We Evolved to Run—But We're Doing It All Wrong
Thinking about running as a slow, meditative practice provides more benefits than viewing it as a sport, author says.
These days, running seems to have little to do with survival—it’s all about sport watches and burning calories.
But for our remote ancestors, the ability to run over long distances in pursuit of prey, such as ostrich or antelope, gave us an evolutionary edge—as well as an Achilles tendon ideal for going the distance. (Related: "Humans Were Born to Run, Fossil Study Suggests.")
In his new book, Footnotes: How Running Makes Us Human, University of Kent researcher Vybarr Cregan-Reid reminds us of this often forgotten history. To him, running is ultimately about freedom and leaving the gadgets behind to connect with nature (he calls treadmills the "junk food of exercise.")
On the phone from London, the author told National Geographic
