When the engine doesn't stop, then it's running .. continuously, idling or not the motor is running.

Also, with due respect, you've never been present when I or my father have cut wood, shorn sheep, loaded hay, or otherwise worked in the field. These activities get optimised via repetition to have minimal slack time and maximal throughput.

With an assistant the chain rarely stops, as one cut is completed wood has been positioned already for the next cut .. perhaps you've never been that efficient.

It's not possible to clear five tonne of cutting and splitting rounds in a day without minimising dead time.

Yes, the motor is running but I'm sure the chain does stop spinning. Surely your finger comes off the throttle when it's not actually cutting, i.e. there must be some up and down action involved even if someone else is positioning the logs?