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Why We Run: A Natural History

3.65 of 5 stars 3.65 · rating details · 607 ratings · 83 reviews

In Why We Run, biologist, award-winning nature writer, and ultramarathoner Bernd Heinrich explores a new perspective on human evolution by examining the phenomenon of ultraendurance and makes surprising discoveries about the physical, spiritual -- and primal -- drive to win. At once lyrical and scientific, Why We Run shows Heinrich's signature blend of biology, anthropolog...more

Paperback, 304 pages

Published May 7th 2002 by Harper Perennial (first published May 1st 2002)

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Nov 13, 2011 Jared rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: distance runners

Award-winning ultra-marathoner, biologist, and writer Bernd Heinrich weaves a warm, persuasive narrative with threads of scientific data from his studies as a biologist and also with personal stories from his life as a dedicated runner. Indeed, Why We Run brings together elements of an autobiography, of research notes on animal physical endurance, and of storytelling for distance runners. The result is a bid to understand that ordinary people poses the ability to run the distance and acquire eve...more Award-winning ultra-marathoner, biologist, and writer Bernd Heinrich weaves a warm, persuasive narrative with threads of scientific data from his studies as a biologist and also with personal stories from his life as a dedicated runner. Indeed, Why We Run brings together elements of an autobiography, of research notes on animal physical endurance, and of storytelling for distance runners. The result is a bid to understand that ordinary people poses the ability to run the distance and acquire even other desirable athletic abilities. But the invitation comes in a most unusual way. In the book, the author finds meaningful connections among otherwise disparate topics. Bees, antelopes, the Nandi tribe, the runner Barney Klecker, and even cranberry juice all help explain the nature of running. With this unique approach, the reader may seem pulled in different directions, but the reading flows surprisingly easily and interestingly. And eventually, Heinrich’s colorful narrative helps the reader realize that all humans can become runners, and those who already are may improve on it.

Heinrich starts and ends the book by recounting a 100-kilometer championship in 1981 Chicago. Corresponding with his warm-up for the race is a small amateur, but inspiring view of running history. Then the author moves back in time to describe his personal childhood with flashes from friend’s experiences in WWII. After that, the story moves on to the Heinrich’s experience in the African plains, college, and scientific animal research. While telling all these stories the author also reveals how cases of other animals’ experiences with bodily movements relate directly to that of humans. Some example are the camel’s complex adaptation to the desert, the bird’s anatomy and its diet, and the frog’s loud and continuously sustained croak shed light into our own capacity for stamina and physical endurance.

Enter the modern runner’s world. Still outlining his running philosophy, Heinrich establishes an experiential reality of running that even explores some popular running myths. He points out that most of the record-breaking Kenyan ultra-marathoners come from the laborious Nandi tribe, where running is a vital, natural ability for hunting food. The author also shares some personal gems of wisdom and results of makeshift experiments with running exercises and diets. For example, he downplays the usefulness of stretching, and yet believes that modern cross-training techniques are reasonable for long-distance runners. The book finally concludes in a full circle with the account of the 100-kilometer race against All-American ultra-runners.

In the end, Why We Run is a worthwhile read for those interested in the animals’, but particularly in humans’ ability to survive, adapt and move. However, Heinrich’s book may give the impression of having a different purpose. Probably to the surprise of many, the book is not a how-to-be-an-athlete, an instructional guide, or a customary piece of writing. Why We Run simply tries to answer the same question the title is asking.

Movie: An Uncommon Curiosity: at home & in nature with Bernd Heinrich(less)

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Sep 15, 2011 Daniel Solera rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography-memoir, athletics

This book suffered from an identity crisis. From the very title, you anticipate that it will be a natural history of the human body, the impulses that led us to walk upright, the impetus that provoked us into running short, and later long distances. At some point you would expect to read about theories about the human physique and how it correlates to talents at long-distance running.

Bernd Heinrich's book does this, but it gets confused along the way. It begins as a memoir, a look into his life...more This book suffered from an identity crisis. From the very title, you anticipate that it will be a natural history of the human body, the impulses that led us to walk upright, the impetus that provoked us into running short, and later long distances. At some point you would expect to read about theories about the human physique and how it correlates to talents at long-distance running.

Bernd Heinrich's book does this, but it gets confused along the way. It begins as a memoir, a look into his life as a child in eastern Europe. He enjoys describing the landscape and letting us even smell what his formative years were like. The problem is, these stories and locations don't come back later in the book to provide any reflective lessons or allow us to look back on his life with any new information. Secondly, the framing of the book is a bit self-serving. It begins with Heinrich lining up to run a championship 100k race in Chicago in 1981. From there it steps back to his childhood, then leapfrogs to descriptions of the aerobic mechanics of various animals, from frogs to pronghorn antelopes, birds, and dogs.

This, for me, was the best part of the book. He discusses each animal's strengths and weaknesses when it comes to endurance, from describing their physical composition to meticulously breaking down their abilities to take in air, perform and preserve energy. We get insight into the camel's ability to stay hydrated, the cheetah's competitive advantage in explosive strength and an enlightening view of the pronghorn antelope's status as the best ultrarunning animal of its kind.

But then once that is over, we come back to his 100k race, where he describes in huffs and puffs what it is like to run very fast for very long. He doesn't neatly weave back the lessons he's taught us in the previous chapters to any real relevance -- were he to describe his actions while running and compare them to other animals, I'd get a sense of cohesion. This, however, wouldn't solve the irrelevance of his childhood vignettes.

Sadly, this book wasn't as interesting as I was hoping it would be and it only served to show that I can read a book on running and not love it.(less)

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Dec 10, 2012 Cara McKenna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Nice! Bird-perv memoir!!

Stole this paperback from the Husbo last night and read the first half straight through. Great book in many respects—a compelling mix of memoir, running theory, and anthropological study. But my favorite part is what a total bird-creeper the author is. I feel so understood.

Page 40, childhood memory: "I spied a tiny owl, no larger than a coffee mug. The yellow eyes of the saw-whet owl looked at me in surprise, and I looked back in wonder. I needed this creature. I craved i...more

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Oct 17, 2011 Tristan rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is an excellent book if you are interested in anthropology and the biology associated with running. It analyses the relationship between humans and animals in an attempt to find out why it is that we run and why we are able to run as far as we do.
The author himself is an ultra-marathon runner, and the book chronicles his journey to one particular race, his first 100km ultra. This part of the story is well written and engaging but I was left wanting more, more analysis of his own journey, th...more

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Jan 28, 2011 René rated it 3 of 5 stars

Fascinating intertwinning of natural history, a first-person training/race account and endurance phisiology of animals in the wild. Bernd successively compares man to birds, antelopes, camels, frogs and ostriches (and man is not wanting!).

Bernd adds colourful anecdotes concerning people he has met over the course of his studies and running career. One such characters if Lefty Gould, an Irish-Amaerican WWII veteran who regals young Bernd with war stories. There is a story of him flinging his hip...more

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Oct 25, 2009 Tra-Kay rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

Know what you're getting into. The cover and title are misleading.

I loved Winter World and felt that Heinrich was a magnificent writer and scientist. This book muchly undid that feeling.

Firstly, what this book is not about: antelope, prehistorical man, the Olympics, modern running, Bernd's life, how to run, or why we run.

It is, instead, partially about all of these things and more. It sounds like they might combine fabulously. But if you look at the other reviews, you'll see that for many it fal...more Know what you're getting into. The cover and title are misleading.

I loved Winter World and felt that Heinrich was a magnificent writer and scientist. This book muchly undid that feeling.

Firstly, what this book is not about: antelope, prehistorical man, the Olympics, modern running, Bernd's life, how to run, or why we run.

It is, instead, partially about all of these things and more. It sounds like they might combine fabulously. But if you look at the other reviews, you'll see that for many it falls piteously short, because it tries to cover several topics without smoothly combining them. It seems distinctly cut into near-disconnected chunks, and never covers any one topic completely.

The main reason it comes off this way is simple: people interested in competitive running aren't usually interested in the complex physiology of animals; and people interested in explanatory, descriptive nature writing aren't usually interested in the names, times, and general specifics of competitive running. As a result, most people feel that only half or less of the book was of interest.

But as others have opined, the writing isn't that good either. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that if Bernd wasn't already well-established, this book would not be in print, or at the very least doing anywhere near as well as it is. It almost seems unfair, honestly. If my rating (which is due to the book having many insightful comments and containing interesting biological information) weren't a 3, it wouldn't be a 4, if you take my meaning.

If this all weren't enough, Bernd comes off as egotistical yet tries to seem humble, and it detracts from the book. His continual determination to win is sometimes weakly masked by comments like, "I did not record my finishing pace (I think I was third)..." and his praise for his opponents followed by his pleasure at defeating them is especially annoying. I just wish he'd be more upfront about the fact that he wanted to be first and the best in everything he attempted.

Finally, I love animals in the lovey sense, not just the "you are cool" sense. For some scientists, animals are wonderful and fascinating; and they're even more fascinating once you grind them up whole to measure lactic acid or shoot them down and observe them in detail. Don't think I didn't notice your brazen justification for meat-eating and hunting, Bernd, cuz there's only one group one would feel the need to argue against on that point. So...I normally don't mind these things (I did find the frog-grinding highly disturbing), but once that justification was added, I definitely felt a little annoyed.

In short, most people would benefit by skipping this book. I don't have much interest in running (I picked it up thinking it involved early man and animals like antelopes, which I love), so I haven't gone into this, but I suggest looking up a book that better covers that interest, or whichever one you have. If you're strongly interested in Heinrich, how animals expend energy, AND competitive running, then give it a shot.(less)

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Jul 18, 2012 Vincent rated it 2 of 5 stars

Really an odd little book. I think it paved the way for the current rash of "running is natural for us cavemen" types books that are all out there - with the title from Chris McDougall about barefoot runners being in the forefront.
Essentially Bernd is a wiry little UVM college professor who loves to run all over the place and builds his book around his training for a 100 mile run. Hint: He drinks lots of Ocean Spray cranberry juice.
The book has a lot of other touches - mostly about the animal wo...more

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Jul 14, 2007 Jeff rated it 4 of 5 stars

I accidentally read this and then I purposely read everything else he wrote.

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Jan 27, 2013 Lani rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: dnf

Glad I bought at used book sale for 25 cents. It wasn't what I thought it was going to be. Expected an evolutionary history of humans - our physique our stamina, or psychological research examining our impulse to run moving from a necessity to a sport including those into ultra long distances. Instead it rambled on for the first 100 pages about the author's early years and how he liked being outside and he had a good coach or something. This wasn't very well written or compelling and I found I j...more

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Feb 29, 2012 Alex Fontanetta rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: running-nonfiction

This book was nearly impossible to get into. I bought this book under the impression that it would dicuss the roots of humanity's love to run. Maybe the last half of the book did, but I wouldn't know because I couldn't get through the first half. I tend to be against skimming books or selecting only portions to read, therefore I did not skip ahead. The first fifty or so pages that I did read were a personal memoir about the author's life. It is not my intention to offend the author but I bought...more

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May 27, 2011 David rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

This was an interesting take on running. Heinrich is a zoologist, and views running through that lens. Over the course of his own training for his first 100-mile race, he talks about the ways various animals run, and compares their physiology to that of humans. For example, he explains what makes migratory birds such excellent distance athletes. They can fly thousands of miles with little rest because they are so light, their lungs and hearts are made for it, and many of them double their weight...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Gloria Piper rated it 3 of 5 stars

I was impressed by Heinrich's background that got him interested in nature and running and by his success. While he told more than the reader may want to know, we understand the dynamics of how various animals run, hop, fly, or crawl--from amoebas to elephants. We get to see how man fits into the scheme of locomotion and what our strengths and weaknesses are in regard to the rest of the animal kingdom. We do have strengths! Heinrich tells how he trained for the marathon and how he did. A worthwh...more

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May 17, 2012 brook rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: could-not-finish

There was so, so much interesting information on running, respiration, oxygen efficiency, cellular metabolism, and other topics in this book. Unfortunately it was littered amongst stilted, rambling speech from your uncle, as he recounts his glory days (but how there were so many greater) back in high school, and how he had to walk 5 miles both ways to school. That last one is actually in there, sort of.

I actually found it to be a tremendous distraction, and eventually was skimming to find words...more

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Sep 07, 2010 Matthias rated it 5 of 5 stars

Der Untertitel trifft es sehr genau: Denn um Leidenschaften geht es hier. Nicht nur um das Laufen als Sport, als Fortbewegungsform oder als Wettkampf, sondern auch um Biologie und ihre Läufer, die Käfer zum Beispiel, oder auch andere Ausdauer-Tiere wie die Zugvögel. Denn Bernd Heinrich ist nicht nur Marathon- und Ultraläufer erster Klasse, sondern auch Biologe - offenbar genauso mit Leib und Seele, wie er das Laufen verfolgt ...
Diese "Geschichte einer Leidenschaft" (eigentlich sind es zwei, das...more

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Jul 05, 2012 Timothy Mahan rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is not always what you expect and it is definitely more for those who are into biology and zoology than those who are interested in running. The connections Heinrich makes between animal biology and human biology as far as long distance running is concerned are very interesting but at times the analogies seem far reaching. The stories about his own running, from his youth to his final ultramarathon make the book and they are the best sections.

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Sep 24, 2011 Ram rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sports

Just finished reading a fascinating book "Why we Run" by Bernd Heimrich. Biologist, award-winning nature writer and ultramarathoner Bernd Heimrich explores the anthropological, biological and psychological side of ultraendurance and dovetails the narrative with his own running efforts including running and winning an ultra-marathon 100 kms event - lots of insights into the sport of long distance running. Must read for all long distance runners.

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May 24, 2012 Nick rated it 2 of 5 stars

I never really got into this book. I think it had a little something going for it, with interesting tidbits about biological features in a diverse collection of animals, from insects to mammals, that help or hinder their running (flying,...) distances or speed. The final chapter on the author's 100k race was exciting enough, but the rest just wasn't, and wasn't interesting enough to make up for it. Ah well, on to the next book.

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Jan 24, 2009 Jon rated it 5 of 5 stars

Heinrich gives a wonderful evolutionary account of why humans run, and need to run. He interweaves science with his own story, leading up to his vistory in the 1981 Chicago ultra 100 K.

The physiology of a variety of animals and insects are given that explains their mode of long distance travel, from how they conserve energy to how they cool their aerobic systems to be able to accomplish thier amazing feats.

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Sep 20, 2012 Sarah rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-nonfiction

I'm not an ultra runner, so I can't recommend this book on that basis. But it is definitely an interesting book. I really like how Heinrich finds analogues in the animal and insect kingdoms to explain both our physiological adaptations as well as our psychological inspirations for running. Heinrich is a decent writer, and at the end I found myself running every step of that 100k with him.

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Jul 15, 2012 Brandon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, nonfiction

Very interesting book, about how running (in the sense of persistence hunting i.e. running an animal to total exhaustion) shaped how we evolved. Lots of comparisons and analogies with other animals. Not as engaging as Born To Run, but this is more about the science, evolutionary end of things, which I really enjoyed. I blasted through this book in a single day, couldn't set it down.

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Apr 25, 2011 Nick Klagge rated it 2 of 5 stars

Somehow I just didn't click with this writer. His areas of technical interest (moth respiration!) didn't really do it for me, and his personal story/anecdotes lacked the sort of warmth and humanity that I am now reading in Frans de Waal. Although Heinrich tries to portray ultrarunning as accessible for anyone with the will to train, his race paces were world-class, which makes it hard for the amateur runner to relate. Nonetheless, I did find interesting the (somewhat speculative) accounts of the...more

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May 25, 2012 John rated it 4 of 5 stars

Physiology of running in several animals, and the mental state of running in humans. Fascinating! This guy is completely self-absorbed -- except that he is aware of himself in relation to all other things, so when I say 'self', I mean "the natural world". The description of his 100-mile race is completely absorbing - one of the best sports commentaries ever.

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Jan 27, 2013 Tamyka Bell rated it 5 of 5 stars

Bernd Heinrich approached his ultra running as an inquisitive individual and achieved great things. This book reinforced my decision to always question my habits, my norms, my 'givens' - to experiment with my own training and find what works for me. He writes with candour and humour, making a great overall package.

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Mar 12, 2011 Nicole rated it 3 of 5 stars

I didn't find this as interesting as I've found some of Heinrich's other books, but I did still enjoy it. I loved the natural history and physiology and was a lot less intrigued by the discussion of competitive running events. It made me want to be a better runner, though.

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Jun 11, 2012 Courtney rated it 4 of 5 stars

(4.5 Stars) Evolutionary biology and ultrarunning. One thing that I loved about this book, is that narrative thread is about a 100k race that the author ran in 1981, long before ultrarunning was on the map, so his training regime was primarily experimental, based on his history as a biologist.

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Nov 16, 2011 Kristi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Written by a biologist and ultramarathoner. He shares information about endurance and movement in species from beetles to camels from a Biology knowledge base intertwined with his training for an ultramarathon. As an armchair scientist I found it very interesting.

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May 12, 2009 Katie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Painful start to book but I guess necessary to set the stage for the later info. It is a biologists/anthropologists exploration into why humans run. You learn a lot about physiology in his explanation about by other animals are so good at endurance or sprinting.

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Jul 10, 2010 Brian rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a fascinating book that is part memoir, part cultural history, part biology. It is a must read if you are interested in the endurance of animals (including humans) and some of the unorthodox training methods endurance athletes used a few decades ago.

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Jul 26, 2009 Veronica rated it 2 of 5 stars

I thought this book would be more a "natural history" and less about Heinrich's life and running experiences. I felt like I was mislead by the title and the description. The writing itself is also not very good. I stopped reading after about 100 pages.

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Apr 08, 2012 Lillian rated it 5 of 5 stars

2nd all-time favorite running book (next to 'once a runner' of course) and one of my all-time favorite books. Somewhat rambling, incohesive style, but since I was extremely interested in 99% of his tangents it didn't bother me in the slightest.

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About Bernd Heinrich

Bernd Heinrich was born in Germany (April 19, 1940) and moved to Wilton, Maine as a child. He studied at the University of Maine and UCLA and is Professor Emeriti of Biology at the University of Vermont.

He is the author of many books including Winter World, Ravens in Winter, Mind of the Raven and Why We Run. Many of his books focus on the natural world just outside the cabin door.

Heinrich has wo...more

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Books by Bernd Heinrich

Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival

Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds

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“There is nothing quite so gentle, deep, and irrational as running--and nothing quite so savage, so wild.” — 4 people liked it

“In order to forge alliances, we first need worthy adversaries. Without adversaries, no alliances are necessary.” — 3 people liked it

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