3 Myths About Running and Your Health

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

michelleduck — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 23:39:06 GMT

I started running a year ago, before I started my hips were so bad that they often felt like they would dislocate. Over the course of 5 months I trained and was running 10km no problem. My hips stregthened and had never felt better. Running did amazing things for my health in several different areas. I love it!!! (and I am not an athlete).

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

aiki — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:17:57 GMT

I would like to suggest the book,"Slow Burn" as different and much more efficient way to exercise. You can accomplish the benefits of weight-lifting and aerobis exercise in as little as thirty minutes a week without chancing injury.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

kgainsfo — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 05:05:49 GMT

PG 2 OF 2: Also, being a middle-distance athlete myself, but being associated with a number of sprinters as well, I can attest that one should not stick only to distance running. The muscles are made of both fast- and slow- twitch fibres which produce different results. Slow twitch fibres do not produce a lot of speed, but are the ones that can go on and on and on... Fast twitch fibres are the source of sprinting speed but tire quickly. During the off-season, a typical amateur athlete, regardless of their distance, will cross-train, with a significant amout of middle-to-long distance running. Nothing too long (usually 10-15km is the furthest, at the height of aerobic fitness). Also is a significant amount of strength work, mixed with some speed/sprinting to keep fast twitch fibres awake and active. During the season, depending on distance, the athlete will either move more to pure speed work for a sprinter, or interval training, working on times etc. for the middle-distance athlete. Strength training is maintained throughout the year, differing only slightly from summer to winter. However, most of this is mostly irrelevant. The point is, for optimum health, one should follow a seasonal pattern of training and activity. This makes sense, because, depending on the season, the primary food source of early humans was likely to differ. The human is an omnivore, however biologiacally preferring herbivore-based food, as evidenced by the human mouth, where canine teeth are almost absent. Therefore, when berries, plants etc. were in season the human would travel on more "slow-twitch" journeys to fetch food. When these were not available, the very adaptable Mr. Human would find himself on "fast-twitch" pursuits of prey. The constant here is the carrying of the food or the "strangth training". Therefore, someone wishing to embark on an exercise regime should practice "seasonal training", should they not, alternating between longer cardio, short/sprint, and always with strength

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

kgainsfo — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 04:35:28 GMT

PG 1 OF 2: Firstly, everyone who says that the body should be sedentary really does need to address a major problem here. It appears that these people are simply teying to justify a lack of physical exercise on their part, due to laziness, time restraints, job commitments etc. This should be looked at, even if it means ditching your big city job or missing the 5.30 sitcom. You can't drive a sports car or watch TV if you're dead.

Next, with regards to nutrition. The body absolutely needs a full spectrum of nutrients to be able to effectively carry out physical activity, no matter what it is. For example, a lot of strength training and even stretching and running involve muscle 'micro-tears' in which the body then repairs the minutely-damaged tissue, but it makes it stronger in the process. How does one expect the body to achieve this if it is deprived of minerals or amino acids - the building blocks of life, and vitamins - the chemicals which oversee the utilisation of these substances, as well as being antioxidants and healers of their own. If the body has a full spectrum of these, the negative effects of exercise will be mostly negated by the body's own spectacular processes. There is also water to consider. Contrary to what orthodox medicine teaches, water is not an inert solvent in the body. It is a vitally important pharmacologically-active chemical, essential to almost every chemical reaction in the body. Deprive the body of it, and the body will quickly cut usage back, prioritising more essential systems like the brain and lungs, leaving the muscles in chronis short supply. Follow this with exercise and the lactic acid produced from anaerobic exercise will begin to cause havoc as your kidneys struggle to cope with the concentrated mixture, resulting in pained muscles and overworked kidneys, as well as well as a heart struggling to pump this sluggish mix through your veins. Therefore, it makes sense that anaerobic exercise is bad only if one is dehydrated, n

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Fit2Live — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:47:03 GMT

Dr. Mercola,

We are on the same page nutritionally, but how could you agree that steady state aerobics is the best way to go for exercise?! Running does cause joint damage. Even if the study is right about running not causing arthritis, what about chondromalacia, spinal compression, and the host of other acute and chronic joint pathologies the ankles, knees, hips, and lumbar spine experience with running? Why would something that's supposed to help up come with so many caveats? It's no secret that many long time runners suffer structural damage.

As far as the most effective method of exercise goes, strength training is much more successful at building/maintaining bone density. Running also targets and improves a minimal amount of muscle fibers due to the small range of motion the joints go through and much of the weight being supported by the bones (which is what happens when the legs are straight or nearly straight). Strength training does not cause any joint damage when done correctly and improves mitochondrial function, which decreases with age. It is definitely the best way to add muscle, which in turn reduces blood glucose levels. It also positively affects other major heart attack risk factors: blood pressure and triglycerides.

Finally, you mentioned Dr. Cooper's name several times, the man who coined the term "aerobics." He ADMITTED that running is damaging to joint health and that there is no correlation between aerobic endurance performance and cardiovascular health. Besides, when did we gain control of and start exercising INVOLUNTARY muscles?

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Bobette Jane — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:02:18 GMT

I, too, have been running since Kenneth Cooper's book came out--approximately 39 years. I am 64, was a competitive runner in my 40's and 50's, and have run 5 marathons. I have never had any serious running injuries, have no knee or joint problems, have really strong bones, and have been told I look 20 years younger than I am. Running is the only exercise I've found that burns fat and I combine running with regular weight-bearing exercise at the gym. I take the "running is bad" articles with a large grain of salt; my own experience proves otherwise.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

A Storm — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 05:36:39 GMT

I am curious about the 'oxygen depravation'. I have heard that it will age your skin as the oxygen is pulled from there to fuel your muscles, etc. My husband is a runner and while his weight is good, I think that since he has been running, his skin looks older than it should and has degenerated more quickly than before.

Any comments??

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Charlie.S.S. — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:29:39 GMT

I am animate about the egoscue method of returning your body to correct posture. With the body in great form (feet will actually point dead straight ahead, hip width apart in your natural stance!) your body can just take soo much more use! Egoscue explains a function run, as he calls it, which I am looking forward to using when I am able, as I just started using his methods do deal with my chronic pain.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Duparc — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:36:31 GMT

If my memory serves me correctly, the medical officer of the Commonwealth Games here in the UK (some time ago) dropped dead around the age of 42 from a heart attack. I do not know if he was involved in exercising but I guess he could have been. Then there was a similar incident, not so long afterwards, with another medical officer and I believe he was with the Olympic Team dropped dead! Then the guy who was reputed to have introduced jogging to the UK (it was simply termed 'running' up until then) dropped dead in middle age from a heart attack! Then there was the retired air force physical training instructor who was an acquaintence of mine and in his mid 40s who was riddled with physical problems that were disabling. Then there was Dr Roy Walford, the author of books like the '120 Year Diet' and guru of calorie restriction who ran regularly and who failed to make his 80th birthday. At 77 I do not exercise but I am a tad overweight, 6' tall, and 85 kilos, yet I am very fit with no aches nor pains and still run alongside my 3 Norfolk terriers whenever I get the urge but only then! My observations and experience compel me to believe that this article is a tad suspect! When others make reference to a healthy diet or to eat right, similar the late Roy Walford, I wonder what is meant? Meantime, I am about to have my juicy steak with layers of fat and fried in beef tallow followed by apple crumble with lashings of dairy cream, after which, I might take the dogs for their constitutional! It all depends on what's on tv.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Tommy5677 — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:36:41 GMT

I have to disagree with Dr. Mercola here. I do not believe that as a biped, man is a running animal. Our physical makeup allows for short sprints for fight or flight, but beyond that, running is not good exercise. How many runners do I know who have jogging induced diarrhea, shin splints, amenorrhea, etc. Personally, I prefer rebounding and walking. With dietary and regular non-running exercise, I have taken my resting heart rate from 80-100 to between 60-70.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

eggthenoodle — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 07:57:20 GMT

I am surpirised that people think running is good. If we study cultures in the world and the way of life of men, long distance running is useless as a survival techinque. people hunted by ambush methods, we can never out run preditors.

So what is good is short sharp sprints, high intesity exercise (weights) you need to get yourself out of dangerous situations. Fat reduction using long or even medium distance running is more or less useless, as you body feeds off muscle for engergy so you loose muscle and fat, whereas the major objective is to loose fat gain muscle for all those arduous tasks that we do everyday. The heart is not exercised in extreme conditions, so when they present themsleves the heart is not prepared. Whereas heavy weights that challenge the heart and muscle is the way to go.

I will not say it doesn't have benefits, because all exercise has, but to say that it is good for you is oversteppign the goodness of running.

It is a myth, stop doing it and go for high intensity work outs. Obviously you need to start off slow and build up (like even for running), but for me the ultimate requirement is to have a functional fitness that you can use in your daily life. I have never had to run fro 40 minutes continuosly. But I have had to lift heavy objects, children, groceries, work in the house, and I have had to run for the bus.

So you decide for your self which is the most adapted exercise you do. Something you can use or something that is more or less useless. BTW: Doign sprints takes aprox 10 mins to have a full work out. Whereas doing 40 mins of running is loing and expensive interms of time.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

mobe51 — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:20:11 GMT

I stayed completely away from allopathic drugs ever since 1978 after being treated for chronic amoebiosis by a homeopath. In August 2005 after a major car accident in May I was advised some mechanical devices & some drugs for scoliosis. Around this time I took up the detailed study of homeopathy. With some diet changes & self treatment I could be cured with homeopathy to a degree that on 16 October 2005 could complete the Hutch Delhi Half Marathon in a little over 3 hours, reducing to little under 2 hours at present. The knee and ankle joints - stiff and awkward in 2005 - are supple and flexible now at age nearing 60. I practice max 5 klometres 3 times a week - cycling, walking, running, stretching etc. - avoiding swimming as all pools here are chlorinated! Strictly no pepsi-coke, alcohol or cigarettes etc, no processed foods, 5-star hotel food avoided like the plague - plenty of fruits, vegetable, curd, fish /meat 2 or 3 times a month. In another 10 years hope to complete the half marathon in 1 hour 30 minutes keeping knee & ankle joints in shape. Work at my desk for over 14 hours daily & sleep 5 to 7 hours daily - nights when I do not get to sleep enough take a 2 hour nap in the afternoon - also get 30 minutes of sunlight 2 or 3 times a week. Also run the full marathon once every year - in 7 hours hoping to reduce to 5 hours in a few years time. The way to run is to take a breath-hold for at least 3 seconds - exhale, breathe - run only so fast that you are never out of breath-compete against yourself, not others, with the am to develop rhythm and obtain healthful benefits of running. Use shoes which have adjustable air pressure which increases as impact increases. Avoid landing on the heels so as to cushion the shocks to the vertebrae.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

wordturbo — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:26:31 GMT

I'm age 70. I've been running for thirty plus years. Though I'm going much slower and doing less mileage, I still feel good. No major health problems. I can attest to the fact that running is good for you. EXERCISE! EAT RIGHT! ENJOY LIFE!

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

Juicer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:21:17 GMT

Ask people over ninety years of age about jogging. You will find that none ever did jogging. In fact, most never did any stressfull exercise. I am seventy and I use short workouts. I spirnt about 300 yards up a hill as fast as possible after fast walking for about a mile. I do walking and sprinting every day.

I had two freinds that sat under a tree and died after jogging . Jogging does not sound good for making a healthy body. No physical stress, no mental stress and a healthy diet will give a person a longer life.

re: 3 Myths About Running and Your Health

xyzsch — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 02:56:20 GMT

I'll second stoic's comments about Egoscue. I have suffered from dysfunction for years. Most PT's are useless. Chiropractic gives symptomatic relief. I just competed a three week 1200 mile cycling trip, after being unable to ride for more than 10 minutes last summer. I owe my improvement to Egoscue. A 200 mile drive to the Ft. Collins clinic three times per year is well worth it. I beleieve that in another year, I really will be able to run (as well as bike, kayak, XC ski, backpack) The program focuses on skelatal alignment and muscle imbalances. www.egoscue.com should be on Mercola's list of one of the top web sites.