Outside contributor McDougall, author of the bestseller Born to Run, has written extensively about the limits of human potential.
Christopher McDougall
Why the Crosscut Saw Is the Ultimate Fitness Tool
We'd been using crosscut saws for more than a millennium when the glitzy chainsaw became available to homeowners in the 1970s. Maybe it's time to give the old standard another chance?
Running Gets You Out of the Cage
Break out of the office zoo and run wild
Get Strong Without Ever Going to the Gym Again
Human evolution, you’ll be happy to hear, has officially let you off the hook: It’s normal and healthy to hate the gym.
How to Forage for Your Next Energy Bar
Your urban backyard is packed with hidden performance-enhancing plants that can be tossed together to make an ancestral wonder meal.
Sitting Wrecks Your Body. More Standing Isn't the Solution.
Want to undo the damage of your desk job in 10 minutes? Crawl like a kid and start spinning like a Sufi monk.
The Concrete Jungle Is the World's Best Gym
I was waiting at the checkout counter of a drugstore in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, when a human cannonball sailed past the window. I glanced around. Did anyone else just…?
Lessons from the Paleo Guru History Forgot
More than 76 years ago, a visionary Australian coach had an epiphany that forged a generation of super-athletes: true fitness is all about translating fear into raw power.
No, Heroes Aren't Born. They're Built. And This Is How You Become One.
One of the most surprising heroes of World War II was a pint-sized shepherd nicknamed The Clown—and his fitness wisdom can change your life.
Real Athletes Throw Knives
What can you learn by chucking tempered steel blades into a target? Performing to potential is all about trusting your instincts.
FKT Up? Kilian Jornet's Insane New Sport
With warp-speed ascents that include the Matterhorn (1:56) and Denali (9:43), ultrarunner turned alpinist Kilian Jornet Burgada is the king of the endurance world's latest obsession: fastest known...
On the Trail of the White Horse
On Tuesday March 27, ultrarunner Micah True set off on a 12-mile run in the Gila National Forest and didn't return. Days later, writer Christopher McDougall took off on a not-so-unfamiliar quest,...
Ultramarathoner Jenn Shelton
She drinks hard, fights dirty, and runs 100 trail miles faster than any woman alive. Meet Jenn Shelton, ultramarathoning's new antihero.
Orkney Islands Riot
Twice a year, the good men of Scotland's Orkney Islands work out their issues the old-fashioned way. They riot.
The Secret of Vuleefore
Jim Shea had a dream: bring up-and-coming Kenyan runners to the States