Ok, so when was running invented? TikTok is absolutely shook after finding out the answer

Right now, TikTok has descended into chaos after a number of people have uploaded videos asking the simple question: When was running invented?

It seems like a pretty dumb question, and something that doesn’t need an answer because running has surely always been a thing. But when you really deep it, when was running invented? Was someone the first ever person to run? Did they know what they were doing was so momentous? Has everyone always known what running is? I’m in a rabbit hole, and you soon will be too.

Right, so the TikTok thing is simple. Loads of people are either asking you to Google the question yourself, or recording their reactions when they do, including screenshots of some of the answers that are dotted around the internet. And yes, they’re a lot.

So, when was running invented?

Let’s get one thing straight: A lot of sites say a lot of different things. One says running simply “was not invented” and we should instead be looking at “who” invented it, over “when”.

It says: “Walking was ‘invented’ as early as when the ancient humans evolved from primates about seven million years ago and began to transition from tree climbing to bipedalism. Australopithecus fossils from around four million years ago indicate that humans walked upright before they developed stone tools. The fossil record and anatomy features indicate that humans began to run at least two million years ago.”

However, a general search of the internet has a much more interesting tale to tell – one I’m choosing to believe, just because it’s fun. Apparently, Thomas Running invented running in 1748 (or 1612, depending on where you look) when he tried to walk twice at the same time. Tbh, yes. This is exactly the explanation I was after.

It’s looking as though this is just a viral tweet, but there we go. The boring science explanation is that running wasn’t invented, it’s just simply something humans were born with the ability to do. It was more a case of someone, at some point, giving that thing a name. Boring.

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