# "Running" a marathon, which is more tiring? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 22, 2009, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293 "2009-05-22T12:54:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/1 "2009-05-22T12:54:27Z")
The other day, my dad and I were watching the TV and they showed clips from a marathon. When they showed the disabled contestants in the wheelchairs my dad said that he thought that must be exhausting. Obviously going 26 miles by either method is no picnic but I would imagine over the same distance using a wheelchair would be less tiring on average, due to the built in efficiencies of the model. But I dunno, and I wonder if there is concrete data? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/2 "2009-05-22T13:31:22Z")
Wheelchair Records are roughly 1:15, running record is around 2:05. I would imagine that the ability to cut roughly 40% of the time means that the wheelchair athletes aren’t working as hard simply because they’re not working as long. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/3 "2009-05-22T13:49:09Z")
The easy rolling of bicycle type wheels and coasting on downhills take much of the work off the athletes. Uphills are a bear as there are no lower gears to shift to, much like singespeed/fixed gear bikes. ---
**Author:** ![redshift](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bbce88/32.png) [@redshift](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redshift)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/4 "2009-05-22T14:02:33Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > The easy rolling of bicycle type wheels and coasting on downhills take much of the work off the athletes. Uphills are a bear as there are no lower gears to shift to, much like singespeed/fixed gear bikes. At least with a SS/FG bike you still have **A** gear… with wheelchairs it would seem much much harder. Wouldn’t arm strength be lower than leg strength anyway? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/5 "2009-05-22T14:18:44Z")
> [@redshift](#): > > At least with a SS/FG bike you still have **A** gear… with wheelchairs it would seem much much harder. > > Wouldn’t arm strength be lower than leg strength anyway? Arm strength is less, that’s why they can’t match a singlespeed bike over the same terrain. Wheelchair racers aren’t pushing the wheels, there’s a pushrim mounted to the wheel, different diameters are used to alter the “gearing” ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/running-a-marathon-which-is-more-tiring/497293/6 "2009-05-22T19:49:42Z")
> [@redshift](#): > > Wouldn’t arm strength be lower than leg strength anyway? If you take a look at the arms of elite wheelchair athletes, you’d probably say “Not a whole lot lower.”