re-run

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May 10, 2015

I want to revisit running for a bit. Maybe even revise my traditional position on it somewhat. I have often waxed on poetic about running in the past, extolling its virtues to all who will listen. I am slowly starting to have some different thoughts about it however. Don’t get me wrong though. I still really enjoy running, and I think that it has all kinds of benefits for fitness. But like all tools it has a purpose and is not universal in its application.

What I like about it is that it’s…

Simple

…and easy

Portable

A source of aerobic conditioning

Highly variable

Meditative

Great for building mental toughness

What I’m not so keen on is…

There are better aerobic conditioning tools

It’s inefficient as a fat loss tool

It tends to be catabolic in nature

There are lots of ‘skinny fat’ runners out there

High mileage running can induce accumulated harmful stresses on certain joints

If you just want to run for the sake of running, for the sheer joy of the movement then go for it. I get it. I totally get it. If you enjoy the competitive aspect and want to race, I sort of appreciate that too, and understand that you actually do need to do a lot of running if you want to be an effective racer. Our old friend the SAID principle is hard at work here. You need to do other things as well, but this article is not about racing and racing fitness specifically.

Please indulge me a brief aside on racing… Racing by its very nature is competitive; you are trying to beat somebody. You can tell yourself all you want that you are only trying to beat your own personal best, but be honest. When you are neck and neck with that old dude and the finishing line is in site you aren’t sprinting for your PB; you are sprinting to beat that other guy. And by logical extension if you are racing so you can beat the other guy, then why not all the other guys? You should be racing to win the whole shebang.  Guess what? You aren’t that good. If you were that good you wouldn’t be wasting your time reading this. Put some math to it if you don’t believe me. The current world record for the marathon is an average 4:57 minute mile. If you finish your marathon in 3 hours which is considered a pretty respectable time in most circles you are still 46% off world pace. The ‘average’ United States marathon finisher actually runs a 9:46 pace, so that’s about 100% off world pace.

If however you are looking for a health tool or a fitness tool then I think that it (running) bears closer scrutiny. It comes down to really having a firm grasp on what your needs and expectations are.

There is running and then there is running. It comes in many flavours. Distance running. Ultra distance running. Recovery running. Speed training. Hill training. And a whole lot more to boot.

I use running as a component of an overall fitness lifestyle. Outside of living with this fitness based worldview, I tend do activities that more or less support my passion for things like rock climbing and alpinism.  While those two endeavors certainly share some similarities they also have some significant differences as well; especially when it comes to the training requirements of each. This is why with very few exceptions we don’t often see V15 boulderers and 5.15 sport climbers also doing big scary and gnarly routes in the mountains and the great ranges.

Before I get off on any more of a tangent let me get back to running. Rock climbers that are leaner will perform ‘better’ than those that are not; with everything else being equal of course. (Which it never is) Running has often been touted as a fat loss tool, but is it? Sure there are a lot of lean runners out there. It may be though, that some percentage of those are naturally lean and drawn to running specifically because of that fact. It’s easier for them.  But there are also a good number of ‘skinny fat’ runners out there.  If you are strictly a rock climber trying to stay lean then running is not the best tool for that. Some easy running does provide a nice recovery workout from a hard day climbing so I certainly think that is has some merit for that purpose.

Getting ‘lean’ is simply a matter of energy balance right? Everybody knows that basically if calories in are less than calories out weight will drop right? Maybe not so much.  You want it to be fat weight you are losing and not muscle weight in most cases. Running does indeed burn some calories; not a lot but some. But it doesn’t necessarily contribute to building lean muscle. In fact running is somewhat catabolic in nature due to the high repetitions involved, so you aren’t doing yourself a lot of favours in building lean muscle mass by doing a lot of distance running. What you are probably doing is wasting muscle, and your body is storing fat to compensate.  A lot of current thinking and research is starting to point away from running as a health and fitness method.

Some running drills can be a good adjunct to a fat loss and fitness programme however. By that I mean things like gassers, and steep hill repeats, or distantly related things like sled work.

Now on the other hand, if you happen to be a mountaineer or alpinist then you certainly need some pretty extensive aerobic endurance training. Running, especially trail running and mountain running will help you in this regard, as will cycling, most preferably mountain biking and cyclo-cross. Just don’t think that it will also get you all ripped and jacked and such, because in most cases it will not.

If you want to lose fat, get healthier, or look good naked then running is probably not your best bet. If you want to climb big mountains, run ultra-marathons, or just be an overall double-hard bastard, then you are most likely gonna need to do some form roadwork somewhere along the way.