80/20 Running

Ok. Hm. So I'm not a runner by any stretch of the imagination. I'm doing the couch to 5km thing as part of how I'm dealing with social isolation is all. So I'm not the audience for this book. Now the idea that many recreational athletes go too hard on their “easy runs” is not new to me, I've read a few cycling training books and as a similar endurance sport they have some of the same issues so I didn't need the long justification.

Fitzgerald and Johnson give a history of the training method, some studies that show it is more effective than higher percentages of moderate to intense training, and some interesting tidbits on how the body over time gets more efficient in its muscle recruitment and more variable in the runners stride (there was some cool stuff about robots!)

They also provide training plans for all kinds of distances/runners but under the basic assumption that you are able to engage in aerobic exercise 6-7 times a week (which I found crazy). They also promote crosstraining, but again, kind of a time suck (up to 13 times a week! My barely 3*week self is full of side-eye) I think for an audience that really is interested in improving race times this would be great! For the general fitness enthusiast - just too much running.

I would have like to see more than just aerobic exercise on the crosstraining program however. Part of the idea of crosstraining is reducing injury, so I wanted to see some emphasis on mobility and strength training - yoga, weights, Pilates, whatever - to strengthen all the parts of your body that support running and your life. Look elsewhere. Even the crosstraining was rated by how close it is to running in effect, which again - if all you care about is your race time fine, but I really think there was an opportunity missed here.

There is a chapter on weight-loss, I'm not sure why. If you don't like running you probably won't keep it up long enough for it to be a weight-loss aid. Find your fun.