Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Book review: Four Months to a Four-hour Marathon

About a month ago there was a snow storm here in the South. I spent two days off of work due to my road being covered in ice. In an effort to keep my sanity I decided to visit the local library.  For a small city/medium town that is far from qualifying as a fit or metropolitan and more likely described a combination of a want-to-be gangland and the extras list from deliverance I was surprised how many running books they had. There were even a few triathlon books and when I got home I checked and there are even more cycling books.

I put together a stack of books and checked out; on the way home I almost completly finished one. If it was that easy a read and held my ADHD in check I thought it deserves a review.

Four Months to a Four-hour Marathon
by Dave Kuehls

This book is a concise reference for introductory running topics and training.

Pros: The book is very reader friendly, and it does not contain a gross amount of technical data. It is a quick read and contains all of the informationn on training, stretching,  gear, and even race selection that a first time runner may need.

Cons:  The book is slightly misleading in that the average first time runner may not be able to realistically run a sub four hour marathon, however for this reason it also has plans for four and a half and five hour marathons. In terms of running clothes and form it may be behind the times.

Overall: I think this is a great starting point for a runner who has bagged their first few 5k's and wants to run a marathon as a part of their bucket list. It would work best when paired with an experienced mentor.

5 comments:

KovasP said...

I looked at this and agree, it's a good jumping off point.

Chris K said...

Wow, talk about painting with a very broad brush (the book I mean). I suppose the book does disclose a certain fitness level starting point though.

Joel said...

I'll add to my reading list. I'm reading "Your Best Triathlon" by Friel right now. Interesting read so far.

I'd love to be able to run sub-4:00. I'm not sure a book will get me there, though. I think lots of running will, though.

How the heck did you finish a book while you were driving home????

Caratunk Girl said...

Sub4h would rock. I want to get there.

I have looked at that book a few times. I like what you say about it being a good jumping off point. I think that a lot of folks are looking for a miracle pill for the 4h but really it comes down to blood sweat and tears. Mostly sweat I hope.

OH!! I AM FINALLY working on the Stylish Blogger!! It is going up today.

Molly said...

I always thought a sub-4 for a first mary was hard, then my neighbor ran his first this past fall, and he did it in 3:20!!!!