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If you go and spectate any marathon or half marathon you will realize that well over half of the participants have no business being there. Yet it is a very pop

If you go and spectate any marathon or half marathon you will realize that well over half of the participants have no business being there. Yet it is a very popular thing to do and it is a growing sport. I don’t think any amount of shoe technology or barefoot running is going to reduce the injuries of people that have poor running technique or some other impairment of their running.

choward 7y ago
What's your definition of "no business being there"?
- tassl 7y ago
  I'm not the OP, but I mostly agree with his comments. I have trained track and field for years, and bad running technique is highly correlated with injuries. I don't understand this mentality of running longer and longer distances. Most people should not do that; even with proper technique you're repeating over and over the same motion, same impact on the same areas. In most cases, injury is just a matter of time. Stress injuries are extremely frequent [1] and all this is part of this mentality that with suffering I'll accomplish more. And, longer distances usually equate to more injuries [1]. Strength [2] and fast twitch fibers are the first ones to be lost while aging, so it is way more effective to train those and run shorter, more explosive distances. And even more effective learning proper running technique. [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2465455/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2465455/ [2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3940510/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3940510/ [3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/15462613/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/15462613/ Edit: added [1]
- alexbanks 7y ago
  I'm not the person you're responding to, but I think his assertion is that it's possible to participate in a marathon without being healthy or physically fit (both being defined by a reasonable BF% and proper biomechanics to support long distance running). I do not agree with "no business being there", but I think the idea that being overweight/moving incorrectly and trying to run long distances will increase your overall injury risk. It should not be a surprise when a 230 lb person suffers knee and ankle injuries as a result of LDR, regardless of shoe tech.
ultrarunner 7y ago
Your point is well taken, but anyone who is challenging themselves to accomplish a personal goal has business at that race. They may have no business being in the lead pack, but that too will be a learning experience. (Consider that the mental aspect of a race is inversely correlated to the distance of a race, and that muscle glycogen is generally depleted around 2 hours into a race-pace bout)
- wcarron 7y ago
  > Consider that the mental aspect of a race is inversely correlated to the distance of a race I disagree with your quoted statement. I'd say the mental aspect is equally important in the 1/2 marathon as it is in the 5k. In the 1/2s I ran, the mental part was mostly fighting fatigue, whereas in the 5k, it was mostly fighting through pain (and fatigue too, but anaerobic fatigue instead of aerobic)
  - tassl 7y ago
    And if you run a 400m once, you will have PTSD when you are on the blocks getting ready to run the next.
  - ultrarunner 7y ago
    I completely understand what you're getting at, and I generally agree. However, for certain people who might be described as having "no business" at a race, the longer races are going to lean more heavily on a will to complete the distance than an ability to maximize performance. I would guess that for some people (certainly me when I was starting out) their 400m pace may not be that far off from their marathon pace.

choward 7y ago

What's your definition of "no business being there"?

tassl 7y ago
I'm not the OP, but I mostly agree with his comments. I have trained track and field for years, and bad running technique is highly correlated with injuries. I don't understand this mentality of running longer and longer distances. Most people should not do that; even with proper technique you're repeating over and over the same motion, same impact on the same areas. In most cases, injury is just a matter of time. Stress injuries are extremely frequent [1] and all this is part of this mentality that with suffering I'll accomplish more. And, longer distances usually equate to more injuries [1]. Strength [2] and fast twitch fibers are the first ones to be lost while aging, so it is way more effective to train those and run shorter, more explosive distances. And even more effective learning proper running technique. [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2465455/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2465455/ [2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3940510/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3940510/ [3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/15462613/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/15462613/ Edit: added [1]
alexbanks 7y ago
I'm not the person you're responding to, but I think his assertion is that it's possible to participate in a marathon without being healthy or physically fit (both being defined by a reasonable BF% and proper biomechanics to support long distance running). I do not agree with "no business being there", but I think the idea that being overweight/moving incorrectly and trying to run long distances will increase your overall injury risk. It should not be a surprise when a 230 lb person suffers knee and ankle injuries as a result of LDR, regardless of shoe tech.

ultrarunner 7y ago

Your point is well taken, but anyone who is challenging themselves to accomplish a personal goal has business at that race. They may have no business being in the lead pack, but that too will be a learning experience. (Consider that the mental aspect of a race is inversely correlated to the distance of a race, and that muscle glycogen is generally depleted around 2 hours into a race-pace bout)

wcarron 7y ago
> Consider that the mental aspect of a race is inversely correlated to the distance of a race I disagree with your quoted statement. I'd say the mental aspect is equally important in the 1/2 marathon as it is in the 5k. In the 1/2s I ran, the mental part was mostly fighting fatigue, whereas in the 5k, it was mostly fighting through pain (and fatigue too, but anaerobic fatigue instead of aerobic)
- tassl 7y ago
  And if you run a 400m once, you will have PTSD when you are on the blocks getting ready to run the next.
- ultrarunner 7y ago
  I completely understand what you're getting at, and I generally agree. However, for certain people who might be described as having "no business" at a race, the longer races are going to lean more heavily on a will to complete the distance than an ability to maximize performance. I would guess that for some people (certainly me when I was starting out) their 400m pace may not be that far off from their marathon pace.