I think it's important to note, that not all activities someone could call running are good for the body, and not all are bad for the body.
You can break bricks karate style and be fine, if you build up and take it slow and steady. You can also just tap or lift bricks 1k, 10k times per day and be fine.
However it won't end well if you use bad form, try to go max on day 1 (didn't build up), or try to break 1k bricks/day, every day¹.
Stupid running can be 1k-10k impacts per day with bad form (twisted joints), high stress (stomping on concrete), low regeneration (cartilage needs squishing for nutrients) - use it like this and you will lose it blazing fast.
This is true, like anything, you need to build up to it. I lived an entirely sedentary lifestyle for the first 30 years of my life, hated all sport and physical activity. Dated a girl who taught me the joys of exercise and movement and I've been hooked on running for the past 4 years.
Takes some time to build up a base, and of course you need to be careful if you are quite heavy initially like I was. If you just listen to your body and don't overdo it, it all comes together pretty naturally. While bad form is a risk, a lot of what I've read seems to indicate that your body will naturally find a running gait that is optimal for your body and minimizes impact. Running without headphones also helps, just listen to your footfalls and adjust your stride to minimize impact. (I can't find any studies on this, but I can't help but feel that a lighter footfall is likely minimizing impact on joints somehow)
> lighter footfall is likely minimizing impact on joints somehow
Simple: less stress (impact) => less damage (impact).
Listening to you body helps a lot. You body will (usually) tell you when you're doing something wrong, but it can be hard to understand.
I wanted to warn, because misconceptions like: I'm running => running is good for body => I'm doing good for body, even though my knees hurt every time; they can ruin many knees. Usually it won't get far, but there are always those who push.
You can break bricks karate style and be fine, if you build up and take it slow and steady. You can also just tap or lift bricks 1k, 10k times per day and be fine.
However it won't end well if you use bad form, try to go max on day 1 (didn't build up), or try to break 1k bricks/day, every day¹.
Stupid running can be 1k-10k impacts per day with bad form (twisted joints), high stress (stomping on concrete), low regeneration (cartilage needs squishing for nutrients) - use it like this and you will lose it blazing fast.
¹ I kind of guess.