Science: The Debates Over Oscar “Blade Runner” Pistorius and the Benefits of Cross Training Continue
Pistorius in 2007 (Image courtesy of Wikipedia)
While on this very day, Oscar Pistorius will be running in the 400 meter semi-finals of the World Championships, over at the Science of Sport, Ross Tucker continues to dig into the research on whether those’ prosthetic lower legs give him an unfair advantage. (Hold onto your hat! Tucker posts five lengthy and interesting analyses of the science and politics.)
While Pistorius won the right to compete in the World Championships through a legal appeal, I have my doubts about whether he (or anyone else on these prostheses) will be allowed to compete in open competition for very much longer.
I have always viewed cross-training as something to help prevent injury. Some claim it can make you faster. The science on this has been sketchy at best, and some new studies (as reported by the New York Times) do not really clarify anything.
If your goal is better general fitness, the indication is that cross-training may help. If your goal is improved performance, then it probably will not–although weight training just might.
Finally, someone discovers a use for non-alcoholic beer. It turns out, at least in one study (as reported in the New York Times Well blog), that non-alcoholic beer did offer significant health benefits for marathon runners, including fewer illnesses and less inflammation.
Could real beer offer the same health benefits? Perhaps, but study participants drank one to one-and-a-half liters every day for five weeks. One can only assume the negative effects of all that alcohol would overwhelm any potential health benefits. Oh well.