40 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
This book is basically a hodgepodge of collected articles., September 14, 2004
Despite what the title and subtitle suggests, this doesn't
provide everything you need to run for fun, fitness and
competition. While it probably a 3 1/2 *** to 4**** book,
in terms of content, there are more comprehensive books
on the subject of running. This is a good book for getting
a base understanding of running, and it only offers
training programs for one type of road race, namely the
marathon. If you want something that covers training for
shorter races, forget it. That doesn't mean the book is a
total loss for those who purchase it. If you are looking
for a tome on the sport, look no further than Dr. Timothy
Noakes' Lore of Running, which is nearly 1000 pages of
information from a physician who is also a runner. It
doesn't discuss specific training exercises with regards
to weights like other running books, or it doesn't even
mention which exercises to do in terms of stretching/flexibility, nor is there any mention of
pylometrics, which is used by some competitive runners.
The book is fairly narrow in scope, geared more for
road racers of the marathon persuasion mostly. If you
want to run some track race or cross country race, this
book is probably of somewhat limited value to you. Another
problem is the book is fairly expensive consider the amount
of information is provided in the pages, considering this
is basically a rehash of topics already discussed in
Runners' World, along with other running magazines and
books.
The book is organized as follows:
CONTENTS
Introduction.................................................xi
Part 1. Beginning Running
_______________________________________________________________
1. The First of Many Miles ..............................3
2. On The Road With Oprah ..............................12
3. Step into Good Shoes ................................16
4. Unexpected Pleasures ................................23
Part 2. Nutrition
________________________________________________________________
5. Fueling Up For a Peak Performance.....................31
6. The Lowdown On Fats...................................36
7. For Men Only: 10 Truths...............................42
8. Tomorrow's Beverages Today............................47
9. Say Good-Bye To Meat..................................51
10. Buried Treasures......................................56
Part 3. Injury Prevention
________________________________________________________________
11. The Big Five..........................................63
12. The No-Injuries Running Program.......................75
13. 10 Laws of Healthy Running............................82
14. Self-Treat Your Ailments..............................88
Part 4. Women's Running
________________________________________________________________
15. Advice That Could Save Your Life.....................103
16. A Woman's Encyclopaedia of Running...................111
17. Ask Runner's World...................................120
18. To Care, to Create, to Dream.........................129
Part 5. Building Strength, Endurance and Speed
________________________________________________________________
19. Time-Tested Advice...................................135
20. Ideal Paces..........................................142
21. Stretch Your Limits..................................150
22. The Experts' Training Secrets........................156
23. The Need For Speed...................................163
Part 6. The Mental Side of Running
________________________________________________________________
24. Seven Strategies To Be Your Best.....................173
25. Digging Deep.........................................182
26. Smooth Sailing.......................................191
27. The Mysterious Breakthrough..........................198
Part 7. Cross-Training
________________________________________________________________
28. The Many Doors to Fitness............................209
29. The Great Indoors....................................216
30. Running in Place.....................................222
31. Masters of Efficiency................................229
32. Training the Whole Body..............................234
Part 8. The Marathon
________________________________________________________________
33. Guideposts for a Marathoner..........................245
34. Guaranteed Results...................................261
35. Ease on Down the Road................................264
36. Countdown to the Big Race............................271
37. A Tip for Every Mile.................................280
Credits..................................................289
Index....................................................291
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good info for beginners, but design a bit whimsical & content could use improvement, April 17, 2008
As other reviewers have stated, this is a good book for beginning runners. The tone is positive--in the introduction, the author states that she wants to be your cheerleader--and presents a "you can do it!" attitude throughout. One of the book's strengths is its emphasis on starting out gradually if you're a beginning runner. The author is well aware of the pitfalls of beginning runners, one of which is getting discouraged and ultimately abandoning running because of unrealistic expectations. She presents a clear running program that just about anyone should be able to start with. Inspirational stories--including a now-dated piece about Oprah's first marathon--support the idea that pretty much anyone can train to run competitively (or just for fun). Well, at least if they're millionaires who can train for a total of four hours a day.
Also included are the obligatory diet recommendations, including a curious plug for vegetarianism. This is where I think the book starts to lose its focus. I realize that many people reading about running are likely looking to lose weight and incorporate vigorous exercise into a healthier lifestyle, but how many times--and in how many publications--must we read about carbs and fats? We get a brief intro to healthy eating, and then the book jumps into diet choices of runners. The organization of the book suggests that you'll go from novice runner to carbo-loading marathoner in a matter of pages.
I think that the injury section, perhaps incorporated into a larger chapter about running and its effects on various body systems and health generally, could be expanded. How to best deal with shin splints, which affect nearly all beginning runners at some point and to some degree, is barely touched on. Compartment syndrome (which is uncommon, grated) isn't mentioned at all. I think that more could be said about strength training as a complement to running, as well as detailed information about effective stretching and cool-down techniques.
Major content gripe: An entire section in the Women's Running chapter (which constitutes about a quarter of the book, so male readers may want to keep this in mind!) is devoted to avoiding the various ways that you can become a crime victim if you're not careful. It's a tired rehashing of all the "safety and security" stuff that women are exposed to on a regular basis, usually in women's magazines or on freak-out local news reports. A cop's contribution to this section details how to avoid getting pulled into a car and ultimately murdered (his solution: don't get near the car). I'm not advocating a head-in-the-sand approach; any solo runner should be alert, particularly when running in an isolated area. But jeez, do we really need a whole section to remind us to run in well-lit, populated areas? The number of pages given to this subject suggests that you're more likely than not to be the victim of a bad-intentioned male at some point during your runs.
My main problem with the book is its format. It is heavy (literally), with a glossy format consisting of giant margins, big text, and dozens of pointless photos. I understand that the book is attempting to be true to its roots: it is published by Runner's World, after all, and its page design is similar to a magazine. But it's a book and should look like a book. Even though it's paperback, it's printed on heavy stock paper and isn't the type of book you'd toss into a beach or vacation bag. And the vast majority of pictures are completely unnecessary. Page after page of very fit people in 1990s running garb (it appears that the images weren't updated for the 2004 edition) are meant to be inspiring but get really old after the first chapter: three young chicks running on a track, a fit middle-aged guy energetically moving along in front of a sunset backdrop, a forty-something gal lacing up in a park. Most of us know what fit runners look like. Do we need to see full-color photos of them on every other page? In the nutrition section, literally half a page is taken up with the image of a banana and something that looks like oats. In the footwear section, we see generic pictures of white leather running shoes with the laces undone. Zzzz....
I realize that this review is a big negative, so you may be wondering why I've given the book three stars. There is a lot of good information for people new to running, and indeed fitness and nutrition. But I'm glad that I got this book out of the library--I'd be annoyed if I paid good money for this. The Complete Book of Running for Women by Claire Kowalchik, and the old standy, Jim Fixx's The Complete Book of Running, are better choices in my estimation.
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