I am a 17 year old female high school distance runner. Running has never come easy to me. My family isn't really built for running and they have never been super intense runners. I started cross country freshman year in high school and found it super tough for me at first. Over time, I have improved a lot. I am a very hard worker and always challenge. Is it possible that I could still be very successful in running even if I don't have all the genetic talent in the world?
You never know your potential until you go for it. I've known kids who didn't believe they hadn't any potential who went on to be respectable DI athletes. If you work hard and are motivated, you'll get somewhere there's no doubt about it. Keep at it.
High School Runner wrote:
I am a 17 year old female high school distance runner. Running has never come easy to me. My family isn't really built for running and they have never been super intense runners. I started cross country freshman year in high school and found it super tough for me at first. Over time, I have improved a lot. I am a very hard worker and always challenge. Is it possible that I could still be very successful in running even if I don't have all the genetic talent in the world?
you never know.
and if you really love what you are doing, why not go for it?
but if you don't really love running, ditch it. just jog for fitness.
you want to work on your weakness.
have fun with it.
enjoy the voyage.
Platitudes aside the answer is no. You are born with a ceiling on your potential.
But you aren't asking the right question. How do you know how much talent you have?
Dr. Butt, D.O. wrote:
Platitudes aside the answer is no. You are born with a ceiling on your potential.
This is the right answer. Genetics is by far the biggest determinant of success in running. It takes 1 in 10,000 talent even to make it to the national level.
supercool lib-person wrote:
This is the right answer. Genetics is by far the biggest determinant of success in running. It takes 1 in 10,000 talent even to make it to the national level.
This is nonsense. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability. Your 1 in 10,000 number is certainly madeup.
No one knows how good you can be. Go try your best and see what happens.
Nope, and you will probably run yourself into the ground trying.
Go play disc golf with your friends and have some fun!
hu wrote:
This is nonsense. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability. Your 1 in 10,000 number is certainly madeup.
No one knows how good you can be. Go try your best and see what happens.
A few generations ago nobody knew what genres were responsible for hair color—does that mean hair color wasn't determined genetically back then? It positively boggles the mind that anyone could be stupid enough to say what you just did.
High School Runner wrote:
I am a 17 year old female high school distance runner. Running has never come easy to me. My family isn't really built for running and they have never been super intense runners. I started cross country freshman year in high school and found it super tough for me at first. Over time, I have improved a lot. I am a very hard worker and always challenge. Is it possible that I could still be very successful in running even if I don't have all the genetic talent in the world?
Not the Correct American "go for it attitude," sadly the answer is "no."
Here's the good news. Many people who try to become elite runners, or train too intensely when they are young, become unable to run at all later in life. That too is effected by genetics.
If you take a "easy does it," steady Eddie approach to your enjoyment of running, you may win the greatest race of all -- life long fitness and health.
[quote]hu wrote:
. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability. [quote]
If any? Without genes you wouldn't have legs etc.
Your answer is like saying you don't understand physics therefore physics do not matter.
What distances are you taking about? I excelled in sprinting 100 and 200m in HS. My xc times were crap because my genetics were not geared toward distance running. I think with hard work you might be able to excel at running but everyone has to find what distances they are best suited for. This is where a good coach might come in. Good luck!
"No genetic talent" doesn't make sense. You're almost certainly in the normal range. That means you can work hard and do well. Sure, there will be some who, with the same amount of work, will do better. But there are even more who aren't willing to do the work to even do "well".
Do well.
with distance running, thinking that you shouldn't run hard because of a supposed lack of genetic talent is self-fulfilling. Train hard and smart for a decade or more and you may not be an Olympian, but you will be guaranteed to be worlds better than you are now.
hu wrote:
supercool lib-person wrote:This is the right answer. Genetics is by far the biggest determinant of success in running. It takes 1 in 10,000 talent even to make it to the national level.
This is nonsense. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability. Your 1 in 10,000 number is certainly madeup.
No one knows how good you can be. Go try your best and see what happens.
I remember on this board when the majority thought it came down to good coaching and mileage. No doubt important but genetics is the major determining factor in performance.
Interesting that now scientists are saying determination, drive, focus, etc. are also linked genetically.
donut man wrote:
hu wrote:This is nonsense. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability. Your 1 in 10,000 number is certainly madeup.
No one knows how good you can be. Go try your best and see what happens.
A few generations ago nobody knew what genres were responsible for hair color—does that mean hair color wasn't determined genetically back then? It positively boggles the mind that anyone could be stupid enough to say what you just did.
Yes that's exactly what that means. The only thing boggling and stupid is mentality like yours. You cannot assign a level of determinability to something that you haven't proven or even theorized exists.
Gene Summons wrote:
hu wrote:. Genetics is not a determinant because no one knows which genes, if any, are important for running ability.
If any? Without genes you wouldn't have legs etc.
Your answer is like saying you don't understand physics therefore physics do not matter.
No my answer is nothing like that. Particularly because I never even used the words "do not matter". Your leg comment is clearly outside of the context of my statement.
The Donger wrote:
I remember on this board when the majority thought it came down to good coaching and mileage. No doubt important but genetics is the major determining factor in performance.
Interesting that now scientists are saying determination, drive, focus, etc. are also linked genetically.
How exactly do you know it's the major determining factor? You can't assign a value to something you don't know exists. Scientists are not saying that. SOME scientists are saying that. And they are not saying what you are saying. "Linked" is not the same as "caused".
I doubt that Emil Zatopek had fantastic genetic material, yet he did it.
Performance in running is not achieved simply by working hard and a lucky genetic material.
Train smart, improve everything, no matter how small the improvement is.
How much does the mobility exercises add to your performance, 0.35%? Great, do mobility from now on. How about plyometrics, balance, diet, psychology, strategy, ambient or others can help? 15% together? Well, when you put everything together, it does make sense.
As others said, if you like it, the genetic material doesn't matter, do what you like.
What is successful? Too many people fall into the trap of thinking if they can't get a scholarship to a D1 program , or at least score some points they should give up the sport and focus on academics alone. Can you be happy being a mid dle of the pack d3 runner and trying to work your way up to the front of meets by your senior year? Or perhaps even running your best times after college.
If you want the best possible answer to your question, read "The Sports Gene" by David Epstein. If you have any background in biology and basic genetics, you'll walk away so much more knowledgable for having read it. It will go into detail about things like trainability that can only be scratched at surface level here.
So, let's scratch that surface. Kenenisa Belike has a genetic ceiling. I have a genetic ceiling. The difference is that his genetic ceiling is a sub-27 10k and mine is a sub 38. He was born with a higher VO2 max, better running economy, more durable muscles, better muscle-tendon elasticity, a more efficient frame, etc. He also, by virtue of being elite, likely has much better trainability--that is, his body improves more after a given day, week, or month of training than mine does. He is also more determined... I truthfully could not handle the 100-mile weeks ad infinitum that he can. The same would likely be true of you and an elite female runner. I cannot speak for your determination, but all the other factors are likely true.
Scale down this principle. The same is true of me (and likely you) and all D1 athletes and high school state champions. Their genetic ceiling is much higher than mine.
If you accept that running is getting the most of your potential, you can certainly be successful. If your goal is to be a world record holder, my advice is to give up.
In all seriousness though, my advice is to, in the advice of many message boarders here, "Just run, baby." There is no other way to find out what your ceiling is. And there is perhaps no bigger joy than thinking you know what your ceiling was--and breaking it. I'll never run a sub-60 half, but I remember the day I ran 1:24 in the half as an incredibly proud moment-- it was better than I ever really thought I would be. You have moments like that out there... as long as you keep after it.