Crunning

The latest new sport that doesn’t make any sense is called "crunning." You may think it’s a mashup of crying and running, but no, it means running and crawling. As in, running on your hands and feet. It hit the mainstream when some interns on The Today Show demonstrated it for the TV viewing audience. I’m not holding my breath that it will become a craze. The sport, or, more accurately, "fitness activity" is promoted by Australian Shaun McCarthy, who coined the term. That’s him in the picture.

As to whether crunning is actually beneficial, science seems to settle on a resounding "eh." Is crunning healthier than eating a slab of spam pressed between two pieces of cheesecake? Sure! Is it better for you than watching every single episode of Guiding Light back-to-back while chain drinking BuzzBallz and eating butter with your hands? I'm no doctor, but I say "probably!" Is it better for you than running upright on two feet like a person still clinging to a shred of pride? Absolutely not. Still: "I actually see the Crossfitters at my gym crawling around like that all the time," a friend told me via email.

You can see videos of crunning and read more about it at Gothamist. It might invoke nightmarish memories of middle school gym class.