The Runner's Handbook

I've been running off and on for almost 10 years, running for a week or two, giving up, and then trying again a few months later. Each time I started, I didn't really know what I was doing. I wish I had read this book first - I could've saved myself a lot of time, pain, and aggravation.Bob Glover's book is inspirational and educational. The techniques and sample running schedules he presents are right on the dot, his information (which he draws from a variety of professional sources) is correct, and his writing style is very entertaining. Since I've started his book I've shaved a minute and a half off of my 5k race time, I'm running more often and farther, and my shin splints haven't acted up in the 8 months I've been following his advice. I've also lost 5 pounds (not that I wanted to) and feel terrific.Originally published in the 1970s when the running craze erupted, the book has been refined and updated to keep it in line with new information on health and nutrition and technological advances in shoe design and clothing. This book could be the only book you'll need to enjoy running as a hobby and a sport. It's that good.

I started last August as an out of shape, overweight, unmotivated failure. Over the past 10 years I've tried all sorts of plans to get into exercising regularly. Then I turned 28 and realized that if I didn't change this pattern, it was only going to get harder after I crossed 30. I'm proud to report that thanks to Bob Glover, I'll enter my 30s in better shape than I entered my 20s. He started me out with an easy to follow 10 week plan. That gave me enough momentum to finish a 5k race without walking. That was fine and good.. but before I knew it the holidays were upon us and I was sure that my old patterns would emerge and I'd find excuses to stop the running program. Luckily, Bob's program is so easily progressive, that a habit had been forming. There was now enough motivation that the highlight of my day was the hour reserved in the morning for a quiet jog as the sun was rising. No excuses were necessary: running is enough fun that I automatically find ways to keep running in my schedule no matter what's going on, or where I am. Got thru the holidays, got thru vacations, and continue to enjoy running as a part of my life. 6 months later, Bob Glover's book is as essential as it was when I first started the program. I refer to it for tips as the seasons are changing, and I rely on reading the physiological explainations to understand how my body is adapting. Bob Glover is right. If a pig can be trained to run an 8 minute mile - so can I :-)

My husband ordered this book for me and honestly, I was quite put off at first. I mean any real runner like myself, and we're talking darn-good *marathon* runner here, doesn't need any book telling them how to be a better, more successful runner. Sheez, you're born with it or you're not -Right? Wrong! The Runner's Handbook really spells out great advice for advanced runners or those just starting to run road races. The Runner's Handbook is packed with lots of great general information on running, injuries, diet and more. I came to rely on the comprehensive training schedules and benchmark times for every commonly raced distance from the mile to the marathon that Bob Glover included in his book. This is how I came to learn why I wasn't as good (proportionally) at the 5k as I was at a marathon. It's a different training regimen, a different mind-set, and after reading this book it's easy to understand and correct. When I really want to get motivated, I flip back to the Race Predictor appendix, calculate how fast I should be running, and set new goals for myself. Any runner of any ability who wants wants to set new goals (and what runner doesn't)should look to this book as *the* tool.

This book should be banned. Just over a year ago, I innocently picked it up with the vague idea that sometime I should start running. And what happened? Well, I started, and thanks to Bob Glover's insidious inspirational tone, I haven't stopped. Some books about running seem to give you a stitch the minute you begin reading them, but not this one. The Runner's Handbook gently coaxes you out on to the roads for ten minutes at a time, then 15, then 20, until one day you find yourself running non-stop for half-an-hour or more, three days a week. But that's not enough. Oh no. Soon, you're taking Coach Glover's expert advice on how to run a 10K. You tuck the book under your arm when you go buying running shoes. You steadily alter your eating habits, so you feel leaner, more nimble. You even alter next year's holiday plans so you can fit in the Madrid Marathon. Worse still, in the evening you find yourself laying aside the new E Annie Proulx in favour of Bob's chapter on Running in Cold Weather. This is the first time I've actually read A Book That Changed My Life. And sure, I'm fitter now, I'm healthier, and I've lost 25 pounds. But that Bob Glover's got a lot to answer for.