Showing results for "bbc" in Running & Jogging

After seeing a friend run the London Marathon, Sophie decided to give it a go. Collapsing two miles from the finish line, her first attempt was a disaster, but she picked herself up and kept going on a path that would take her to races all over the world across the Alps and even the Sahara Desert for the famous 150-mile Marathon des Sables. Sophie has now run all six World Marathon Majors, completed 15 marathons and three ultra-marathons, and run the entire length of the Thames Path, from source to sea.

For millions of people worldwide, running is an essential part of life. It is seen as a path to health, longevity and mental wellbeing – but what is at the root of this international obsession? Where did our desire and ability to run come from, and what role has running played in communities through the ages? Talking to scientists, historians, athletes and authors, Helen Mort follows a trail leading from neolithic times to now, to find out why we run, how our relationship to running has changed and how running has been depicted in our culture across the ages.