Book Review: To Be A Runner by Martin Dugard

aarmau@gmail.comAugust 14, 2011book review

This summer I have been on this rampage of reading non YA books and instead reading books about bettering ourselves(not self help), increasing mental toughness, eliminating the things in our lives that we don’t really need that end up causing us more stress, and fitness.

I saw this book at my local library and picked it up on a whim. What a great whim as I found this to be the perfect book for me to end my summer on. It helped to guide me with appreciating my runs, where I run, my habit of running, and to begin to think about the events and habits I am forming because of running. It gave me some great quotes to add to my massive collection that I have created for both coaching and my classroom(well, when I have a classroom).

You don’t necessarily have to be a runner to enjoy this book, but it would really help. What I liked about this book is that in a subtle way it reminds all of us to not settle for mediocrity. Do something with yourself. Don’t let life just pass you by, but get out there and be involved whether it is running, another sport, another hobby, etc. Look around you or maybe yourself and observe how many people are not pushing their limits to see what they are capable of actually accomplishing. This book put me at ease after a long workout or long day. A great read and I hope to find a few more books like this.

Here is the product description from Amazon.com

With an exuberant mix of passion, insight, instruction, and humor, best-selling author–and lifelong runner–Martin Dugard takes a journey through the world of running to illustrate how the sport helps us fulfill that universal desire to be the best possible version of ourselves each and every time we lace up our shoes.
To Be a Runner represents a new way to write about running by bridging the chasm between the two categories of running books: how-to and personal narrative. Spinning colorful yarns of his running and racing adventures on six continents–from competing in the infamous Raid Gauloises to coaching his son’s high school cross-country team–Dugard considers what it means to truly integrate the activity into one’s life. As entertaining as it is provocative, To Be a Runner is about far more than running: It is about life, and how we should live it.

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