Marathon by Hal Higdon

Overview from Barnes and Noble:

Especially in tough economic times, running offers an affordable and positive way to relieve stress and gain a sense of accomplishment. Marathons and—more than ever—half-marathons are the ultimate achievement for runners and have experienced an unprecedented boom in the last several years.

New hunger for reliable information on marathon and half-marathon training, as well as new technologies that have revolutionized ordinary people’s ability to train intelligently, means the time is right for a new edition of longtime Runner’s World contributor Hal Higdon’s classic guide to taking the guesswork out of preparing for a marathon, whether it’s a reader’s first or fiftieth.

Since its original publication in 1993, Higdon’s definitive manual has sold over a quarter of a million copies through all channels. The book is such a consistent seller for many reasons, but above and beyond all the others is this one: It works. At the core of the book remains Higdon’s clear and essential information on training, injury prevention, and nutrition. With more than 25 percent new material, this fourth edition of a running classic will be a must-own for both longtime runners and those new to the sport.

My thoughts:
It is now two months until my first marathon and I have been starting to get worried that my training is not going as well as it should be.  I printed out a plan from Runner's World months ago when I started training and I did well at the beginning with getting in the long runs and shorter runs as well, but as the summer heat has set in and the runs have gotten longer, I've missed some long runs.  The plan called for 5 20 mile runs over the course of the training, but a friend who has run eight marathons suggested that I didn't really need to do that many 20 mile runs which were freaking me out a bit.  Higdon's book suggests the same thing, that it is better to get to marathon day under trained than over trained and to have realistic goals for your first marathon, enjoy it and not feel terrible when you are done.  It gave me a lot of food for thought, but I still feel like I should be getting better at the longer runs than I am.  Coming up to the spring half marathon I ran I remember making sure I got in all the long runs the plan called for and the race went better than I anticipated and I felt okay afterwards.  Yes I was a bit stiff and sore, but it didn't make me miss any activities I had planned to do.  I hope to feel similarly after running my first marathon, especially since I will have to drive home that day as well.  I wish I had picked this book up at the beginning of  my training, not halfway through, because it would have been helpful to have had Higdon's tips and experience right from the beginning.  This is the marathon book I found to be most helpful.

Product Details

• ISBN-13: 9781609612245
• Publisher: Rodale Press, Inc.
• Publication date: 9/27/2011
• Edition number: 4
• Pages: 304