Minute 1: Nike’s $3 billion gamble
Leaving aside the politics of the controversial Nike ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick, there are actually some pretty dang inspirational athletes featured in the ad itself. Distance runners, a cancer survivor who dropped 100 pounds to finish an Ironman, and a youth wrestler with no legs. If you haven’t seen it yet, you have to check it out, regardless of how you feel about the National Anthem controversy.
Was it worth the $3 billion in market cap Nike lost? Some media and marketing experts say that Nike just bought some priceless PR. It remains the world’s most valuable fashion and apparel brand. In most overseas markets, consumers actually enjoy watching Nike poke our commander in chief. Nike almost died about a dozen times in its early days, so it’s highly unlikely that this flap will kill their momentum. BTW, if you love business and/or running, you have to read Phil Knight’s autobiography Shoe Dog.
#justdoit
Minute 2: How far do tennis players run?
The U.S. Open tennis players are proving themselves to be remarkable endurance athletes this week in Arthur Ashe Stadium. If you think running a 3:30 marathon on a cool November day is tough, how about Rafael Nadal’s 4:49 tennis match this week in sweltering 95º conditions? It seems like a lot of running and sprinting, but the distance tennis players actually cover is less than you may think. Typically, tennis players only cover a mile or two on the court, according to research from IBM and Sports Illustrated. That compares to about six or seven miles for World Cup soccer players. That doesn’t mean you should ignore tennis players for your Ragnar team. They have typically fared better than most other athletes in marathons. Caroline Wozniacki ran a 3:26 in New York a few years ago while heartthrob and Harvard alum James Blake ran a 3:51 at New York in 2015.
#shortchoppysteps
Minute 3: Amateur tennis players live longer than runners
Speaking of tennis, the New York Times reports this week that amateur tennis players live longer than most other amateur athletes, even runners. You would think that endurance folks would rack up longevity along with miles, but the data suggests otherwise. The theory is that the social aspect of tennis and team sports like soccer can add 6-10 years to a person’s life. Sadly, solitary runners add only about three years versus their sedentary comp set.
#runaroundyourbackhand
Minute 4: I run to get the crazy out
Regular readers know that we’re interested in the positive mental effects of endurance sports and working out. A new study by Yale researchers shows that on average, runners are bummed out at about half the rate of other Americans. OK, that makes us happy. But when you dig further, the study shows that working out too much and too often can backfire. Statistically, the happy place is exercising 45 minutes per session with fewer than five sessions per week.
#everythinginmoderation
Minute 5: Do your genes control your jean size?
The nature vs. nurture debate has always raged among athletes. 99.9% of us could follow every step of Usain Bolt’s work-out, but never crack 10 seconds in the 100M. We could also match one of our skinny friends calorie for calorie, but never squeeze into their jeans. From this simple observation, an entire cottage industry has sprung up to tailor diets to a precise genetic disposition. If DNA testing can tell us our great-grandparents’ village, it should be able to recommend whether we eat more carbs or veggies, right? According to a couple of new studies, however, the science of DNA-tailored diets is still in its early days. Companies like Habit, Nutrigenomix, and Caligenix are showing some real promise by offering nutrition tailored to genetic makeup. Do the research, but we are each tinkering with about 30-50% of our destiny that isn’t controlled by our genes.
#skinnygenes
Minute 6: Daily Inspiration
“If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” – George Bernard Shaw
