Yes, it certainly is presumptuous of me to assume these are things you do not know about running (that means I make an ASS out of U and ME). I am sure that being the studly runners you are, most of you know some, if not all, of these crazy facts about our sport. But, I was ignorant of some of these things. So, here goes:
1. Your foot has 26 bones, 33 joints and 112 ligaments. No wonder it is so freaking hard to run even one mile. All of those damn bone-joint-ligaments have to move as a unit. Kind of blows my mind (I think I have an extra bone given that long second toe).
2. Running with music can boost your performance up to 15%, but only if you are a certain kind of runner. If you are the type who gets pumped from external stimuli, then music will probably benefit you. If you are a more inward, meditative runner, then music might not do as much and maybe even annoy the hell out of you.
3. Your nose runs like a faucet when you run because the increased breathing and air flow makes your nose spastic. 56% of runners reported exercised induced rhinitis (the formal name for snot-flowing-out-of-your-nose) while running outside. You are not alone. Time to perfect your snot rocket technique.
4. The human heart creates enough pressure when you run to squirt blood 30 feet. This might be a nice trick for Halloween.
5. Running always makes you feel like you have to pee because your heart pumps more blood, making your kidneys possibly produce more urine (especially if you drank 95 ounces of coffee before the run). If you have a weak sphincter, you may also leak while running.
6. The oldest person to run a marathon was Fauja Singh of India (more info on this amazing man HERE). He did this in 2011 and was 100 years old at the time. He didn’t start running until he was 89 years old. I am not sure how that happens (like how you get out of your chair at 89 and tell your fellow Bingo players you need to take a run) – but it just goes to show you that it is never too late to start.
7. It takes 200 muscles to take a step when you run. No wonder I am so freaking tired all of the time.
8. You often feel like you have to poop when you run because everything in your stomach gets jostled around. The relentless pounding can make your breakfast move through pretty quickly. Also, the blood that typically goes to your digestive tract can be diverted to other organs when you run, making things a bit dicey. Lastly, if you are running a race, the anxiety about the race itself can bring on that urge to unload. What to do about it? Read my article “How Not to Crap Your Pants on the Run.”
Here I am at my race last weekend. You would not know it by my smile, but my heart is about to squirt blood 30 feet, I am using 200 muscles, I have just peed myself, my nose is running, and I have to poop.
What can you add to my list? Did you learn anything new?
SUAR
Sources for this post:
Anytime Health
Fitness Emu
Runner’s World
