Training for marathons is bad for you?

I watch Biggest Loser and now they are always running marathons. But I've heard many times that running marathon is actually bad for your health. So, what is it, bad or good?

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Answer 1 / 5 - Submitted 127 days ago...

kpaddock

Authority (229)

I believe in all reality marathon running is detrimental to health and your body. Its constant pounding on your joints, including your knees, hips, back. A lot of times as well running for extended amounts of times can cause you to fast throughout a workout a deplete your body of good nutrients if you do not replenish these accordingly. I would say for a goal it is a good thing to work towards. As a way of life, it should not be the only thing that you use in your training regimen.

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Answer 2 / 5 - Submitted 127 days ago...

MayRay

Brain (2,008)

Training for a marathon is not necessarily bad for your health, but many people train before they are ready or have underlying health issues that should preclude them from it.

My brother is a marathon runner and has had issues with a hernia. He worked with a trainer so that he could correct the issues he had that lead to the injury.

A better question might be...is it overkill to train for a marathon? In my opinion, yes, but marathon runners make up a very unique 1% of the population. Generally, these are highly motivated and competitive individuals who also make over 100k/year.

I also watch the Biggest Loser and Heavy and feel bad for these folks training for a marathon. Their bodies have been so abused it seems like kind of a nutty thing to do. BUT these people are like Born Again Weight Losers...they have seen the light and want to take it to the most extreme level of fitness which is The Marathon. I think many of these contestants feel like they are making up for lost time when really all they need to do is eat less and exercise more.

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Answer 3 / 5 - Submitted 127 days ago...

adjkp25

Professor (1,659)

I haven?t heard that running a marathon is bad for you but I have heard that it really taxes your body because of the duration of most marathons.

I know a few people that run marathons and they love them. They train hard and really get a kick out of crossing the finish line. Afterwards they are completely spent and are very sore and tired.

They only thing that I have heard can cause problems while doing all of this running is because of running on asphalt or concrete. Some people experience discomfort in their knees or ankles because of the lack of give on hard surfaces. For these people they just need to do the majority of their training on a treadmill versus the streets.

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Answer 4 / 5 - Submitted 127 days ago...

Brvtvs

Authority (489)

For most of us, there is a definite limit to how much stress the body can take before it begins to break down and consume itself. With running, that can take the form of "hitting the wall" or it can be total and complete systemic collapse. In the first case, recovery is relatively fast and there are few if any lasting deleterious effects. In the second case, such as with heat stroke, it can be fatal. A more common bad result from running the marathon is using up the knees over time, which is often a combination of poor technique, questionable use of running shoes, and carrying too much body weight.

However, the human body is actually pretty well adapted to the sustained effort of running a marathon. Research and experiments conducted with "persistence hunting" demonstrate that humans are able to outrun big game if the human is well conditioned to spend essentially all day running (not necessarily racing). The reason is that humans sweat to avoid overheating, whereas most other mammals pant to keep cool. Sweating is more efficient, so while big game can typically run much faster at short distances, humans can keep the effort going for much longer and eventually catch their prey.

Obviously, there is a balancing act to be performed when training for a marathon, and actually running one, especially if the goal is speed rather than mere completion, does take its toll on the body short- and perhaps even long-term. But for fitness and overall cardiovascular health, it's probably a net positive. And for most regular folks, it's not necessary to dive into the very long distances. Plenty of shorter races of 3 to 10 kilometers or even a half marathon attract lots of participants who might not want to tackle the full marathon.

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Answer 5 / 5 - Submitted 127 days ago...

mikejhca

Brain (2,017)

It is both. Exercise is good for you. So training for a marathon would be good for you. You just need to be careful and gradually improve. If you do to much before your body is ready it could lead to problems. It can also be hard on your knees. People that run marathons are usually in great shape but you must take the good with the bad. Runners get injured often because it is hard on them. It would probably be better to train for a half marathon first.

I prefer to bike because it is low impact and I can go a lot farther. So far biking long distances has been great for my health.

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