Why We Run: A Natural History

Review 1: Why We Run: A Natural History by Bernd Heinrich

Note: I read the book around 10/31/10, and formulated a review in my head for this blog at about that time - I did not actually commit the review to physical words until now.

Why We Run purports to be a book that examines animal evolutions for ultra distance, and draws conclusions about humanity's own marathon running from that examination. However, a more apt title would have been: "Why I Ran an Ultramarathon," by Bernd Heinrich. He really puts it best himself in the epilogue: "I remembered thinking while running [the ultra marathon] that in twenty years I'd write a book about it."¹

Looking back at the prologue, it appears he was somewhat truthful about his intentions, to "pull together the race experience with the insights [he] gained from [his] studies of animals."² Unfortunately, it really only comes through in hindsight - as I started reading the book, I expected something much more scientific.

Now, to be fair, you do get quite a bit of information on animal behavior, and how certain animals, from insects to antelopes, have adapted to be endurance powerhouses. But, you also get quite a bit of information about Heinrich's childhood and formative years. For example, I learned at his high school, many of the students used their chemistry lab to make firecrackers instead of experiments, and that when Heinrich (a German immigrant) tried to light one (unsuccessfully) on the bridge, the principal thought that "the little German kid was trying to blow up the bridge."³ An amusing anecdote, to be sure, but what does it have to do with running? Other than the fact that part of a race Heinrich ran in high school went over the (still intact) bridge, nothing. Nothing at all.

Much of the book is like this, a combination of remembrance and memoir, with a healthy dose of scientific musings thrown in. Now, this may sound appealing, and it certainly is interesting, but there is one problem. The book felt a little bit thrown together, almost as if he had written it on a run. In fact, the entire last chapter, a retelling of the ultramarathon Heinrich ran, is written from his thoughts during that race. As a runner, I know how fickle the train of thought can be on even a shorter, 8 mile run. During a 100km (~62 mile) race, you can perhaps imagine how odd your mind could get. Heinrich writes that his"stream of consciousness alternates between vividness and dreamlike somnolence."⁴ The last chapter reflects this, as he lyrically describes thoughts of picturesque runs, stories from his WWII veteran high school mail room guy, what his handler said to him during the race, references to animals he examined earlier in the book, and whatever else comes to mind.

It is this long-run mindset of disorganization that hinders the book. The writing is stellar; his descriptions of a beautiful nature, as seen by a runner, made me want to take running a bit more seriously once again. The descriptions and explanations of how certain animals have adapted to long distance running are superb, and clearly explained in terms anyone can understand. But the writing is not enough to overcome the overall disorganization. It does follow a general chronological order of his life, from childhood to ultramarathon victor, but the way the scientific studies and the personal tales interacted didn't quite work for me, and seemed almost haphazard.

In the end, the book was pretty good. It was interesting to me, as a runner, and would probably interest anyone with an interest in the biologic studies. If you don't fall in to either of those categories, this book may not be for you - and even if you do, it would probably be best to get it from the library. Then again, I am probably being influenced by the fact that I started reading the book under false assumptions; having read this, you know a bit more about its dual nature as memoir and scientific study, and won't be disenchanted when it isn't all about human evolution and animal behaviors.

End review: Get it from a library!

1. Pg. 262
2. Pg. xii
3. Pg. 55-57
4. Pg. 256