If one more non-runner talks to me about my knees...

I will have a full on crazy person meltdown. 

Let me get ranty - and then we'll talk facts.  I have NEVER had a runner say to me, "you should be careful - you know running is really hard on your knees."  In fact, I have only met ONE person whose knee problem was ACTUALLY caused by running (yes, I'm using shouty caps).  This person, OPENLY admits to over training, and ignoring the baby warning signs to rest.  EVERY other person I have met with knee issues has either: been overweight, injured their knees in another sport before starting to run, has been sedentary, had a job where they were on their feet all day long, and usually has never run.

HERE is why it makes me angry - do NOT attempt to tell me that by running - I am putting added stress on my body.  I do not WARN you about the added pounds you carry around, or the crap food you choose to eat, or all the alcohol you choose to drink, or the lack of sleep you choose to get.  ALL of those things - are far more detrimental to YOUR health, than running will ever be to mine.  SO SHUT YOUR FACE. 

*big deep breaths*

Now, opinions are opinions so let's ask SCIENCE.

An article in Time shows … after tracking 1,000 people, runners and non-runners, for over twenty years, they found that the runners’ knees were no more or less healthy than the nonrunners’ knees. Instead … the findings lend support to the theory that osteoarthritis … is caused mainly by genes and risk factors like obesity (obese men and women are at least four times as likely to become arthritic as their thinner peers)  In addition,  they found that runners were less likely to be physically disabled and had a 39% lower mortality rate than those who didn’t run. The lower mortality rate is most likely because of the reduced stress, increased mental alertness, and/or overall health benefits you get from running.

An article in Runner’s World says that not only doesn’t exercise hurt knees, but it can make them healthier … When you exercise, the cartilage in your hips, knees, and ankles compresses and expands.  This draws in oxygen and flushes out waste products, nourishing and keeping the cartilage healthy. “Without exercise, cartilage cells get weak and sick,” he says.

That said, I can tell you this - I am going to go ahead and keep running.  I am going to go ahead and keep eating right, and cross training.  I am going to keep encouraging others to get active, and run, and make better choices.  I am going to high five runners that cross off races on their bucket list, and who find peace on the road, and who all of sudden find that they can sleep better and just feel better in general.

... and you, you go ahead and sit on your couch, and eat your bon bons, and warn me about injuring my knees. 

I'll just smile and wave, (until the day I completely go bat shit ham sandwich crazy on you - of which - you've been warned, and I am already not even sorry.)