You Were Born to Be an Athlete
Posted on Jul 31, 2017 2:18pm PDT
As a sports doctor and
orthopedic surgeon who has studied the human body on an evolutionary level and cared for
it on a mechanical one, I've long held the opinion that we were all
born to be athletes. Whether you're the competitor or a spectator, there is a visceral
response to engaging in or watching competition that is fascinating and
entirely unique to humans. Just view Forbes' rankings of the
50 most valuable sports teams in the world – at an average net worth of approximately $2.2 billion each in
2016 – and you'll see just how popular athletics are to our
human experience. Have you ever wondered why? Research in genetics provides
us with some fascinating answers. I've studied and written quite a
bit on this topic in my book "The Win Within – Capturing Your
Victorious Spirit." Here you'll find some interesting highlights.
As one example of the DNA of
athleticism, The Human Genome Project, which was completed in 2003 and mapped thousands
of regions of DNA, identified the biological foundations for where our
athletic abilities – like speed, strength and endurance – reside.
Endurance and speed, for example, are an evolutionary birth-right bestowed upon
our early human ancestors so that they could exhaust and outrun their
prey. Have you ever felt that runners' high after a long-distance
run? Our brains helped us stick with the hunt all those years ago by releasing
chemicals (called endorphins) that made us actually 'enjoy' the
process! And those chemicals are still at work today – when we exercise,
of course. Exercise kicks in our brain's reward centers, so not only
are we hardwired with the anatomy to be active, we're also designed
to enjoy it! In addition, evolution researchers theorize that these springy
Achilles tendons in our ankles, our hairlessness and ability to sweat
as well as the special canals in our ears that help us maintain balance
and equilibrium, are also ancient design elements that have helped us
be the absolute best hunter-gatherers on planet earth.
As we formed societies and cities, our physical development has become
less of an imperative for survival. Our abilities to outrun predators
today have taken on newer, more modern expressions as we have developed
infrastructures, created technologies and formed social contracts. Despite
this progress, our inherent drives – instilled within us for thousands
of generations – have remained active. This is why
athletic experiences and sports are the outlets for our shared biological drive.
As a sports doctor and
orthopedic surgeon who has studied the human body on an evolutionary level and cared for
it on a mechanical one, I've long held the opinion that we were all
born to be athletes. Whether you're the competitor or a spectator, there is a visceral
response to engaging in or watching competition that is fascinating and
entirely unique to humans. Just view Forbes' rankings of the
50 most valuable sports teams in the world – at an average net worth of approximately $2.2 billion each in
2016 – and you'll see just how popular athletics are to our
human experience. Have you ever wondered why? Research in genetics provides
us with some fascinating answers. I've studied and written quite a
bit on this topic in my book "The Win Within – Capturing Your
Victorious Spirit." Here you'll find some interesting highlights.
As one example of the DNA of
athleticism, The Human Genome Project, which was completed in 2003 and mapped thousands
of regions of DNA, identified the biological foundations for where our
athletic abilities – like speed, strength and endurance – reside.
Endurance and speed, for example, are an evolutionary birth-right bestowed upon
our early human ancestors so that they could exhaust and outrun their
prey. Have you ever felt that runners' high after a long-distance
run? Our brains helped us stick with the hunt all those years ago by releasing
chemicals (called endorphins) that made us actually 'enjoy' the
process! And those chemicals are still at work today – when we exercise,
of course. Exercise kicks in our brain's reward centers, so not only
are we hardwired with the anatomy to be active, we're also designed
to enjoy it! In addition, evolution researchers theorize that these springy
Achilles tendons in our ankles, our hairlessness and ability to sweat
as well as the special canals in our ears that help us maintain balance
and equilibrium, are also ancient design elements that have helped us
be the absolute best hunter-gatherers on planet earth.
As we formed societies and cities, our physical development has become
less of an imperative for survival. Our abilities to outrun predators
today have taken on newer, more modern expressions as we have developed
infrastructures, created technologies and formed social contracts. Despite
this progress, our inherent drives – instilled within us for thousands
of generations – have remained active. This is why
athletic experiences and sports are the outlets for our shared biological drive.
Though it seems all the rage today, the concept of
exercise for personal fitness is really only less than a century old. But our ancestry dating back 30,000-plus
years tells us what we already know: We were born to move, and our brain
is designed to incentivize it. The next time you're feeling unmotivated
to exercise, please just give it a try. And really move like you mean
it (only with clearance from a doctor if you haven't exercised in
some time or have health conditions that need to be considered). Remember,
the more you move, the more your brain rewards you for the effort. This
is who you were designed to be.