Second Wind

Article summary

Second wind is a phenomenon in endurance sports, such as marathons or road running, whereby an athlete who is out of breath and too tired to continue (known as "hitting the wall") finds the strength to press on at top performance with less exertion. The feeling may be similar to that of a "runner's high", the most obvious difference being that the runner's high occurs after the race is over. In experienced athletes, "hitting the wall" is conventionally believed to be due to the body's glycogen stores being depleted, with "second wind" occurring when fatty acids become the predominant source of energy. The delay between "hitting the wall" and "second wind" occurring has to do with the slow speed at which fatty acids sufficiently produce ATP (energy), with fatty acids taking approximately 10 minutes, whereas muscle glycogen is considerably faster at about 30 seconds. Some scientists believe the second wind to be a result of the body finding the proper balance of oxygen to counteract the buildup of lactic acid in the muscles. Others claim second winds are due to endorphin production. Heavy breathing during exercise also provides cooling for the body. After some time the veins and capillaries dilate and cooling takes place more through the skin, so less heavy breathing is needed.…

Key claims

1. date of formation: 1991 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of formation is "1991". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1227216623