I kept notes while reading the Born to Run book, and also wrote down some of its interesting things, line of thoughts, facts, quotes, etc. in my journal. I’d encourage you to read this book. It’s a fantastic read!
Here’s a list of those, mostly to let you see a glimpse of what it is all about:
Tarahumara Indians and Caballo Blanco
Tarahumara, a near-mythical tribe of Stone Age superathletes. Pronounced Spanish-style by swallowing the “h”: Tara-oo-mara. Tarahumara alias Rarámuri—the Running People, healthiest, most serene people on earth, greatest runners of all time.
Caballo way of running: Lesson 1: Get behind me — Lesson 2: Think easy, light, smooth, and fast—start easy because if that what’s you get, that’s not so bad. Then work on light [meaning effortless] like you don’t give a [damn] how high the hill is or how far you’ve got to go. When you’ve practiced that so long that you forget you’re practicing, you work on making it smooth. You won’t have to worry about the last one—you get those three, and you’ll be fast.
All About Running
We were born to run; we were born because we run.
Runners are assembly-line workers; they become good at one thing—moving straight ahead at an steady pace. Athletes are Tarzans—swim, wrestle, jump, swing, strong, explosive.
Running wasn’t about winning.
The reason we race isn’t so much to beat each other but to be with each other.
The real mutants are the runners who don’t get injured. 8 out of 10 runners are hurt every year.
Running is tough on your legs.
You don’t stop running because you get old. You get old because you stopped running. — DD
Everyone thinks they know how to run, but it’s really as nuanced as any other activity. Inefficiency is guaranteed and injury is inevitable.
Kenyans have super-quick foot turnover.
It takes eight years until you run your best time—eight years up, eight years down (true for both genders).
The way to activate your fat-burning furnace is by staying below your aerobic threshold—your hard-breathing point during your endurance runs.
Endurance is all about conserving energy—the brain’s department.
Only go as fast as you can while holding a conversation.
The faster you can run comfortably, the less energy you’ll need.
Speed means less time on your feet.
“… so focused on speed and couldn’t understand how endurance could be an advantage”
What good is endurance on a battlefield built on speed?
All About Distance Running—Marathon, Ultramarathon
Know why people run marathons? Because running is rooted in our collective imagination, and our imagination is rooted in running. Why do so many people hate it?
“Distance running is an outrageous threat to the integrity of the knee. — American Association of Orthopedic Surgeon report conclusion
Ultrarunners had no reasons to cheat because they had nothing to gain; no fame, no wealth, no medals, they don’t even get the prize money; all you get from winning an ultra is the same belt buckle as the guy who comes in last.
Advanced ultrarunner weapon: instead of cringing from fatigue, you embrace it. You refuse to let it go. You get to know it so well, you’re not afraid of it anymore.
Shoes and Barefoot Running
Shoes block pain, not impact! Pain teaches us to run comfortable!
From the moment you start going barefoot, you’ll change the way you run.
Running Diva PH 