Why ‘Just Letting Them Run’ Doesn’t Burn Energy the Way You Think It Does

We’ve all heard it: “My dog just needs to run it off." “If I take him to the field for 30 minutes, he’s wiped.” “She’s wild because she hasn’t had her off-leash run today.” Here’s the problem: that’s not burning energy. That’s building stimulation. And in the dog training world, stimulation and satisfaction are not the same thing. One winds the dog up. The other winds the dog down.

In this post, we’re going to debunk the myth that free running equals calm. We’ll show why chaos-based “exercise” actually creates more chaos, and what to do instead if you want a dog that’s tired and thoughtful.

Stimulation vs Satisfaction: What Most Owners Miss

Letting your dog loose in a backyard or field with no direction is like tossing a toddler into a candy store without a plan. Sure, they’ll run. They’ll scream. They’ll burn calories. But what they won’t do is learn how to regulate.

Neurologically, what’s happening is this:

• Sympathetic nervous system (fight/flight) gets activated.

• Reticular Activating System (RAS) tags chaos as the thing to seek out.

• The dog leaves the field faster, less focused, and often more likely to ignore commands or escalate into reactivity later in the day.

Dr. Stephen Porges, creator of the Polyvagal Theory, explains: “The ability to regulate one’s state is the foundation of social behavior and safety.” If we’re not teaching the dog to come down, we’re not completing the circuit. And incomplete circuits = lingering chaos in the nervous system.

The Myth of the “Tired Dog”

There’s a popular saying in the dog world: “A tired dog is a good dog.”

But let’s dig deeper. What kind of tired?

• Overstimulated tired means wired, panting, spinning in the crate.

• Satisfied tired means relaxed, regulated, eyes soft, able to rest.

What’s the difference? Structure.

The Formula: Play → Structure → Rest

At A Peaceful Pack, we follow a simple rhythm to help dogs expend energy in a way that builds focus, not frenzy. Let’s break it down:

1. Play (Stimulation Phase)

You start with play. You allow the dog to open up, to run, to wrestle, to explore. But here’s the key: You initiate it, you end it.

Whether it’s fetch, flirt pole, tug, or structured off-leash time, we don’t let the dog spiral endlessly. We introduce clear cues like:

• “Break” to release them.

• “Out” to end the toy interaction.

• “Come” to recall into the next phase.

“Energy without direction just creates chaos. You must own the transitions.” – Jim Rohn, Entrepreneur & Speaker

2. Structure (Regulation Phase)

Immediately after play, we shift gears. This is where most owners miss the mark. They end the run, leash the dog, and go back inside. But the dog is still loaded. This phase is where we teach the nervous system to come down.

Drills we use include:

• Leash walks in heel

• Place command

• Crate calmness

• Leash pressure resets

• Settle drills post-play

This isn’t punishment. It’s the integration phase. The nervous system moves from sympathetic into parasympathetic. From “go” to “know.” As Viktor Frankl once said: “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose.” Structure teaches the dog to find that space.

3. Rest (Recovery Phase)

Only once the dog has chosen stillness in the presence of stimulation do we allow rest.

This could be crate time. It could be a long Place hold while you eat lunch. It could be tethered near your desk during a meeting. But it’s not a collapse. It’s a cooldown. And that cooldown seals the learning loop.

What Free Running Actually Teaches

Letting your dog run off-leash without structure doesn’t calm them. It conditions their body to seek external intensity.

Here’s what you’re really installing when you just let them run:

• Impulse rehearsal — chasing birds, ignoring recalls, breaking thresholds.

• Arousal spikes — especially in multi-dog play, leading to overarousal and eventual conflict.

• Lack of handler reference — they stop checking in, stop seeing you as relevant.

As Cesar Millan once said: “A dog that doesn’t know how to follow can never be free.”

Running without rules teaches disconnection. Connection requires rhythm. Rhythm requires a leader.

Better Alternatives to “Burning Off Energy”

Instead of thinking about burning energy, shift to channeling energy.

Here’s what that looks like in real life:

Instead of…	Do this instead…
Tossing your dog in the yard alone	Leash walk + place duration afterwards
Playing fetch until the dog crashes	Fetch → Out → Place → Rest cycle
Sending dog to daycare for stimulation	30 min walk → muzzle social → kennel calm drill
Letting dog “run it off” after bad behavior	Long-line recall reps + leash decompression drills

And remember: Every high drive dog has to learn how to settle. It doesn’t come built in.

The Science: Why Regulation Matters

The Reticular Activating System (RAS) filters what your dog pays attention to. If they get rewarded for sprinting, spinning, barking—that’s what the brain tags as important. If, instead, we reward calm—head dips, yawns, disengagements—we shift the RAS to filter for peace.

Neuroscientist Dr. Dan Siegel explains: “Where attention goes, neural firing flows. And where neurons fire, they wire.” So if your dog is wild after exercise, it’s not because they need more. It’s because they never got the “come down” phase.

Final Thought

A dog’s body can run a marathon. But it’s their mind that needs training. Letting them sprint in chaos doesn’t create calm. It creates cortisol. If you want a dog that listens, rests, and engages, you don’t need to drain them. You need to guide them. Play with purpose. Layer in structure. Reward the rest. That’s how you build dogs who can turn off—not just turn up.

References

1. Porges, Stephen W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-Regulation. W. W. Norton & Company.

2. Siegel, Daniel J. (2010). The Mindful Therapist: A Clinician’s Guide to Mindsight and Neural Integration. W. W. Norton & Company.

3. Frankl, Viktor E. (1946). Man’s Search for Meaning. Beacon Press.

4. Rohn, Jim. (2001). The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle.

5. Millan, Cesar. (2006). Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems. Crown Publishing Group.