Shake ya booty...!

I watched Origins of Us tonight on BBC iPlayer. It's a new 3 part series looking at human evolution with Dr Alice Roberts. Last night's episode looked at our bones and what they tell us about our development from a tree climbing primate to a Savannah dwelling hominid. From the rotation and dorsiflexion of the ankle we can now pinpoint when we ceased to climb trees. From the adjusted angle of the foramen magnum in the base of the skull we can pinpoint when we became bipedal and from the development of a waist and a cranium ridge we can pinpoint when we started to run.

I've written here before that we are born to run and, indeed, this theory was supported in this programme; it seems that our ability to run long distances in pursuit of our quarry was key to our survival as a species. And what is it about having a waist and a cranial ridge that allows us to run? Well, the waist allows us to rotate our bottom half to counter balance the rotation of our top half. This is crucial if you need to run and not fall over within the first few steps. The ridge on the back of our skull allows the attachment of a ligament that stops our head being thrown forward with every footfall; again, essential if you want to run and you need to see where you're going.

I demonstrated my pitiful dorsiflexion, my vertically adjusted foramen magnum and I put my pronounced waist and cranium ridge to the test again tonight with a quick scamper around the Bay. What Dr Alice Roberts won't be able to find in any of the skeletal remains that she unearths is the sense of smug pleasure and smiley joy brought about by even the tiniest of jogs. And if that isn't enough to entice you out, what about the promise of an aesthetically formed gluteus maximus (beautifully sculpted butt to you and me) to boost that smug feeling even more?

Shake ya booty...!