Quote:
Originally Posted by Lhancelot
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I have a friend, he's 52 years old now. He runs half marathons, marathons, and even ultramarathons; the 100 mile cross country style races which he just started in the past 20 years.
His knees are destroyed. He had nerves removed from one of his feet due to having immense nerve pain suffered while running. He also had part of one of his lungs removed (had nothing to do with running.) No matter what though, within a month after any surgery or injury sustained he always goes back to running.
Not saying it is for you, but for some there is an actual addiction to exercise and my friend has this. He simply refuses to not run, and it's his number one priority in life, over all else. He refuses to change exercises, he won't bike, swim, etc. He will only run.
If you'd meet him, he looks exceptionally athletic, no body fat and quite muscular as he also does some weight training... But he walks with a slight limp, and when he runs the limp is magnefied.
Anyway, your story of running reminded me of him. He also keeps track of how many miles he runs per week, and he even keeps track of how many miles he runs on his shoes.
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Yeah physiology has a lot to do with how well your body reacts to the constant pounding, but much of it (the damage) can be mitigated with proper gear and gait analysis. If you want to prolong a running (or even fitness) regimen, you have to listen to your body and solicit feedback regularly from a coach or even a doc (like a chiro).
Addiction to running can come from the feeling of accomplishment and/or the biochemical reaction to exercise. I wrote a paper a few months back about how endorphins are commonly attributed to the 'runner's high' and the propensity to continue, but there are some neurological effects such as increased norepinephrine and serotonin that boost the general feeling of 'well being' and 'happiness'.
While running everybody's cup-o-tea, I strongly encourage people to find whatever exercise they like to do and to just stick with it. The positives—confidence, endurance, reduced risk of illness—clearly outweigh the negatives.