Does Running Make You Taller?

Running is perhaps the most popular form of running. It decreases your body fat, makes you healthier and more athletic, and gives you stamina.

The interesting thing about running is that there is a lot of misinformation about it online. Too many people believe that it decreases your muscle mass (which is a complete myth).

Another interesting question that we encounter online is: Does running make you taller?

Running can make you taller, but not in the ways that you might expect. It has a lot to do with a healthy lifestyle and posture changes that come with running.

Are you interested to find out more? Keep reading!

Does Running Make You Taller?

There has been a lot of information about the connection between running and a person’s height. Scientific research shows that 60-85% of human growth is determined by genetics. What about the other 15-40%?

Three of the biggest factors that determine one’s weight that isn’t genetics are:

• Healthy diet and nutrition
• Quality of sleep
• Posture

You might think what does running have to do with these three factors?

The truth is that it does. Most runners are likely to keep a healthy diet and maintain a nutrition that’s full of quality nutrients.

But perhaps the biggest benefit of running is that our posture improves significantly, which can make us appear taller.

Quality nutrition for growth is very important, especially for young people. A good balance of nutrients can improve our health and boost our growth.

Research suggests that sprinting is the best form of running that boosts our growth.

Now some sources online tell you that you might grow up for up to 3 inches with running, which is simply not true. Maybe you will notice a difference (for about an inch or slightly more).

4 Ways Running Makes You Taller

Here are four ways that running will help you become taller.

1. Running Improves Your Posture

Arguably the biggest benefit of running that can make you taller is an improved posture.

You might not be aware of it, but most people have an improper, hunchback posture which happens due to excessive sitting and improper posture at work.

This study by Swedish Posture tells us that more than 50% of population suffers from back pain due to poor posture. That’s mainly due to excessive sitting.

Interviewees said that they sit 70-75% of the time throughout the day. That’s a scary statistic, which is only going to increase, sadly.

And as a result, our posture suffers. Did you know that we can lose up to an inch in our height only because of posture? Yes, that’s a big number, but working on an improved posture is an ongoing thing.

Running is great for posture. It forces us to keep our body upright. At the same time, it strengthens our core, leg, and back muscles. These are the key muscles that hold us upright.

Regular running is great for posture, but sprinting can have an even bigger effect. You’ll also need to remind yourself to hold proper posture throughout the day.

2. Encourages a Healthy Diet

Here’s an interesting statistic. Japan’s population grew, collectively, for about 3 inches after World War II. Why? Because they had access to more fish, and more fish means more protein.

Malnutrition is one of the biggest factors that stunts human growth, especially in formative years.

Teenagers who don’t eat well are more likely to suffer in terms of growth. Of course, sufficient protein is the key to improving our height with diet only.

But the truth is that once we grow up, it’s just not likely anymore that we’ll grow up just because of the diet. However, it can still be beneficial for your growth.

Sufficient protein, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from the diet will boost your growth slightly. And running only encourages us to eat healthy.

3. Running Repairs Microfractures In Your Bones

Running is a high-impact activity that will open microfractures in your lower leg bones. These microfractures stretch, and as they heal, they cause you to grow.

This is only a minimal growth, but it’s a real thing. Your bones will become longer as a result, and you will see changes in two-three weeks.

When these microfractures heal, the body has to produce enough material to fill them. And the more stress you produce with running, the larger these microfractures will be.

However, it’s important not to overdo it. This “method” has a limitation, and that is injuries.

4. It Boosts Human Growth Hormone (HGH)

Human growth hormone (HGH) is the hormone responsible for human growth in our teenage years.

It stimulates cell reproduction and regeneration, so it’s one of the most important hormones in our development.

And when we run, our body produces HGH, which will remain in our bodies for up to 24 hours after running. In fact, any sort of intensive exercise will help the body produce HGH.

The interesting thing is that HGH has been used by some athletes as a performance-enhancing drug. What if there was a way to produce this hormone naturally?

Intense exercise is the key. The focus is on the word intense. When we go for a run, we should prefer sprinting over some casual jogging. This will help us produce more HGH.

Other Ways That Can Help You Boost Your Growth

Here are some additional things that will help you achieve more growth in addition to running.

• Maintain A Healthy Nutrition

Not only will this help you grow, but you’ll be able to enjoy several other benefits. Healthiness, fat loss, muscle gain, and an overall positive outlook on life.

• Stretching

You would not believe how much stretching can help us grow. Yoga, for example, is the perfect supplemental activity to running.

In fact, to any intensive exercise. Stretching will stretch your muscles, make your joints stronger, and help you recover your strength. In addition, yoga has several mental benefits.

• Strength Training

As we’ve already discovered, intensive exercise can help us boost our HGH production. That way, we can also boost our growth with strength training. If done right, strength training can also help us improve our posture.

• Quality Sleep

7-8 hours of quality sleep will help us body to restore and repair microfractures. Running and workout can help you improve the quality of sleep.

Conclusion

So, does running make you taller? Yes, it does, but only to an extent. Genetics plays the biggest role when it comes to growth. 60-85% of your height will be determined by your genetic material.

The rest? You can boost your growth with several methods. One of the most important ones is improving your posture, which you can do with running. HGH is also important for growth.

Try to combine running with a healthy nutrition, good, intensive exercise, quality sleep, and stretching to see the best results.