Title: The Nonrunner's Marathon Guide for Women: Get Off of Your Butt and On With Your Training
Author: Dawn Dais
Genre: Running, Fitness, Humor
Summary: (from amazon.com): Dawn Dais hated running. And it didn't like her much, either. Her fitness routine consisted of avoiding the stairs in her own house, because who really has the energy to climb stairs? It was with this exercise philosophy firmly in place that she set off to complete a marathon.
The Nonrunner’s Marathon Guide for Women is a fun training manual for women who don't believe that running is their biological destiny but who dream of crossing the finish line nonetheless. It opens with a realistic training schedule and is chock-full of how-to's, quizzes, and funny observations, which Dais felt were lacking in the guides she had consulted.
The Nonrunner’s Marathon Guide for Women also integrates entries from Dias' journal, sharing everything would-be marathoners need to know about the gear, the blisters, the early morning workouts, the late-night carb binges, and — most important of all — the amazing rewards. Anyone can do a marathon. This book just makes the experience a little more bearable and a lot more fun.
Comments: I am currently training for a marathon, and I've had this book for awhile... I got it last Christmas. I wanted to wait until I was officially marathon training. My husband is an avid runner and fitness person, so although I'm quite unathletic, I do know more than the average couch potato about running. I think for someone who really knows nothing about running, this book may be helpful. However, the actual advice she gives is limited and not that useful. There are other running books for women (The Complete Book of Running for Women) that are more informative and probably better for women who know little about running, and would be better for them in avoiding injury and such.
The thing about this book that is the most useful is how it brings running down to a real level (for me). I read running blogs and such, and it often makes me a little sad because everyone else is so much faster, enjoys it so much more, and seems to hurt less than I do. Reading this book was like reading the point of view of someone who is just like me. I felt like this book could easily have been me commiserating with one of my girlfriends who is also nonathletic and training for a marathon. It is a pretty funny book, and some parts had me laughing out loud.
So ultimately, this book is good for a laugh and letting some people know that there are other runners out there who are by no means running rockstars. However, I would caution against using is as a book to get solid advice about the best practices of training for a marathon.
x-posted to
cmmunchkin 