Doing Marathons/Triathlons is a Status Symbol in the DC Area?

[The Heartbreak Kid]

A brother works 40 hours a week and workouts atleast 6 days a week. That does make HBK a bad person. I been doing insanity in my sunroom with a sweatjacket on. I love the 100 degree weather days cause it means my sunroom is really about 120 and I can get some serious work in on those days.

Not into marathons though. I prefer high intensity Cardio and weight training.

[goozer]

Originally Posted by paytonc

In general, the past generation has seen participatory sports increase in popularity and spectator sports decrease. People with more education are more likely to participate -- and this region has the country's best educated populace.

Good point. And I would also note that running is the ultimate participatory sport. Nowhere else can the average person sign up for a race, say the NYC marathon, and find themselves running with a field that includes the best marathoners in the world -- running the exact same route. Try to find that in any other sport.

[HurricaneDC]

Eh, I'd say that if you're running a marathon you're not an average person :P

[jmusmc85]

Originally Posted by The Heartbreak Kid

Smh @ this. Yet, you want to bash locals. Probably dating MS13 members.

They were both cornfed white boys.

And it did not involve violence against innocent people, unlike what the "brothas" like to do....

[HurricaneDC]

this forum is literally like living in the 1940s

[14thandYou]

Originally Posted by HurricaneDC

this forum is literally like living in the 1940s

I'm going to throw on my tie and hat and go out to fetch the paper.

[Alley01]

Originally Posted by kodaka

I don't think it's a DC-specific trend. I've lived from coast to coast and know a lot of people who've run marathons. Most aren't true athletes. They're just looking to check that box on the list of '1000 things to do before you die'. They aren't original enough to think of their own list, they've got to buy a list from someone else.

I've got nothing against runners but not everyone has the physique for it. It's not just about being thin. Some people are more prone to long thin muscle, others to more bulky muscle. You need the former to be a true runner. Too many people aren't but try to run anyway. They're going to pay for it later in life. They'd be better served by finding a sport that suits their body type. And even for those whose bodies are meant for running--cramming theirr training into few weeks before race, and then spending the rest of the year at the bar bragging is terribly hard on their bodies.

I don't know about your argument regarding body type. I have run with people who are clearly overweight, your typical runners and in between. I have run with teenagers all the way up to over 80 year olds. Running is one of the few things that many people can do and it does not ruin your body. I also feel that it is a bit critical for you to call the idea of running a Marathon a completely unoriginal idea...do you have any idea how few people ever run a Marathon in their lifetime...guessing that you are included in that statistic? I love that I am one of the few that has and I wouldn't have done it if it was super easy. It is something I wanted to do and then decided that it was fun. To each their own, but unless you are a runner you cannot speak for all of us.