to think you can't just crap in the street!!

[RescueCack]

DH has just come back from a run and sheepishly told me that he took a dump in a bush. Again. This is not the first time. It doesn't happen regularly, but it has happened. How can he think this is ok??

He says he has no choice. I asked him, if he was surrounded by people watching him he would have held it, and he said 'yes, but I would have had to end my run'. So finishing a run is more important than not crapping in public???

He asked me to post because he thinks he will be validated. I know he wont. There is no way this is normal or ok. Judge him hard.

No lottie. Until this thread I never really thought about it to be honest. I've always been able to get home or to a toilet. Personally I have one run I can think of where if it happened I'd be stuck as there are no toilets- think tow path/ embankment area; but that's about it. And truly, if it was that dire that I couldn't get to a toilet at some point I shudder to think of the consequences, but a nappy bag would not be adequate.

But they are a bunch of dirty mingers if they realise the possibility but make no provision for it, Idocrazy. . What am I missing?

Truly. I give up. It's not something that happens all the time. Hardly ever. Most people are able to get to a toilet. It's not something you could pick up easily so taking a bag would be useless. A genuine person who found themselves in this situation would make sure they buried it, covered it up and cleaned the area. They then would do a mortified run of shame home.

Floggingmolly - it's happened three times in fifteen years to the OP's DH. With that frequency, it's like insisting that everyone walks around with a bucket in case they need to projectile vomit and can't reach a toilet.

So you can't make provision, like ensure your ability to bury it but, if a genuine person, you would make sure you buried it and cleaned up? I'm confused.

To change tack, (sorry, this may have been covered) but advice from a friend who went on lots of demonstrations, once upon a time, was that, as shitting in public counts as public indecency (no surprise there - and actually, I think she was talking about weeing in these circs), what one must do if finding oneself desparate while trapped in the midst of a very large crowd in the middle of say Trafalgar Square, is announce very loudly, preferably close to a policeman, 'I am about to squat down and have a wee/poo', thus you have given those who might see, the opportunity to look away and avoid offence. Then, I am sure, protocol would be to borrow said policeman's helmet to cover the offending result, avoiding any unpleasant stepping effects.

So the moral is, if in a public place, where other people may pass by, don't be shy, be assertively inoffensive!

Nope. I've given up. You're just taking the piss, or should I say shit?

Op - I would be leaving him

I am a very good runner. I exercise almost every day. And I have never felt the need for a shit whilst on the track. Fucking disgusting.

How vile. Truly gross. He's a human for god's sake, not an animal. There's no good reason for this kind of thing, only pathetic excuses.

Has this 'incident' made you think of him differently?

thecook I am a very good runner. I exercise almost every day. And I have never felt the need for a shit whilst on the track. Fucking disgusting

Odd way to put it. Tracks always have toilet facilities. So why would you mention it if you run every day on the track? Or do you mean you run off-road? Or do you do your steady runs round the track too, in circuits of 400m, almost every day?

I'm simply seeking truth.

On which note, OP, we do need to know whether your DH's poo was of the ordinary 'needing a poo' variety, or, one of these rocket-fuelled, contraction-propelled, super-splattery special runners' variety.

On that subject, I have learnt something and, have a whole new topic for discussion when I re-join my running club. Fab!

LessMissAbs Track and road. Yes there are toilet facilities at the track. If I ever did feel the need to do a shit whilst training I would go to the toilet. But this has happened before to the OP?s partner so why doesn't he run close to home?

ewww. i always thought it was drug addicts - but it's runners!

that is so foul.

Not read the whole thread but have now got an image in my head of a row of portaloos with runners going round and round them a la musical chairs !

perhaps they should install a sushi style conveyor belt alongside the tow path which feeds into a sealed waste disposal unit. Runners could squat across it and deposit their token of appreciation as and when. On the other hand, a supermarket bag without holes would be better than a nappy bag (surely?) and would weigh nothing to carry in a pouch. Failing that a drawstring bin liner?

Brown plates

Seriously though, if you are saving on gym fees and enjoying the priviledge of having everyone move aside as soon as they see you coming (old ladies and babies in pushchairs included) then it is almost bullying behaviour to antagonise the said people by shitting your spleen out in transit. Here is a link to get you a free colostomy bag:

www.freestylevieflushable.co.uk/request-samples.aspx?gclid=COfnyYPm17YCFSXLtAodeikAYg

I don't get the lack of understanding, and condemnation, especially from runners like thecook. Just because you have not experienced this, doesn't mean it's down to greater control or superior standards. It simply means you are lucky.

If runners are susceptible to runners trots, then I'm sure, for their own sake as well as others, they are likely to manage their condition e.g. by avoiding certain known food/drink triggers, ensuring they have evacuated before a run (helpful, but not fully preventative), and choosing routes that include toilet facilities or running in loops so they're never far from home.

However, the OP's husband has only had three incidents in 15 years. So it's untypical for him and he's not expecting to be caught short.

To all posters condemning this as disgusting behaviour - can you confirm that 1. You have never been caught short and had to wee outside 2. You have never had the misfortune to vomit before reaching a toilet.

Why do people keep comparing this with vomitting?

Generally if a person vomits its because of an illness or condition such as morning sickness. They cant possibly know that it is going to happen and cannot be reasonably expected to be prepared for it as it is a rare occurance. However, as "runners trots" is widely known about and is a known possibility for anyone taking a long run, there is no reason why the runner cant be prepared for it.

Vomiters who throw up due to excess of alcohol are just as bad imo, as they know that getting shitfaced is likely to lead to them vomiting and should be treated just as harshly as someone pissing/shitting in the street.

Bogeyface
Why do people keep comparing this with vomitting?
Both can happen without warning; are pretty involuntary etc.

They cant possibly know that it is going to happen and cannot be reasonably expected to be prepared for it as it is a rare occurance.
You could be writing about the OP's husband...

there is no reason why the runner can't be prepared for it
Generally yes, but in the OP's husband's case, it's an average of once every five years.

"but it is harder to find one now as many round here have been shut."

Exactly. Before I had an operation, last year, I had to wear a catheter, so had no "desperate to go" moments, and having moved to a new city, took a few hours out of my day (in fact to see what laptops there were, for someone asking on MN) to go off to another part of the city to explore a retail park, and walk back.

I walked seven miles through various suburbs, saw the odd collection of shops, a few places I won't likely ever wish to see again, and apart from an Asda store that was open, which I did pop into, but not to use the loo, can distinctly remember not seeing a single public toilet where one might be able to "go". Additionally, on that 7 mile walk, not a single park bench (and I walked through several small and one large park). So "green" the city may be, but facilities are definitely lacking.

Obviously there may be Asda, Tesco and so on if you were in a city or town, but public toilets are nowhere to be seen around here.

Yes, blame it on vandalism, government spending cuts, or whatever, forcing local councils to close or remove them (or in some places such as where I lived in N Wales, add one of the 20p public toilets with the doors which open automatically after a certain number of minutes, like it or not!) but I'd say the chances of finding public toilets in many areas are getting fewer and fewer.

I was going to start delivering some leaflets for my own business (if I can get enough people to switch internet I could give up "working" for a living) but the prospect of 3-5 hours wandering the streets with no public toilets makes it change from "healthy exercise" into a "toilet nightmare" !

I'm not advocating deliberate use of a bush but if you've got to go, then I'm afraid you've got to go, and I'm not going to criticise anyone who just cannot "hold it". Maybe I'm nore forgiving now I'm getting much closer to retirement age than you youngsters!!

PS For she who should have name changed, yes, it might have been an idea, but frankly it's public now and getting the post deleted would make it obvious anyway :) Anyway, you're only human, and it could happen to any of the "absolutely disgusting" brigade this time tomorrow or next month or in 20 years time, so don't worry about it, your secret is public knowledge safe with us.

fascicle No I have never experienced runners shits. Nor have I heard talk of it in my athletics club. It ain't fucking difficult, yiu run near your house so you can get home quickly if you need a shit.
Now what fucking bit of that don't you understand?

This reminded me of an ex bf.
He was out one night, without me, when the urge to poo was overwhelming, so what did he do? Wait until he had walked the 600m home to use the toilet? Oh no. He duly squatted down on some "grassland" and proceeded to poo. Unfortunately for him this "grassland" was actually part of the firestation. Whilst he was in the act, a massive light was switched on shining directly on his arse and a tanoy message told him to stop shitting. He was half way through so couldn't stop. The light continued to shine, the tanoy continued to scream stop, you dirty bastard, and I dumped him not long afterwards.

thecook Now what fucking bit of that don't you understand?

I don't understand your black and white view, especially given the runners lack of history. I also have no clue why you feel the need to be so aggressive - completely unecessary.

I think we've established that it is more than possible to hold yourself, extreme urge or non, for a toilet in all but the most extremes of circumstances - therefore, pooing in public isn't acceptable.

A nappy bag would sort this out, with a few babywipes, in case of "emergency". Unless you are running starkers (which lends a whole new set of problems) then managing to carry these should not be a problem at all.

Regardless of it happening "only" three times, just one occurance should surely provide a decent person enough reason to carry these small things just in case.

In the case of the OP, the DH admitted that he could have held it but didn't want to end his run. Which is unreasonable.

Oh just buy him a copy of this book