
When running for exercise was for weirdos - sebkomianos
http://www.vox.com/2015/8/9/9115981/running-jogging-history
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ChrisLTD
Reminds me of Back to the Future Part III:

Doc: And in the future, we don't need horses. We have motorized carriages
called automobiles.

Saloon Old Timer #3: If everybody's got one of these auto-whatsits, does
anybody walk or run anymore?

Doc: Of course we run. But for recreation. For fun.

Saloon Old Timer #3: Run for fun? What the hell kind of fun is that?

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markc
>In 1968, Sen. Strom Thurmond found himself stopped by a police officer in
Greenville, South Carolina. His suspicious activity? Jogging.

Funny. Happened to my dad too. He started jogging in 1970 and continued
(almost) every day for 40 years. That very first year he was the _only_ guy
out there and people occasionally got freaked out and called the cops. He had
to explain this 'jogging' exercise thing.

But within a few years it had caught on like wildfire.

~~~
gojomo
This reminds me of the 1951 Ray Bradbury short story, 'The Pedestrian'. The
outside runners may someday again draw suspicion, when people prefer jog-
questing in their home Oculus Rooms.

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hermanmerman
What is the "jogging" of today? Gluten free diets? I could see it become
mainstream once science has studied it more extensively, but today if you
don't have coeliac disease and decide to go gluten-free, you're labeled as
nuts right away.

~~~
Someone1234
I really don't understand the whole "hate," in particular on the internet, for
people who eat Gluten free food. Who really cares? It doesn't harm you or I if
someone chooses to avoid Gluten, it doesn't hurt the environment, it doesn't
cause a public health issue, and so on and so fourth.

But people get really upset about the oddest stuff that have no impact on them
(e.g. others playing the lottery, vegetarians, how others dress, their games
console of choice, their phone maker, etc). None of it matters, people could
do well by just minding their own business more.

As to Gluten, I myself won't be doing a Gluten free diet, but people who wish
to more power to you and as a positive spin it might make foods more
accessible for people with coeliac.

~~~
nilkn
People generally react strongly (and negatively) to what they perceive to be
irrational behavior in others. I think there's a strong human instinct to want
to set the correct precedent for others and for future generations, which
leads to this sort of reaction when we feel as if someone else is setting the
wrong precedent. The (very implicit) fear might be that the GF trend will lead
to many resources being wasted on something that doesn't matter (special GF
products, restaurants, marketing materials, etc.).

However, with dietary trends there's a second and possibly more powerful
factor, which is that those not following the trend feel as if they're being
implicitly judged by those who are. This feeling is often completely
incorrect, but it's there nonetheless for many people. Ironically, the feeling
itself is irrational, yet it feeds into one's own distaste for another
person's (perceived) irrationality.

~~~
kaitai
I think it's the implicit judgment that is more powerful. If you were to
declare, "I'm a summer; I can't ever wear yellow!" no one would care. When you
refuse someone's bread, though, that's a different question. Food has
historically been a way to bond, in some particularly ritualistic ways. (We
"break bread together", history has people eating from the same dish to
symbolically and practically show trust, etc.)

Much of the current GF stuff is not that good, whether you're looking at
environment, cost, culinary quality, or health benefits. Why eat a bar of
tapioca starch? It tastes terrible. And my delicious almond-flour brownies are
destroying the aquifers of California even though they give me a delightful
300+ calories per serving. On the other hand, the proliferation of GF goods
allows people with real problems to sit down with family and friend and eat
crappy sandwiches together without anyone feeling judged by the presence of a
lettuce wrap, and that has its own benefits. Irrational, or not? Yes.

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hkmurakami
I remember the Hall of Fame Golfer Gary Player being ridiculed by his peers
during the 60's because he believed in working out and strength training. The
standard of the time was that this was counterproductive for golfers. (iirc
one of the arguments was that strength training would cause loss of "touch" in
one's game)

Fast forward 50 years, and every professional golfer is a fitness and strength
training fanatic.

~~~
geoka9
I'm not familiar with golf but I'm pretty sure I've seen pudgy golfers... A
bit of googling turned up Keith Horne who doesn't look like an athlete.

~~~
will_work4tears
I agree, he doesn't. However, I wouldn't discount somebody as being a lifter
because they are pudgy. This guy[0] (the really large one) was the first
person to bench over 1000 lbs[1].

[0] -
[http://static1.sfd.pl/1/images2004/20040721160457.jpg](http://static1.sfd.pl/1/images2004/20040721160457.jpg)

[1] -
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxtkUI5Wsnw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxtkUI5Wsnw)

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davidw
I wish I could run, but 1) it hurts - and not in a good way 2) it's extremely
boring. The only thing that's kind of fun is running up hills.

The nice thing about running is that you can pack a decent amount of exercise
into a relatively brief period of time, and at least you're outside. Gyms feel
like gerbil wheels to me.

What I really love to do is ride my bike, but that takes more time and better
conditions.

~~~
agumonkey
Sometimes running kills me, sometimes it's a bliss. My philosophy in physical
activity: smooth waves. I start slow, push it very slow as long as I feel
flowing[1]. I wave around the sweet spots.

BUT, I try not to control it too much, every time I start to focus about
something else[2], I feel like flying. The minute I start thinking back about
my body, the pleasure vanish.

My goal is to tighten my sensitivity to these two ideas so I can reach flow
faster and longer.

[1] except min 5 and 15 where I often crack down a bit, maybe the body
shifting sugar supplies.

[2] a rant, a fantasy, a job idea, some music...

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peterwwillis
It's still really weird. Why an exercise as high-impact on the joints and as
potentially injurious as this hasn't been stopped has to be purely because
people enjoy it so much, or they don't see an alternative.

We have machines designed to mimic the exercise and reduce or eliminate the
impact. We have studies that show a multitude of other exercises that provide
similar or the same health benefits without the stress. There's less expensive
gear to buy. There's less risk of injury and it's more convenient to exercise
indoors. Yet I can't walk down my tiny sidewalk on a sunny day without
somebody in nylon shorts flying past me down the concrete path.

Now, don't get me wrong, a mile jog/run is not a terrible way to warm up for
the rest of your workout. But the distances most people run, and the
regularity of it, probably has more downsides than upsides. Heart health can
be achieved without the above factors, as can endurance, and we can finally
end the tyranny of the running path (i'm mostly joking).

~~~
clamprecht
Do you know if running on the beach (or sand) is better on the joints? It
seems like it would be better on the joints, plus it seems harder (better
exercise). And hey, you're on a beach.

~~~
lfowles
I would guess worse, but in different ways. Your foot can shift in the sand
left/right when landing, causing havoc on other joints (knee, hip) when you
apply pressure and they're getting unexpected horizontal motion.

~~~
fezz
I run barefoot all the time on the beach, at the water line when the tide is
lower so it's nice and flat and you can see surface well.

I have no problems with my shins and knees since I'm running mostly mid to
slightly forefoot strikes. The forefoot absorbs the shock rather than pounding
the knee and hip with a direct impact. When I run with shoes on pavement, I
get some knee and hip issues, especially if I don't pay attention to my foot
strikes with respect to changing pavement.

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superkuh
This article seems to think being stopped by the police because of jogging is
a thing of the past. I live in a state university town full of joggers but
I've been stopped 3 times for my "suspicious" jogging just in the last year. I
guess it's because I do it at weird times with normal clothing instead of the
standard exercise uniform.

They always say something along the lines of "I thought you were in trouble."
to justify themselves.

~~~
EvanKelly
What do you mean by normal clothing? Do you go running in jeans?

~~~
jotux
If you're running for exercise rather than racing is there anything wrong with
running in jeans?

~~~
cafard
In my experience, yes: they chafe.

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fartbrain
The article seems to imply that a cashmere pullover would be inappropriate for
jogging.

Cashmere or merino are both fantastic textiles for athletic wear.

~~~
kazinator
However, this athletic merino or cashmere textile has nothing to do with the
traditional thick wool sweater, socks or mittens.

We're talking stuff like this: [http://www.smartwool.com/stay-
comfortable/mens-nts-micro-150...](http://www.smartwool.com/stay-
comfortable/mens-nts-micro-150-pattern-crew.html)

Not what comes to mind when we think "cashmere pullover". :)

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fezz
No mention of native americans, south americans, africans, etc that were all
running for a long time...

~~~
jotux
Those cultures are probably running more for necessity than
fitness/recreation.

~~~
fezz
The Tarahumara indian long distance runners ran for communication and also had
a tradition of running for ceremonial and competitive aspects.

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comrade1
It's still pretty weird to see someone running in New Delhi, for example. I
know heat and air quality are part of it but there are days where it would be
perfectly fine. I think it's just considered weird to run.

