Self-study
Although marathons are 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometers) long and take even world-class marathoners over 2 hours to run, athletes who train by running 90 minutes a day fare better in marathons than do those who train by running 120 minutes or more a day.
"Surprising" Phenomenon
Why do runners who train by running for shorter periods of time every day perform better than those who train by running longer periods of time?
Objective
The correct answer will present an unsatisfactory hypothesis, one that fails to explain why athletes who train on shorter times perform better in marathons. Every wrong answer, meanwhile, will state a difference between runners who train by running 90 minutes a day and those who train by running 120 minutes a day that explains this discrepancy.
10.
Each of the following, if █████ ███████████ ██ ██ ███████████ ██ ███ ██████████ ██ ████████ ████████████ █████████ █████ ███████
a
The longer the ██████ ██ ████ ████ ███ ████ ██████ ███ ███████ ███ ███████ ██ █████████ ███████ ██████ ███████ ███ ██ ███ ██████████
This would explain why runners who train on shorter times achieve better results. Those who run for shorter periods are less likely to suffer consequences from air pollution that would hinder their training or slow them down during a race.
b
The longer the ██████ ██ ████ ████ ███ ████ ██████ ███ ██████ ██ ██ ██ ██████ ██ █████████ ████ ████████
This would explain the opposite discrepancy. If runners who train on longer time periods can adjust more easily, then if anything they should perform better than runners who train on shorter time periods.
c
The longer the ████ ███ ████ ████████ ██ ███ ██████████ ██ █████ ████████ ████ █████████████ █████████ ████ ███████ █████████
This is a reason runners who train on shorter periods achieve better results. Less time spent training means a lower risk of injury, which means a higher chance of training consistently.
d
Runners who train ████ ██ ███████ ███ ███ ████ █████ ████ ███████ ███ ██████ ████ ██████████
This would explain why runners who train on shorter time periods achieve better results. Those who run 90 minutes a day are less likely to lose motivation, and thus more likely to maintain their training and perform to their abilities.
e
Runners who train ████ ██ ███████ ███ ███ ███████ ███████ ███████████ ██████ █████████ ███████ ████ ████ ██████ ███ ██████████
This would explain why runners who train for 90 minutes a day achieve better results. They do not deplete their energy reserves before race day, while those who train on longer time periods use some of those reserves in training.