| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Christopher McDougall | ||||
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Thursday, August 20, 2009
Born to Run
I found this interview with Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run, particularly interesting because my anthopology teacher did significant field work with the Tarahumara, and told stories about them all the time. It's not encouraging to hear they're being exploited, and I hope McDougall's book helps put a stop to that.
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5 comments:
It's really a great book, loved it. And then I went out in my Vibram 5 fingers and ran around the track. And I have to say that my knees and ankles didn't hurt for the first time in years after running. Now I'm a convert to barefoot running.
Barefoot running makes sense for the young, fit, and relatively slender of build. It's a really terrible idea for people of stocky build or those who are overweight. Human feet have a lot of bones and joints in them that can fracture when over-stressed.
No doubt. It's bad to be overweight. And people should probably get their diets in order and reduce their bodyfat before trying to run.
"Born to Run" is a great book. I heard Chris McDougall on NPR's "Fresh Air" back in May, read the book, began running and walking barefoot. My decade long battle with Achilles Tendonitis turned in my favor. My perpetually sore right ankle (multiple sprains over a lifetime) is now almost pain free. I run and/or walk seven days a week. I have now run barefoot in my home city of Nashville, in London, in DC, etc. It's polite to say "going barefoot is not for everyone", but I don't really believe that---everyone should at least give barefoot walking a try. Sidewalks are fine, but grass is best. Enjoy.
...one more thing:
I am 45 years old. I spent three years--ages 3 to 6-- on crutches with a congenital hip defect. I have been running since I was 8 years old. I am not overweight, and I'm in pretty good shape, but in no way am I anatomically "ideal": one leg is shorter than the other, I have been plagued by achilles tendon pain and a bad right ankle.
I'm here to tell that after running almost daily since mid-May 2009, my knees, ankles, hips, and back feel better than they have since I was in my teens.
And I have been barefoot on concrete, pavement, trails, etc the whole time. My feet feel amazingly good.
I'm just sayin'...
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