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Longer lower legs = more efficient running

Posted October 31, 2007 at 12:00 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: His Fitness, Cardio Training

People who have longer lower leg lengths (the distance from knee to ankle) will usually have greater endurance during running or walking than those with shorter lower leg lengths.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin showed that people with longer lower legs use less energy when they run (Journal of Human Evolution, August 2007).

In a previous paper in the same journal, these authors showed that people with longer lower legs are better able to prevent heat build-up, which slows you down and makes you tired. When you exercise, almost 80 percent of the energy that you use to power your muscles is lost as heat.

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