Why Was Everyone Talking About Poop At The NYC Marathon?

I've never attempted to participate in the New York City Marathon because, well, I'm told that doing so entails running 26.2 miles and waking up well before noon on a Sunday. (The horror!) So you can imagine my confusion when my Twitter feed showed that, in addition to signs supporting friends and family, there was more than one sign warning runners not to poop during the race.

The sign that has everyone talking was held by an unidentified (and very serious) little boy. Getting straight to the point, it read: "NOBODY POOP."

GQ editor Ashley Fetters hailed him as "the MVP of the New York City marathon" and Twitter concurs.

But the MVP wasn't the only person with cautionary signage. Upon seeing Fetters' post, another user shared a photo of a woman holding a colorful sign that read: "Don't poop your pants!" complete with drawings of the poop emoji.

Apparently what marathon runners know is that pooping your pants (or running shorts) is actually a hazard of the activity. As Amanda Kruse, RD, CD and Vanessa Rissetto, MS, RD told Refinery29 in April, runners should take dietary precautions in order to prevent this unfortunate side effect of running. (I mean, it's a quick way to ruin that perfect Instagram photo once you cross the finish line.)

Kruse and Rissetto recommended eating an orange or yogurt before running and (*shudder*) skipping your coffee fix until after your run. But perhaps one of the main reasons this is such an issue during marathons is that, according to Kruse, you should wait to go running until after you poop. Of course, this isn't really an option when you've gotta be at the marathon bright and early.

There's no word on whether or not anyone failed to follow this wise child's advice, but personally I've found yet another reason to stick to the elliptical.