John Bingham - Marathoning for Mortals: A Regular Persons Guide to the Joy of Running or Walking a Half-Marathon or Marathon

At the end of every marathon training run, I recite the Penguin mantra: The miracle isnt that I finished, its that I had the courage to start. I thank John Bingham for bolstering my courage and helping me run, literally, for my life.

Jessica Stedman Guff, senior producer of ABC-TVs The View

Jenny Hadfield is an amazing motivator. She makes regular people believe they can undertake amazing thingsand then shes there all the way to encourage them, right down to the finish line. Ive never met another coach quite like her.

Kathy OMalley, WGN Radio-Chicago talk show host in training for her first marathon

Notice

The information in this book is meant to supplement, not replace, proper exercise training. All forms of exercise pose some inherent risks. The editors and publisher advise readers to take full responsibility for their safety and know their limits. Before practicing the exercises in this book, be sure that your equipment is well-maintained, and do not take risks beyond your level of experience, aptitude, training, and fitness. The exercise and dietary programs in this book are not intended as a substitute for any exercise routine or treatment or dietary regimen that may have been prescribed by your doctor. As with all exercise and dietary programs, you should get your doctors approval before beginning.

Mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities in this book does not imply endorsement by the publisher, nor does mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities imply that they endorse this book.

Internet addresses and telephone numbers given in this book were accurate at the time it went to press.

2003 by John Bingham and Jenny Hadfield

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any other information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

Runners World is a registered trademark of Rodale Inc.

Printed in the United States of America
Rodale Inc. makes every effort to use acid-free , recycled paper .

Interior design by Christina Gaugler

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bingham, John, date.

Marathoning for mortals : a regular persons guide to the joy of running or walking a half-marathon or marathon / John The Penguin Bingham and Jenny Hadfield.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 1579547826 paperback

1. Marathon runningTraining. I. Hadfield, Jenny. II. Title.

GV1065.17.T73B53 2003

Distributed to the book trade by St. Martins Press

Visit us on the Web at www.runnersworld.com, or call us toll-free at (800) 8484735.

To the patient heroes of Team in Training, for teaching us to accept lifes challenges with grace and courage.

We dont know where most books are written, but we suspect that more often than not the messiness of the creative process takes place in private. Our lives would not allow for that, and so nearly every word of this book was written in full public view.

With that in mind, wed like to thank the management and staff of the Hampton Inn in Bellingham, Washington. They understood the paradox of two people sitting on the sofa all day and eating while writing a book about the benefits of an active, healthy lifestyle.

Wed like to thank, too, our friends and neighbors at the Melrose Restaurant in Chicagos Lakeview area. They tolerated us occupying a table for hours at a time while we jammed on our laptops. Their food fed our bodies, and their kindness and encouragement nourished our spirits.

Specifically, wed like to thank Mike Norman of Chicago Endurance Sports for his help with the Cross-Training chapter, Alex McKinney of Athletico for his help with the Injury Prevention chapter, and Dave Zimmer, Lisa Zimmer, and Sabra Bederka of Fleet Feet Chicago and Julie Leasure of Nike for their help with the Gear chapter. Their contributions were invaluable in providing technical expertise, solid advice, and common sense.

Jenny in particular thanks her mother and father for supporting her never-ending attempts to reach for the stars; Wendy for being a great sister; her brothers, Scott and Don, for being her biggest fans; and the third-floor gang for feeding her when she was hungry and listening to the ups and downs in her life.

She also thanks Kathy OMalley for being an incredible role model and Yvette Arnoux for being a great listener and spiritual guide.

Beyond the usual suspects, like the incomparable folks at Runners World US and UK, there have been a number of gray eminences who quietly contributed to our ability to start this project and have been staunch supporters as weve worked our way through to its completion. They are too modest to want to be named but they know who they areand so do we.

No list of thank-yous would be complete without acknowledging Alisa Bauman. She is a skilled editor and gifted collaborator. The significance of her contribution cannot be overstated.

Most important, wed like to thank the thousands of walkers and runners that weve encountered in our personal and professional lives. We want to thank each and every one of them for their honesty and openness, for their willingness to include us in their successes, and for all the laughter and tears that we have shared at the finish lines. Our lives have been enhanced by their strength, determination, and joy.

Last but not least, thanks to the cutest dog in the world, Bear, for riding endless miles in the backpack and spending countless hours alone in the apartment, yet always managing to greet us with tail-wagging enthusiasm!

During what I would term the first wave of the running boom in the 1970s and 80s, the concern of many runners, if not most, was to set personal recordsto train harder and harder, race faster and faster. Experts and amateurs treated the sport like an elite club that wouldnt have them unless they shaved seconds daily. In 2003, many of those people are still running with the same mind-set. If they have managed to hold together orthopedically, God bless them.

But for most of us, running isnt that way anymore. We are part of a new wave that began in the mid-1990s. We are more moderate. Some of us are even involved in training a new generation, running for what I term other people and other reasons. Everyone is welcome now. Personally, I am happy to see the club disbanded.

This second wave has leaders, too, but their goals are far more realistic and attainable. Take the authors of this book: Two decades ago, who would have taken instruction from a penguin or a gym-class dropout?