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You often hear stories about fathers lifting cars or heavy trees off their sons when an accident happens, but is there any truth to this?

Can people suddenly lift more or run faster than they normally can under dire situations?

As a runner myself, I've often been curious if my fastest 5K (15:42) would drop drastically if my life depended on it. I wouldn't think it would change much, because I am exhausted after a race, but who knows?

Sklivvz
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Nick
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    Similar question for lifting heavy objects: http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/q/14372/104 – Andrew Grimm May 20 '13 at 04:45
  • [Welcome to Skeptics!](http://meta.skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/1505/welcome-to-new-users) Given the last incidence of this question turned out to have a mundane answer, I think it is important to have cites of notable examples where this has been claimed. – Oddthinking May 20 '13 at 04:55
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    When adrenaline is released by the adrenal medulla it allows blood to flow more easily to your muscles. This means that more oxygen is carried to your muscles by the extra blood, which allows your muscles to function at elevated levels. – Lyrion May 23 '13 at 14:42
  • Oliver_c's answer to [this question](http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/3010/do-you-feel-pain-in-a-life-threatening-situation) definitely answers yours. – algiogia Jul 17 '15 at 08:13
  • @algiogia What I take away from that is, it may be possible to lift incredible amounts, at the expense of serious muscular damage (or worse). – Michael Aug 07 '15 at 17:04

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