All I know is I started to run because I couldn't really afford to pay for a gym.
Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
41–49 of 49 posts
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#42One more hypothesis: rich people socialize with rich people, poor people with poor. Groups of people tend to end up doing similar kinds of sports as their friends do. Friends give you advice, motivate you or just make you think about that sport.
The selection has something to do with needs of the group, but has also large random factor.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#43I've played sports my whole life, and there's nothing I dislike more than endurance sports. Doing anything repetitive for a long length of time is just incredibly boring to me, and I highly prefer learning and mastering a set of skills that can then be combined in various ways, usually in real-time, like one sees in basketball, taekwondo, racket sports, etc. I have a running theory that many become interested in endu…
Grew up as a standout soccer and volleyball player. Got burned out before college and switched sports. Found endurance sports in my late 20s and love it bc I can go out and disconnect from everything. Still play competitive sports, but being out in nature is what I love.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#44I've played sports my whole life, and there's nothing I dislike more than endurance sports. Doing anything repetitive for a long length of time is just incredibly boring to me, and I highly prefer learning and mastering a set of skills that can then be combined in various ways, usually in real-time, like one sees in basketball, taekwondo, racket sports, etc. I have a running theory that many become interested in endu…
> I've played sports my whole life. ... I dislike more than endurance sports. Doing anything repetitive
You are comparing doing vs playing. In some languages there are two words for sport. One for game/competition and one for physical activity. Obviously there is physical activity in game but my point is: do not try to find game when there is not one. Anyway I have other anecdote. I've played sports since childhood but got bored with repetitive games and stayed with endurance sports because they offered excitement from new environments. It was not something I discovered as an adult. Running was basically second thing I did after I had learned walking.
There is obviously expensive gear with all those bikes/skis etc. But running really is low-hanging fruit of sports. Just tie your shoes, open the doors and you can just start.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#45I should be poor then. Because I absolutely, completely abhor pain in any form.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#46They don’t, only upper middle class people do. And virtually all of them are liberal. And liberals almost always are drawn to hurting themselves in the name of virtue. It goes back to the penitents of 14th century Germany who would flog themselves walking along the streets in order to appease god. I never realized that this was so until I experienced life in a place where people don’t have this inclination at all. This concept of self inflicted pain being good for ones self is at the core of why liberal people are usually upper middle class. It promotes success and excellence. But it is so deep that most people don’t even realize they have it.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#47Many of the comments on this page indicate why endurance sports are popular: "I GREW UP PLAYING [hockey, basketball, taekwondo another contact/competitive sport]" Once you get into your forties and fifties you can't compete or even play in many sports against people in their twenties due to fitness/energy and it may be hard to commit to a specific evening for a club night every week. Running, Cycling, Swimming can be…
This is very accurate.
I participate in ultra endurance cycling. (1200km is my record!)
Most of the athletes are older, some participating into their 80s. It's a very time intensive sport so it's very hard to do with a young family. It's possible to do with just a bike so you see lower middle class people, but you'll also see upper middle class people with flashy bikes and all the gadgets.
It's hard, but mainly mental. Once you figure out the logistics it's just pedaling over and over and enjoying the scenery and either conversation or solitude depending on the ride.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#48I attribute the popularity of endurance sports with Boomers (whether rich or not) to three things:
1. They missed out on high school sports and are circling back for the experience.
2. Fear of death. If I can do Death Valley to Whitney Portal, surely death is far from me!
3. Because they can. Most of us have joint issues or some other malady that keeps us from doing it.
Re: Why Do Rich People Love Endurance Sports?
#49I've played sports my whole life, and there's nothing I dislike more than endurance sports. Doing anything repetitive for a long length of time is just incredibly boring to me, and I highly prefer learning and mastering a set of skills that can then be combined in various ways, usually in real-time, like one sees in basketball, taekwondo, racket sports, etc. I have a running theory that many become interested in endu…
I used to think that. Then I got into endurance sports.
It’s akin, I guess, to bodybuilding. You’re building a well-oiled machine (you). You’re tweaking your training plan and seeing how you respond. You monitor your resting HR and see it go down as you get fitter. It helps to go do the sport someplace picturesque.
While it’s true that you can spend any money on a bike, I bought my best bike for £180. Running is even cheaper, I buy a pair of shoes every 18 months or so for about £100 and that’s more or less it.