Lauren McDonnell
Ms. Joseph
AP Comp/Hour 7
31 May 2016
Subculture essay We all think they’re pyscho. They run for fun. That was only the second sentence of my essay and I already violated a common rule by using the opposites run and fun in the same sentence. And this isn’t even your everyday running to the fridge for a snack within the 20-second time span between Netflix episodes. We’re talking a whopping 26.2 miles. So surely everyone who runs this distance without pleading for death must be out of their mind, right? If that is the case then the elite, prestigious cult of marathon runners is clearly insane. But this is a prejudiced, biased opinion based on the human hatred for running. No one really knows about these special people …show more content…
While the 541,000 marathon finishers within the US all come from different backgrounds and have distinct differences, they are frighteningly similar in many aspects of their lives. Take for instance the level of training and determination each marathon runner has. Six out of the seven days every week for at least a couple months, they spend their days in the gym and out on the trails. One must build a body of muscle in order to complete the lengthy race – as is demonstrated by the father-son duo of Ken and Will Satre. Don’t let Ken Satre’s age or small stature fool you; he is a machine. And for the college-age Satre, picture a 6-foot tall human gorilla. Will’s status as a US Naval Academy officer shows he won’t back down from a competition or challenge, and marathons are no different. These men train by running more than 40 miles a week. This mileage consists of interval and hill training alternating with the ‘recovery’ days of 7 miles. When asked if the younger Satre ever stops to walk when he trains, he responds with a strict “No,” as if even the simple thought of walking is beneath him. They fill in whatever extra time they have with intense core workouts or cross training with weights or swimming. Before writing this paper I assumed that the runners always take Sundays off for rest. But it turns long-distance runners don’t feel the need to take rest on the seventh day and instead partake in light training or …show more content…
In fact, Marathon and Beyond states that “running a marathon is a musculoskeletal nightmare” (Emmett). It takes between 30,000 and 50,000 steps to run a marathon. Every time the foot hits the ground, a stress three to four times body weight is absorbed by the ankles, knees, hips, and lower back. Will Satre revealed that the pain doesn’t start until around mile 18 when his legs start to cramp and there is some lower back tightness. Meanwhile, older Mr. Ken Satre notes that one his “last marathon he did not have any knee pain.” The competition to determine the stronger Satre
Ms. Joseph
AP Comp/Hour 7
31 May 2016
Subculture essay We all think they’re pyscho. They run for fun. That was only the second sentence of my essay and I already violated a common rule by using the opposites run and fun in the same sentence. And this isn’t even your everyday running to the fridge for a snack within the 20-second time span between Netflix episodes. We’re talking a whopping 26.2 miles. So surely everyone who runs this distance without pleading for death must be out of their mind, right? If that is the case then the elite, prestigious cult of marathon runners is clearly insane. But this is a prejudiced, biased opinion based on the human hatred for running. No one really knows about these special people …show more content…
While the 541,000 marathon finishers within the US all come from different backgrounds and have distinct differences, they are frighteningly similar in many aspects of their lives. Take for instance the level of training and determination each marathon runner has. Six out of the seven days every week for at least a couple months, they spend their days in the gym and out on the trails. One must build a body of muscle in order to complete the lengthy race – as is demonstrated by the father-son duo of Ken and Will Satre. Don’t let Ken Satre’s age or small stature fool you; he is a machine. And for the college-age Satre, picture a 6-foot tall human gorilla. Will’s status as a US Naval Academy officer shows he won’t back down from a competition or challenge, and marathons are no different. These men train by running more than 40 miles a week. This mileage consists of interval and hill training alternating with the ‘recovery’ days of 7 miles. When asked if the younger Satre ever stops to walk when he trains, he responds with a strict “No,” as if even the simple thought of walking is beneath him. They fill in whatever extra time they have with intense core workouts or cross training with weights or swimming. Before writing this paper I assumed that the runners always take Sundays off for rest. But it turns long-distance runners don’t feel the need to take rest on the seventh day and instead partake in light training or …show more content…
In fact, Marathon and Beyond states that “running a marathon is a musculoskeletal nightmare” (Emmett). It takes between 30,000 and 50,000 steps to run a marathon. Every time the foot hits the ground, a stress three to four times body weight is absorbed by the ankles, knees, hips, and lower back. Will Satre revealed that the pain doesn’t start until around mile 18 when his legs start to cramp and there is some lower back tightness. Meanwhile, older Mr. Ken Satre notes that one his “last marathon he did not have any knee pain.” The competition to determine the stronger Satre