TED talk - Christopher McDougall : Are we born to run?

rate:*****

Christopher McGougall talks about how we evolved and how we used to be 2 million years ago. He talks about this one tribe in Mexico called the Tatomata ( do not know how it is spelt) that have not changed for approx. 400 years. He talks about their history, how they can run 15o miles at a time without problems or injury and that they would not know what you were talking about if you mentioned: heart disease, cholesterol, cancer, welfare, violence, clinical depression, etc. because they are free of all these modern problems.

He talks about 3 mysteries that Harvard and University of Utah are trying to get their heads around;

1. If only 200,000 years ago humans started using weapons, then how did we kill animals for the 2 million years before that with no claws or fangs?

2. Woman sprinters are slower and before the 1980s, woman would not be aloud to run marathons because their Uterus would be torn or fall out. Why is it that woman get stronger as the distance gets longer?

3. The universities studied the times people had when running. They found that for example, if you start running at age 19, you reach your max or peak of running within 7 or 8 years. After that you slowly begin to start to run the same as you could when you started at age 19.

Another point he made was that we humans sweat a lot, more than any animal in the world. The advantage we have is that when it comes to running under hot heat for long distances, we are the best on the planet.

He asks questions to make people think and gave ideas of what we may have used these advantages for 2 million years. He thinks that maybe the Tatomata tribe have been doing the same thing today, as we did 2 million years ago.

This Ted talk was actually quite interesting to watch. It made me think that maybe we actually WERE made to run and maybe that is why so many people that do not run have more problems and injuries. This video made me realize that maybe if I want to stay somewhat healthy and avoid some, not all problems when I'm older, maybe I should start running now and continue throughout most of my life.