The Tale of The Runner Vs The Bodybuilder

https://tenor.com/search/major-key-gifs

It was the summer before medical school. The summer that everyone thinks is your last summer before freedom. I thought the same thing, but little did I know the summer of freedom is the time between graduation and residency. Anyway, during this time a friend of mine and myself decided to take a road trip around the west coast. Hitting all the major parks, mountains, and doing as many hikes as possible. This story takes place around Mt. Rainier.

The entire trip we were pounding out insane hikes and activities, but this was especially insane. We had originally planned a 10 mile hike from our campground to one of the view points and back. I don’t know if you have ever been to this part of Washington State, but it is beautiful—Mt. Rainier’s snow cap was in sight and looked so attainable. It looked so attainable that we wanted to attain it. We saw the snow cap and thought how fun it would be to touch the snow. TO TOUCH THE SNOW! It would be awesome! We took our map out and re-planned our hike realizing how far it would be. It would be a 27 mile round trip hike. We were up for it so we did it. We touched the snow. We got to the end of the trail, rock-scrambled for a half-mile or so, and then touched the snow. Not only was this super sketchy but it was incredibly rewarding.

Lean Vs. Bulk

I could go on and on telling you about the beauty of this hike and area but that’s not the point. The point is that there is a distinct difference between a runner and a weight-lifter when it comes to various activities. Up until the snow-cap we were both okay, obviously a little tired. On the way back, however, it started to get a little painful. My friend, who was the cross-country runner through college, was in severe pain. Hardly able to walk. His knees, ankles, and feet were giving out—the struggle was real. This took me by surprise because I thought that a long-distance runner would be durable. But I was forgetting one key function of muscle: that is joint support. Muscles help maintain our joint space by stabilizing the joint and also allowing for better control of the limb. Muscles take a brunt of the impact. This is the reason why I was fine up until mile 25 or so.

Muscle is Key

This was a valuable lesson and something I think all people should recognize. It is not okay to JUST run. Yes, you will be in incredible cardiovascular shape. Yes, you will look super thin. Yes, you will think your better than everyone. BUT, you’re not doing much justice for your joints. Having a solid foundation of muscle yields incredible dividends and we will talk about all of those in a future article.

Chris (R) Dan (L)