Evolution

Evolution has had a huge role to play in both human history and movement. And also in the fact that your dog is sitting next to you now.

I’ve recently started running again. A combination of the melting snow and the fact that my own dog has been on heat has led to this.

With my own dog unable to join most of the walks like she normally does, it has left me with only a 30-minute window to walk her when I get home before I have to assume daddy duties once again.

30-minutes is clearly not enough for a border collie and therefore I was more than happy to swap out my mountain boots for my running ice spike shoes.

And all this running got me thinking about the evolution of human movement.

Many many moons ago our ancestors climbed down from the trees and started to walk across the Savannah.

The original bi-peds explored the neighbouring areas, roaming further and further as time went by.

As humans stood more and more upright and became more balanced, new opportunities became open to them.

Humans are, by comparison to most of their prey, quite slow. But we have one huge advantage. We can run extremely long distances thanks to our ability to sweat and the unique construction of the human foot.

It did not take too long for our ancestors to discover this and start running after their prey until the animals collapsed from overheating and exhaustion.

The original Hunters where no more than long-distance runners.

And with the change in human diet heading towards meat, those first curious wolves took notice.

After feeding on scraps from the campfire the more timid wolves were the first in a long line of dog companions. Canis lupus over time became Canis familiaris (the domestic dog).

It is no exaggeration to say that your dog at home is as a direct result of these very wolves.

The human body is designed by millions of years of evolution to be fluid in motion. Modern humans with their comfy shoes are lured into heel planting instead of front-foot to midfoot contact with the ground. The heel plant essentially breaks the fluid motion through the knee and hip joints as we move.

Examine the way that you walk both or run with shoes or barefoot whilst considering this.

By consciously exploring the way in which we walk, run and move we can do justice to our evolution whilst alleviating joint pain and back pain issues which are commonplace in modern society.

Doggies: Milli, Haraka, Lucy and Leesi