Marathons are overrated. @brooksrunning
Summary
A marathon runner who's won Boston and completed around 30 races total thinks marathons get too much hype. The stranger argues that 5Ks deserve equal respect, criticizing how people say "I'm only running the 5K" with shame at the New York City Expo. Kareem counters that marathons are "fairly rated" before the conversation takes a sharp turn into whether anyone would soil themselves mid-race for a better time. The runner draws the line there. Kareem doesn't. He admits he'd never win anyway but would "make sure I do poop and pee" for a personal record, at least until his guest explains it wouldn't be "a nugget, it's a spray." That changes his mind fast.
Full Transcript
So, what's your take? Marathons are overrated.
One hundred percent disagree. I think that marathons are fairly rated. Calling them overrated is an exaggeration.
Oh, no. I don't think so. Like, you hear it all the time like Oprah Winfrey, "I want to run a marathon." Do a 5K first. Do a half marathon. And here's the other thing, like you'll talk to people, you go to the New York City Expo, people are picking up their bibs, and then someone will be like, "Well, I'm only running the 5K." And they talk about it with shame.
I think a 5K is a massive accomplishment. I agree. The Gobble Gobble 2K.
The Fishy Four in Chetek, Wisconsin. The Ghostly Three.
There's got to be one of those.
I see what you're saying. You're saying that all runs are created equal. And that they're all awesome. 5K is awesome. 10K is awesome. Two miles awesome. Metric, imperial, I don't care. If you're out there running, that's a huge accomplishment.
How do you feel about what I like to do? It's called walking. I love that. And you just do what nature intended the body to do, which is walk. We're going to go into like anthropology.
Look, when a human baby starts to walk, they walk. When a horse starts to walk, it runs.
Big brains. Just science.
How many marathons have you run? Around 30.
And how many have you won? One of 30.
Which one? The Boston Marathon.
Aren't those some of the best runners in the world? Yes, absolutely.
Well, you must be pretty fast. I was born to run.
Yeah. Some people are born to run. Some people are born to walk.
Would you walk a marathon? Yes. That sounds right up my alley.
That would be equal, I think. Finishing a marathon, whatever pace also equal. Well, I know a guy that's the slowest and I might try to beat him.
Oh, I could see that being a really interesting race.
Would you do whatever it takes to win? No.
'Cause I heard some runners poop and pee in their pants in order to win the race. There's no race, there's no medal, there's no achievement that would be worth shaking my pants.
I think I'd do it.
Would you? It's the only time in my life that if I did poop and pee in my pants both—
That people would go, "Well, he did it to get a better time." You would do it just to get a better time, not even to win.
I mean, who are we kidding here? I'm not winning. I admire that. I think that's incredibly brave.
But I would make sure I do poop and pee. Both of them. I'm just telling you, this is like a shaker jar at the bar on a Friday night in New York. Like, that's what's going on. So when it comes out—
It's not a nugget, it's a spray. Okay, then maybe I won't do it.