Sep
28
Why We Run: A Natural History by Bernd Heinrich
September 28, 2007 |
I have just read Bernd Heinrich’s Why We Run: A Natural History, a partly biographical exploration of running physiology based on studies of various organisms, evolution, and exercise biochemistry. Dr. Heinrich is a Professor Emeritus of Biology at the University of Vermont and is an accomplished ultra-distance marathoner in his own right. In 1984 he set the United States 100 mile run record at twelve hours, twenty-seven minutes, and one second. His life and stories are very inspiring, and Why We Run’s descriptions of antelopes, camels, bees, and birds are fascinating as well.
I learned, for instance, that a camel’s hump is not a water reservoir but rather a cache of energy-rich fat whose location serves two further purposes: it leaves the rest of the camel’s body relatively uninsulated and free to sustain increased heat loss, and it acts as a heat shield, much like a baseball cap or parasol. I had the privilege of corresponding with Dr. Heinrich over the last week or so and took the opportunity to ask him a few questions about his book, his studies, and his life as a runner.
α Wild Type: Dr. Heinrich, of all of the organisms you have studied and written about, which do you consider to be the most evolved or best designed (broadly defined I know) for ultimate endurance?
Heinrich: Where do I begin? There are many angles to this story. The pronghorn antelope is the most well known, most evolved/best designed mammal for endurance running at a fast pace. I suspect that there is some other as yet unstudied antelope that may be just as impressive as an endurance runner as this species.
Wild Type: What about straight up endurance?
Heinrich: As for ultimate design for covering long distance from point A to B in the shortest time, there is absolutely nothing that even comes close to the performance of hundreds of species of birds. They are the most highly evolved in terms of structure, mechanisms of fuel storage, use and processing, but also in physiology (that includes circulatory, respiratory, and metabolic systems), mentality, preparatory behavior, and orientation mechanisms.
Wild Type: Now a question about your own successes. What is it that sustains you for such long periods or distances?
Heinrich: Well, first off, while I was running I never considered myself a “success” as a runner. I always just liked to run. Admittedly, there were narrow slots of time where I did set myself specific standards/goals, which of course sets you up for either failure or success. One can set it to always be successful, or to always be a failure. To improve, you need to set the bar so you’ll have both. I did, so I was “successful” in that sense, as a strategy of living.
Wild Type: I hate to use the word again, but what motivation, drive, or research do you believe is most responsible for your success as a runner?
Heinrich: As to level of performance, it now does seem magical to me what I had run sometimes – but at the time it was no big deal at all. I always saw giants ahead of me that made feel insignificant. I had energy to burn, having been suppressed and wanting to burst out, with role models as mountains to climb, places to go, and this outlet called running that cost no money and was always available. I realized that life is short and you don’t ever, ever waste a thing, especially the capitol you’re given or born with that is in short supply. There might not be more again. Ω
I recommend Why We Run for trail runners, marathoners, or for those of us who just like to run.
