[log in to unmask] wrote:

>I believe paleo exercise, at least for men, was infrequent and intense
>and followed by periods of rest.  Like the weight lifting regime I'm
>suggesting.  What's unnatural and decidedly un-paleo is running miles a
>day .  No wonder runners have knee and back problems: It's not paleo.
>
>

An excerpt I pulled from De Vany's blog, I think it comes from Cordain's
new book, relating the hunting practices of the Ache, a hunter/gatherer
tribe in Paraguay.

"...Recent GPS data I collected with them suggests that about 10km per
day is probably closer to their average distance covered during search.
They might cover another 1-2 km per day in very rapid pursuit. Sometimes
pursuits can be very strenuous and last more than an hour... The
difficulty of the terrain is really what killed me (ducking under low
branches and vines about once every 20 seconds all day long, and
climbing over fallen trees, moving through tangled thorns ect.)... The
really hard days when they literally ran me into the ground were long
distance pursuits of peccary herds when the Ache hunters move at a very
fast trot through the thick forest for about 2 hours before they catch
up to the herd... Basically men tak to each other until the speed gets
up to around 3km/h which is very tough pace in thick jungle. Normal
search is more like about 1.5km/h., a pretty leisurly pace. Monkey hunts
can be very strenuous because they consist of bursts of sprints every
20-30 seconds (as the monkeys are flushed and flee to new cover) over a
period of an hour or two without rest. This feels a lot like doing a
very long session of wind sprints... Bottom line is foragers are often
in good shape and they look it. They sprint, jog, climb, carry, jump,
ect. all day long..."

Tim