simply look around, take notice of the wildlife and generally enjoy the scenery.

Anyone do this?

It`s a good habit to get into.We all want to improve our time and/or distance whatever standard we are running at, but to go out and have a run without thinking about the time you are running is a good idea every now and then.

For the majority of my runs each week.

To improve best, you do 2, maybe 3 hard sessions a week, and a lot of the rest of the time is purely recovery running.

Each week I set my MAIN sessions and RACE day if there is one, and hten having a set mileage for the week which i build around the main parts of the week. Consequently all the days where I run purely for recovery are as easy as I need them to be, with no thought at all for time.

some times i do, but because i run before work, i have a time limit.

at the moment i am logging times since i am new to all this but i still look at the countryside as i run. especailly when im at my parents - they live in a little village surrounded by fields. either that or think why the hell am i doing this to myself!

Couldn't agree more. I work on similar principles to Bryn, fitting steady/recovery runs around the key sessions.
If I'm coming back from injury, it's even more important to run without pressure of time. I'll run as far or as short as I feel comfortable with

Does anyone run a race without a watch or without looking at it from start to finish?

i have my first race on saturday and i dont have a stop watch. i wanted to time it, but i guess im stuck. normally i just use my phone as a guide.

I always take my watch and time myself but I start it and then don't look again till I stop it. I'm lucky, I run in the morning after work and have no time restraints but it's hit and miss by what time I'm in bed 'couse it wakes me up so much.

I have never run with a watch and indeed never intend to, I run for the fun of it and as a means to get fit. I'm not built for running (quickly) but really enjoy just the training / social aspect of running with a couple of mates on a evening.

Does that mean you never intend to run a race?

I have just completed the Bristol Half Marathon and will continue to do more as I have the bug, my point was really that I enjoy the buzz that running gives me and the improved fitness but when I ran the Half Marathon I was not interested in running miles at a particular time, just ran as fast as the body would allow :-)