By his own account, this completely untrained amateur runner had almost finished his route of around 2.5 miles (approx. 4 km) when suddenly, three young women came powerwalking towards him, upon which ensued what he describes as, “the worst 30 seconds of my life”: despite his desperate state, he decided to go for an athletic final sprint – and, of course, to broaden his shoulders and look purposefully straight ahead.
One of many avoidable cramps on Canadian jogging routes |
However, even after Nathan L. had made it past the women, his ordeal was not over. “I couldn’t exactly turn around and check whether they were still watching me – otherwise, they would have believed I was interested in them.” He therefore continued to sprint on, straining his glutes until he was sure he was out of sight, where he finally collapsed, exhausted.
Nathan L.’s fate is not uncommon. Scientists estimate that up to 70% of all injuries in amateur athletes occur when trying to impress their preferred gender. Experts advise athletes prone to this to exercise on their own, away from gyms and public thoroughfares.
ssi, dan, fed; pictures: Shutterstock; first published 2019-01-28
Read the German version HERE.