This books reputation pretty much precedes itself, a New York Times Bestseller having been described as ‘the best book you’ll ever read about running’, ‘exhilarating’ and ‘sheer endorphinous pleasure’ (the latter I think being one of my personal favourite descriptive phrases of all time!).
It’s likely you’ve heard of this book, whether you’re a runner or not, and when I bought it earlier this year I was really excited to get stuck in.
I can’t decide whether to say this books premise is about a crazy ultra-running adventure race, or the innate human ability to run and whether, as a species, we were born to run. Frankly, it’s about both and there’s a big old link between the two.
In Born to Run, US journalist and runner Christopher McDougall introduces us to the Tarahumara tribe, who are found deep in the Mexican Copper Canyon mountains and have lived virtually unchanged for hundreds of years. Most importantly to the story, they can run for miles, hundred of miles at a time, and remain uninjured, strong and without a multitude of the health issues that the Western world faces.
The book lets us into their world and the story later introduces us to Caballo Blanco, a mysterious mountain man who wants to pit the Tarahumara against the United States’ most successful ultra-runners in the ultimate mountain trail race.
After discovering and starting to engage with the Tarahumara himself, McDougall eventually takes on Blanco’s fifty-mile race along with an eclectic bunch of characters, including America’s greatest professional ultrarunner, a man named Ted who runs with no shoes on and two young surfers who can party all night and run for miles.
This book is fascinating, if a little rambling at times. The Tarahumara tribe are a captivating bunch of characters and it’s delightful to hear that there are families and tribes and villages of people who are so distanced from the modern Western world that we all know. The fact that they are such incredible long distance runners with none of the equipment that most of us use also speaks wonders for: a) the natural human instinct to run, and b) whether we’ve all been duped a little here in the modern world.
McDougall is a journalist by trade and I certainly founds his writing style reflects that. I’ve read quite a few other reviews and lots of people say they felt it read like a series of articles, which in hindsight I agree with. I personally thought the book jumped around quite a lot and whilst we know it’s a non-fiction book, it seemed to be a little lost in its identity as that. Because so much of the book is storytelling and introducing you to people and things that seem so far from home for many of us, it almost reads like fiction sometimes.
Ditch the shoes?
So, the book is well known for its positive stance on barefoot running; it’s a very interesting concept to read about and I almost wish there was more about it. In the book, Barefoot Ted runs the race with McDougall’s team and he runs this entire fifty-mile mountain trail race over hours with no shoes on. It seems mad to most of us, but he is so confident in his ability that he completes it and at simply says his feet are ‘a little sore’ – or something like that, I can’t quite remember his exact words.
McDougall makes the benefits to barefoot running very clear with a fair amount of evidence to back it up. However, I don’t think he is advocating that we all ditch the shoes and run around our cities with nothing on our feet. It’s simply highlighting what humans and commercial companies have done over the years to move away from our natural evolutionary state and linking this to the huge volume of running injuries that prevail.
There are various points made about sports companies (Nike being the most mentioned), commercialising the concept that people need all sorts of cushioning on their feet to run. It’s also stated in the book that running shoe technology actually increases people’s risk of injury and has no positive effect on their running performance. There’s various studies and bits of research quoted to support those bits of writing. To be honest I can’t get fully on board with all of that, but I do understand the point that is being made.
There is, however, something in saying that for thousands of years people ran in bare feet/sandals/ barely supported shoes and never needed Nike to come along with their gel heels and padded inserts etc. The Tarahumara are the case in point in this book. There is also something in saying that the more you support something, the less it functions well in its natural form i.e. the more you support your feet with artificial aids and technology, the less the muscles and bones function for themselves in their natural form, hence the more likely injury is.
McDougall also discusses the likelihood that Nike and other companies knew this decades ago and carried on commercialising the technology they were creating in a bid to make more money. This is probably true and we are all victims of it, with so many running brands out there bringing out new models of their bestselling trainers every year. We’ve all been there….am I right?
So I’d gladly read more about this as I do believe the science in Born to Run is a little sketchy and not that up to date, but there are definitely some interesting discussion points there.
Miles after miles after miles
Then there’s the ultrarunning side of it. Last year I didn’t even know what an ultra-marathon was and now, let’s just say I don’t think it sounds like the worst thing in the world. Not sure I’m quite ready for one yet, but I have learnt that ultras are known for being a lot more relaxing that marathons and shorter distances, if you can get your head around how long or how far you’re on the move for. The book does a very good job at letting us into the minds of people that love running long and why. Even if you’re not a runner, you can relate to the sense of peace, headspace and continuity that comes with long running and why its attractive to humans.
Final musings
Overall, I enjoyed this book as an adventure story, a wild and wonderful tale that the overwhelming majority of us will never get to experience – running for hours through the depths of the Mexican mountains with a tribe of local villagers who are so far removed from the lives we all live. Whilst there are many relatable elements when it comes to the pure running side of it, it sometimes feels a little farfetched and unrelatable. I feel a bit bad saying that, but it’s not meant as a criticism, simply how I felt reading it. I felt like it was a story and a wonderful one at that, but it didn’t feel like I was on a level with the story a lot of the time.
The book isn’t that long, but it feels a bit long reading it. I started this book a few months ago and picked it up again a few days ago to try and get through it. I was so determined to finish it and I am glad I did. I would certainly recommend it to other people – runners or non-runners – as I think it’s the kind of book that divides opinions. Some people online seem to adore it, some people hate it.
Actually, a few other points
- This book would have been brought to life with pictures. It would make it seem much more ‘real’ and relatable, following on from my earlier farfetched point. Big thing missed there, in my humble opinion.
- McDougall makes interesting references to the benefits of a veggie and plant based diet in the book. I’m glad he brought this into the book and hope that many readers were curious about that. There is a lot to be said from the fuel that plants give us and much for us to move away from after the ‘we must eat meat’ era.
- An underlying message throughout is that it’s not about where you run or how you run, it’s about the happiness and satisfaction that can be derived from our own bodies and own two feet – this is a fabulous message and the book does truly get across an author and indeed many other peoples, love of running.
I’d love to hear other opinions on the book, the science, the concept of barefoot running and the world of ultras. Let me know what you think in the comments or over email.
You might also want to check out this 15 min Ted talk that McDougall gave in 2013, I thought it was a very good watch and summary of what his book is about.
Happy running however far you’re going, with love,
Ele x
chasingele.com 