Give thanks for your Achilles tendon

Here is an illustration of the Achilles tendon in case you don't know what it is. This tendon is awesome and we are lucky to have it.

What purpose does the Achilles tendon serve?

The purpose of the Achilles tendon is to help you run efficiently. It is incredibly strong and elastic. Each time you take a step, some of the energy from your fall is used to stretch this tendon, thereby storing the energy and using it to fuel your next step. Animals that don't run don't have this tendon. Our genetic cousins, apes, do not have this tendon.

Humans are terrible at running? So why do we have this tendon that is made for running?

Humans are terrible at sprinting, not running. We are fantastic at running long distances. Be proud of your species. We are great long distance runners!