Running Marathon May be Injurious to Your Heath

 

 

Running Marathon May be Injurious to Your Health

By Dr. Sudhirdas Prayaga

 

           I hope I got the attention of many of you, the long-distance runners. I wrote about this few years ago. But now I thought of revisiting this again because of sudden death of couple of my peers recently. There are also numerous reports of very active people who work out at gym dying unexpectedly. Most of these are reported as cardiac arrest or heart attacks. I believe the recent spike in such incidences in last 10 years or so is due to promotion of such activities for health and longevity by media.  I am not saying exercise is bad but over exercise is the problem.

           In our society today we are all leading a fast-paced life to achieve material wealth and success, often ignoring our health. We tend to forget that health is our most important wealth. By middle age when we realize this fact often many our bad habits have already contributed to our poor health. We spend a lot of money and time to maintain our fancy car but not to protect and maintain our own body. Strangely, modern science and western medicine which is supposed to provide clear directions fall short. The so called pundits keep changing their mind about what is good and what is not for good health. Now social media and the so-called ‘influencers’ also contribute to such fallacy.

                   Presently, we believe that vigorous exercise is good for keeping fit and trim. Running marathon appears to be a fad these days. Aerobics and similar hyper exercises seems to be the norm to be healthy these days.  Even 'yoga' is being taught as vigorous physical exercise these days, without knowing its original intend and purpose. Media also extol these in vain. I believe, rigorous physical exercise is antithesis to good health and longevity. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying we don't need exercise, but we need a balanced physical and mental regimen.

           I don't see anywhere in ancient Indian literature that mentions the virtues of vigorous exercise. On the contrary, there are innumerable mentions about the importance of balance of body & mind and how to do that. Current scientific literature also supports this view, although the media and the pundits are yet to catch up.

                                          sidhyasidho samobhootva samathvm yoga uchyate

(Bhagavat Gita 2:48)

           In Bhagavat Gita Krishna says that balance of body and mind is yoga. Krishna also says that those who do unscientific and senseless torturing of their body, are ignorant and are not my favorite.

                                       Karshayanta sareerastham bhootagraamamac hetasa

Maamchaivaanta sareerastham taanvidhyaasura nishchayaan

(Bhagavat Gita 17:6)

          There is an inverse correlation between heart rate and life expectancy in most mammals. Average adult human heart rate is about 70 beats per minute. The number of heartbeats per life time is a constant among mammals, despite a 40 fold difference in life span or 500,000 fold difference in body weight. Lowering the heart rate of humans from 70 to 60 increases life expectancy by over 12 years (European heart journal supplement 2003, R. Ferrari). Scientific studies have shown that increasing the heart rate is a risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The vigorous exercise most of us do in the name of good health increases heart rate. In contrast, asanas (yogic postures), pranayama (breath exercises) and dhyana (meditation) helps to lower heart rate and slowdown breathing (read my other articles about lowering heart rate and blood pressure). All these are techniques for good health and longevity prescribed in many of our ancient texts, including the well-known Yogasutra written by Pathanjali thousands of years ago. The purpose of a fruitful exercise regimen should be to stimulate the whole body and not to give a workout to your heart or burn calories.

                                                adi vyayamatah kaso jvarachardisca jayate

hrithayati uparodesca idi vyayama lakshanam

(Charaka Samhita 7.33)

           Charaka has mentioned over 2000 years ago that vigorous or over exercise can cause head ache, fever, and even heart attack in his famous text on Ayurveda. He compares over exercise to a lion trying to drag an elephant. A wise person should do exercise in moderation.

           So, what does current science say about health effects of running marathons? Schartz et al reported that male marathon runners had an increased incidence of coronary artery plaque volume (Increased coronary artery plaque volume among male marathon runners. RS Schwartz, et. al. Missouri Medicine 111.2, 89-94, 2014.). Braschler et. al. reported that marathon running poses the risk of serious adverse events such as sudden cardiac death or acute liver failure (Physiology and Pathophysiology of Marathon Running. Sports Medicine Open, 27; 11:10; 2025). Kim, et al. reported that excessive exercise such as marathon increases the risk of cardiovascular events that may be related to myocardial infarction and sudden death (Excessive Exercise Habits in Marathoners as Novel Indicators of Masked Hypertension. BioMed Research International. 2017, Article ID 1342842).

           In conclusion, running marathons may not be for all. Regular physical activity does reduce cardiovascular risk. Everyone should identify their balanced exercise regimen.  Just walking few kilometers daily may be enough for most to keep fit. This is Dr. Sudhirdas Prayaga signing off. Thank you for reading this article. My other articles can by found on my blog: the ‘prayagaprinciples.blogspot.com’.