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This post[0] compares pictures of a champion marathoner vs a champion sprinter, and asks which one you would prefer to be. Research shows that steady state acti

by tacon 9y ago

This post[0] compares pictures of a champion marathoner vs a champion sprinter, and asks which one you would prefer to be. Research shows that steady state activity like running leads to some loss of muscle mass. Why would the body keep any extra weight if the minimal muscle mass wasn't going to failure? [0] https://thehappybody.com/blog/enduring-vs-charging/ https://thehappybody.com/blog/enduring-vs-charging/

jacobolus 9y ago
Both professional marathon runners and professional sprinters are huge outliers who start with particular atypical body attributes and then aggressively train to optimize for very narrow competition. Then on top of that you are talking about men's macho/sexualized fantasies about their body shapes, not their carefully considered decisions about practical abilities to train. Most people don't actually want to look like pro sprinters in practice, but would prefer a more typical fit body shape. There are many physical activities which will result in different development. How about dancing, rock climbing, hiking, martial arts, rowing, yoga, ...? And how about just moderate exercise/practice instead of pro-level devotion.
- mikenew 9y ago
  I think the overall point here is that your body is going to adapt to the stresses you expose it to. While it obviously won't be as extreme as a professional athlete, distance running will cause your body to adapt by improving cardiovascular efficiency, muscular endurance, and so on. It will not, however, cause muscle hypertrophy (in fact it may cause atrophy), and, contrary to popular belief and evidenced by this study, it may not help reduce bodyfat. This isn't exactly new either; there have been studies about this since decades ago[0] Virtually any form of physical activity is good for your body. If you want to be a rock climber then do that; if you want to be a distance runner than do that. And expect your body to adapt accordingly. But if your goals are centered around aesthetics and body composition then you should choose something that will lead you toward those goals, and if your ideal aesthetic is low bodyfat and high muscle mass then distance running is not likely to help you. [0] https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-2007-1024949 https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/1...
  - jacobolus 9y ago
    Sure. But my point is that people might fantasize about substantial muscle hypertrophy for the imagined advantage at picking up women or being intimidating or whatever when you ask them (especially when comparing photos of brawny sprinters vs skinny marathon runners in a survey that forces a binary choice) but in practice it's not most people's real fitness goal.

by tacon 9y ago

jacobolus 9y ago

Both professional marathon runners and professional sprinters are huge outliers who start with particular atypical body attributes and then aggressively train to optimize for very narrow competition. Then on top of that you are talking about men's macho/sexualized fantasies about their body shapes, not their carefully considered decisions about practical abilities to train. Most people don't actually want to look like pro sprinters in practice, but would prefer a more typical fit body shape. There are many physical activities which will result in different development. How about dancing, rock climbing, hiking, martial arts, rowing, yoga, ...? And how about just moderate exercise/practice instead of pro-level devotion.

mikenew 9y ago
I think the overall point here is that your body is going to adapt to the stresses you expose it to. While it obviously won't be as extreme as a professional athlete, distance running will cause your body to adapt by improving cardiovascular efficiency, muscular endurance, and so on. It will not, however, cause muscle hypertrophy (in fact it may cause atrophy), and, contrary to popular belief and evidenced by this study, it may not help reduce bodyfat. This isn't exactly new either; there have been studies about this since decades ago[0] Virtually any form of physical activity is good for your body. If you want to be a rock climber then do that; if you want to be a distance runner than do that. And expect your body to adapt accordingly. But if your goals are centered around aesthetics and body composition then you should choose something that will lead you toward those goals, and if your ideal aesthetic is low bodyfat and high muscle mass then distance running is not likely to help you. [0] https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-2007-1024949 https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/1...
- jacobolus 9y ago
  Sure. But my point is that people might fantasize about substantial muscle hypertrophy for the imagined advantage at picking up women or being intimidating or whatever when you ask them (especially when comparing photos of brawny sprinters vs skinny marathon runners in a survey that forces a binary choice) but in practice it's not most people's real fitness goal.