What are the WORST books on running?

Sub 4

reason: Alan Webb's in it. And I'm so gosh darn upset with him right now. How does he have the ba!!s to think he can eat whatever he wants to? He should be a 3:38 miler by now, get your act together ALAN!

The gift, easily the worst ive ever read, its basic, its pointless, and the conversations are cheesy...

Anyone read it?

Don't

I would have to agree with this one.... The gift is a shallow book that is more along the lines of child's picture book when compared to the depth of a book like OAR...

The Gift is no Once a Runner but it is still an interesting read. Obviously if you are going for deep literary content, your not going to get much farther on the running shelves than John L. Parker.

I agree Sub-4 is pretty horrendus. Lear tries to be poetic and it comes off as pretty stale and corny. Not at all like Running with the Buffaloes. Reading that book made me strongly dislike Alan Webb. They talk about him showing other kids in his classes his own headlines from the newspapers. He is the opposite of the humble hero.

Sub 4 is not the worst ever, though. Paul Tergat's book is pretty bad, for example. It sounds like it was written for pre-schoolers.

I thought "the gift" was really good, considering it was written by an amateur. Sub 4 made me really like Nate Brannen, and hate Alan Webb.

I thought again to carthage was garbage, just because it was hard to beat OAR.

sub 4 never says anything about alan showing kids headlines in his classes. read the book before commenting on it.

I think it does in one of the first chapters. What was he, 18 years old? You'd probably dance naked in the street at age 30 if your name got in the paper.

webby wrote:

I think it does in one of the first chapters. What was he, 18 years old? You'd probably dance naked in the street at age 30 if your name got in the paper.

Actually it was the other way around... I went streaking and then my name was in the paper.

daniels running formula....most misused running book out there

Once a runner is pretty bad.

The writing is awful to average. The story is so stupid and doesn't even make sense. Either Parker is trying to be too cutesy and subtle or he's beating his point over your head.

I do not get why people love this book. No clue.

Good troll statement, this will bring up a discussion.

Easy: Running Start to Finish by John Stanton. Stanton has about a 2:40 PB but considers himself enough of an authority on running to write a book, but his authority comes from owning about 90 running stores, mostly in Canada. Sadly, this is probably the best-selling book on running in Canada because of how Running room stores push it.

The book contains little information, half-truth, lousy training schedules and is very poorly edited with respect to sections and clarity.

http://www.amazon.com/Running-Start-Finish-John-Stanton/dp/155105096X

The fastest training schedules offered are for a 38-minute 10k, 1:30 half and 3-hour marathon. There are no training schedules for a 5k, even if you have a goal as modest as a sub-20 5k.

To run a 38:00 10k, Stanton suggests a 29k long run, 13k tempos as fast as 10k pace and the hardest interval workout you do is 6 x 800.

I'm sorry but this is just dumb. First of all unless your name is doo doo, you are as much as a troll as I am.

Secondly, OAR isn't that good of a book period.

The perfect mile - that's a great running book.

OAR just isn't that good compared to how much people revere it. Parker just isn't that good of a writer. The story is lame.

Not every runner has to worship OAR.

While I wouldn't say that OAR is a bad book by any means, I don't think that it's the greatest book about running ever like some here seem to think. The part about racing disguised as some Finish miler was just too weird for me. I was reading along and enjoying the book, and then I read that little section and just stopped and said "what the f***?" I expect things to be a bit exaggerated and somewhat unrealistic in a book, but that's one of those divergences from reality that goes a bit too far and just ends up being a bit disappointing.

That truly is a bad book....

also thinker abouter wrote:

Easy: Running Start to Finish by John Stanton. Stanton has about a 2:40 PB but considers himself enough of an authority on running to write a book, but his authority comes from owning about 90 running stores, mostly in Canada. Sadly, this is probably the best-selling book on running in Canada because of how Running room stores push it.

The book contains little information, half-truth, lousy training schedules and is very poorly edited with respect to sections and clarity.

http://www.amazon.com/Running-Start-Finish-John-Stanton/dp/155105096X

The fastest training schedules offered are for a 38-minute 10k, 1:30 half and 3-hour marathon. There are no training schedules for a 5k, even if you have a goal as modest as a sub-20 5k.

To run a 38:00 10k, Stanton suggests a 29k long run, 13k tempos as fast as 10k pace and the hardest interval workout you do is 6 x 800.

God on The Starting Line

Barefoot runner - the Abebe Bikila story. Written as a novel by someone who clearly has no understanding of sport whatsoever

It must be (translation from original): The victory of the sheer willpower. It's a book from 1951 about Emil Zatopek, a year before his golden triple in Helsinki. He was famous in Europe by that time (gold in 10000m and silver 5000m at London Olympics, double European champion from previous year, several WR in 10k), although not a hero. The author was writing the book on command from political authorities (The Central headquarters of Communist party) and in every sentence, it was mentioned, that Emil had achieved his success because of the collective working attitude and because of the new system that allowed him to deliver his performances to the working masses. Very, very lame book, without any good information on running, except for beautiful rare pictures that had never been reprinted again.

From the newer books: Running to the limit (Tergat's book) written by Jurgen Wirtz. I was very disapointed, knowing that Tergat is a smart person, and despite that authorized such a childish book.

Those of you critiquing Once a Runner have never read a truly bad book. I understand that it isn't fine literature, but at least it is entertaining and a decent story.

I've got an autographed copy of Jeff Galloway's "Return of the Tribes to Peachtree Street," which has to rank right up there on the list of unfortunately written books (sorry Jeff). It is a blend of fiction and training advice that is just poorly done. I made myself read it, though, many years ago. I seem to remember lines like, "he found that by easing up, he could go faster!" and accounts of Gallowalking through sub-16 minute 5Ks, or something like that. I should break it out again and browse through- it might give me some good ideas for some summer training!

I agree about Tergat's book- disappointing, but my interpretation was that either it was A) a children's book to begin with, or B) something was really lost in the translation.