Name: Marathons.
Age: The first modern Olympic marathon was run in 1896, inspired by the 490BC tale of Pheidippides and his 240km run to ask the Spartans for help battling the Persians.
Maybe 240km should be my next training goal. I love endurance running – I’m just back from a four-hour fartlek, actually. I don’t need to know that. And you might want to consider cooling it. A new study suggests marathon runners don’t enjoy particularly good mental health.
Nonsense – I’m happy as a clam. Is this some stupid survey by a sofa shop or slipper seller? No, it’s a serious academic study and the first author, Leo Lundy, is actually a multi-marathoner himself: he’s done more than 400.
He must have calves of steel. And what has Lundy found? Multi-marathoners generally “experience slightly higher levels of depression and anxiety compared to the general population” and a subset show “clinically significant mental health issues”. Lundy told the Times that while 94% of the runners he interviewed thought running was good for them, testing revealed “worryingly high” levels of anxiety and depression in 25% of subjects.
But decades of research show exercise is good for your mental health! There’s exercise and exercise, I suppose. It’s not that surprising the kind that demands intense levels of commitment over many months, minces your nipples, gives you the runs and can make you pee blood might not make you the happiest.
What about the famed runner’s high? I’m euphoric after long races – the endorphin buzz is incredible! But how long does it last?
I must admit a certain … emptiness does creep in after a while. That tracks – another study from Linnaeus University found that endurance athletes experienced “varied post-race emotions that were both physically and mentally challenging”, including “loss of energy, ambivalence and melancholy”.
It’s OK – when that happens, I just start training for another race. Hmm. “For some runners, the habit becomes more of a coping mechanism than a joy,” as Lundy put it. How are your relationships?
Amazing! I love trading PBs with my running club buddies and fitness app pals. I mean intimate relationships – do you have a partner?
For now – but last week they did say: “There are three of us in this marriage and one of them is your Strava.” That’s another emotional downside to endurance running. Partners can feel excluded and alienated by a loved one never being around or being utterly exhausted when they are. It’s an identity transformation that can potentially jeopardise relationships, research suggests. Some call it “divorce by marathon”.
But Harry Styles runs sub-three-hour marathons and he’s dating Zoë Kravitz! That’s your argument in favour of multi-marathoning, is it?
If I stop, I’m going to have to confront what I’m running from … There, there. It’s OK. There’s this thing called “therapy”.
Do say: “Marathon runners should prioritise enjoyment, recovery and relationships to protect their mental health.”
Don’t say: “You do know Pheidippides died at the end?”
