The Fit Post

On Tuesday I channeled my inner scientist and attended Daniel Lieberman’s lecture on The Biology of Marathon Running. 

Lieberman, Professor of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University, provided an informal hour-long discussion on how our bodies are BUILT for long distance running.  Anatomical features allow us to compete for limited resources using speed and endurance, even under extreme environmental conditions that would quickly exhaust and/or kill most other mammals.  I know that in present-day this doesn’t seem as relevant…we can stand in line at Shake Shack (ugh, sometimes for 45+ minutes) to order a burger instead of having to run down wild beasts in the Serengeti.  However, our Human ancestors didn’t have such a convenient lifestyle and therefore adapted for survival.  As a result, we now possess the following traits which ultimately make us natural and more efficient long distance runners:

• The springy ligaments in our legs and feet (Achilles tendon, IT band and arch of foot for example) allow us to store and then release energy on each down/up step – other mammals either have shorter, more poorly developed variations of these tendons or none at all.
• Things such as our big butts (the junk in the trunk), a narrow waist and mobile torso help to stabilize us while we’re running on two feet (vs. other mammals who need 4).
• Humans are sans fur (well, I know some people where I would argue that this doesn’t apply) with widely dispersed sweat glands to regulate our temperature, even in extreme heats – notice dogs need to pant heavily to sweat. 

Essentially, we are an efficient machine equipped for long distance running.  Although things like asphalt and pavement change the equation a bit in terms of what kind of impact running has on our body, we’re still a top performer in the endurance category.  A cheetah will certainly out sprint us, but if we were to race the fast cat in a 26.2 mile marathon or 100 mile ultra…she’d eat our dust.