NOTE: This blog entry was originally posted in May of 2009
I am not a runner but I’ve always secretly wished I was. I like the idea of being in shape and being able to run and run and run for mile after mile after mile. Author Christopher McDougall argues that the human body has evolved specifically for distance running so maybe there’s hope for me yet. Most of McDougall’s book (Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World has Never Seen) and his conversation with Bob focuses on the Tarahumara Indians of northern Mexico. They live simple lives in the Sierra Madre mountains and they ENJOY running, they don’t treat it as something they HAVE to do to stay in shape. McDougall says they run like dolphins swim in the waves and the fact that they don’t get hurt has a lot to do with the Tarahumara’s stride. McDougall says they keep their heels under their hips, but lean forward enough to let gravity pull them forward. The Tarahumara also taught McDougall that everything he’d learned about running was wrong – like needing special running shoes with an arch support. They run for hundreds of miles at a time in flat, homemade sandals. Once McDougall learned to run like the Tarahumara, he says all of his old recurring running injuries disappeared.
Here’s a Men’s Health article by McDougall about the Tarahumara Indians.
Click here to learn more about the Tarahumara from Wikipedia.
P.S. If I ever do become a runner, I promise NOT to run in the street when there’s a sidewalk available. Can any of you current runners explain that to me? It’s a personal pet peeve of mine.
-Chad
I run on the road, because sidewalks are uneven, with large seams and gaps. More than once I've tripped on a sidewalk and really hurt myself. That has never happened on a road.
i had trouble locating that myself. apparently the tarahumara are hard to find and even harder to befriend (according to mcdougall’s account). – chad
Where can I find a video of these natives running? I’ve found some Americans running in the area on youtube, but nothing that seems so unique.
alright. i’ve always wondered why joggers run in the street when there’s a perfectly good sidewalk available (where they are almost 100% less likely to get hit by oncoming traffic). now i have my answer. i’ll still probably never become a runner. i think i’ll compromise and walk on the sidewalk. glad everyone enjoyed bob’s talk with christopher mcdougall. we had quite a bit of traffic on the website this weekend and this blog entry seems to have driven much of it. – chad
Drivers are more alert than the average pedestrian. When running in the street I’ve noticed only 2 dangers, oncoming traffic or an occasional car door opening. The average sidewalk is teeming with obstacles and distractions.
Chad,
Re: running in the street when a sidewalk is available. I run in the street, as opposed to on the sidewalk, whenever possible, for one simple reason. There is more "give" to asphault than there is to concrete so it’s easier on my body. Also, when you’re running, it’s work and work that is accomplished more enjoyably when you have an established rhythm. Hopping up and down curbs breaks the rhythem. However, I never run in the street if the traffic is too close or I feel I’m in the way or could be in danger.