Paula Newby Fraser's Peak Fitness for Women

This book helped me to come to terms with my fears about training hard as a woman. You won't get "too muscular". You will be able to menstruate; if you eat right and exercise properly and maintain enough body fat. Many female athletes' starve themselves and are bulimic or anorexic; these disorders ultimately hurt their ability to reach their peak fitness goals and to maintain a healthy lifestyle, according to Paula. Reading this book puts a lot in perspective for me as far as how to avoid injury by incorporating strength and flexibility training into an aerobic workout like running. This is a great guide also to finding the mental strength to become a competitive athlete. Paula maintains her training schedule by keeping motivated. The way she does this is to involve her friends and family. Her fitness training is wholesome in that she maintains her personal relationships and works out with friends in order to keep motivated. I was helped in my quest for "peak fitness" by this book for the reasons outlined above, but also by the sensible, sound and well articulated training advice I found in this book. Chantal

This was the first running book I have read and I truly found Paula Newby-Fraser's personal training and achievement stories inspirational. This book focuses on a balance between strength, flexibility and cardiovascular conditioning. I believe that anyone can become a well-balanced athlete with a little motivation and the training tools found in this book.