Big news in the science world. Physicists are rewriting the First Law of Thermodynamics.

It’s one of the first things you learn as an engineering student: energy is neither created nor destroyed. It’s only transferred or transformed. You learn that early. Then you spend years doing the math.

The new research doesn’t say the law is wrong. It says it works best in stable, predictable systems. The kind engineers deal with every day. But at the edges—quantum systems, cosmic systems, fast-changing environments—the assumptions start to break. Timing matters. Fluctuations matter. Direction matters. The system isn’t as clean as we thought.

So here’s the question.

Does the First Law apply to runners?

You know the feeling. You have a bad day. Low energy. Poor sleep. Stress from work. You don’t feel like running, but you go anyway. The first few minutes are rough. Legs feel heavy. Breathing feels off.

Then ten minutes later, something shifts. You feel better. Lighter. More awake. Where did that energy come from?

Or you feel flat for weeks. Then you talk to a friend. You sign up for a race. Suddenly you’re motivated again. You’re training with purpose.

I know—I’m an engineer. I’m not saying running breaks the laws of physics. But it sure feels like it sometimes.

Running has a way of unlocking energy that felt unavailable. It changes the system. Movement shifts your chemistry, your focus, your mood. The energy was there all along. You just couldn’t access it until something changed.

That’s one of the quiet superpowers of running. Just don’t ask me for the math behind it.

Best wishes on chasing your running goals,

George