Athletics Books

A good addition to a library of distance 'how to' books but not one I would suggest for anyone new to the sport who seeks specific instructions of what to do. This book provides a very good overview of the philosophy the half-iron distance training but is lacking in specific progressive training acts to undertake during each training phase.

Any triathlete or those interested in Ironman competitions will want to check out the invaluable tips in this book. Specific exercises are included.

I was thinking of moving up to the half- or full-ironman distance triathlon, and this book seemed a logical choice. As far as I know, it's the first volume dedicated to half-iron training and racing. The author spends the first few chapters going through the basic theory of training and "design science," but then dives right into the specific detail of the three sports and training for this distance. The individual chapters on swim, bike and run are as useful and detailed as any other triathlon book, with some later advances in bike aerodynamics, power metering, and running technique.

But the best and unique aspect of the book are the specific workouts, case studies and race strategies for the half-iron distance, including categories for beginner, veteran, and elite triathletes. What works for one group may not work for others. He does give separate examples for different levels, and beginners should stay with the simpler stuff in the book.

If you have read either Friel's TRAINING BIBLE or Byrn's GOING LONG, you'll feel at home with Rodger's similar approach, but his style and emphasis are different. His writing style is clear like Friel's, but he has more personal anecdotes and humor to go along with the scientific training principles. He used to train astronauts at NASA, so there is plenty of science and technology in the book, but also a lot of heart. Since he started later in life, he has more sympathy for beginners and the average or aging athlete than a pro triathlete or someone who coaches mostly pros. But make no mistake: he's a hard-racing, top-ranked age grouper with lots of world championship racing, especially Ironman and ultradistance, so some of the material can be quite challenging, but also inspiring.

Nice photos of famous folks at Kona, as well as good drawings and diagrams to illustrate swim, bike and run technique. About the only thing that could have been better would be to use the larger page format of the TRAINING BIBLE books, especially for tables and graphics, though for the money this is a well-printed publication.

Any avid sports person involved in triathlon courses will find THE PERFECT DISTANCE: TRAINING FOR LONG-COURSE TRIATHLON the first book dedicated exclusively to the half-Iron distance category. All workouts, nutritional guides and training tops are focused on this, but you needn't be a competitor to benefit from the tips in THE PERFECT DISTANCE. Anyone racer who wishes to race farther and faster will find the author/coach's tips an essential ingredient for success, making THE PERFECT DISTANCE a recommendation for both personal libraries and any public lending library strong in sports and games.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This books provides a good knowledge base for Personal Trainers. However, if you don't already know this stuff and you are a Personal Trainer already, you should feel stupid. I use it as a reference or a refresher when I forget things. Buy it if you want good general knowledge.

Just the book I was looking for! This book took a lot of what I learned in four years of college, and put it into 21 concise chapters. The perfect review for anyone with a fitness background, or a great guide for anyone looking to get started in the field. Scientific information in an easy to comprehend text.

This is one of the very best books on exercise and fitness I have read. It takes the very latest scientific research in exercise physiology and makes it easy to read and easy to understand. You would be hard pressed to find a more useful resource for trainers, coaches, or anyone interested in the hows and whys of fitness.

This book is very straight forward and easy to understand. I used this book as an adjunct to a completely different Text Book for my Personal Trainer Certification course. The text book at times had been difficult to follow. However, I purchased this book and it helped me to bridge the gap between some of the concepts that I needed help with, as I was studying on my own. I am new to the Fitness Industry and I wanted to really "get the idea" on how to design a Program for clients. This book does exactly what it says it does: Creates a Bridge between Theory into Application. You can learn the concepts and guidelines, but bridging these components into application was difficult and vague for me. I need to know the "how to's" and the "how come" behind the answers. If you are discerning and have to understand the mechanics behind the answer, this book is what you need. I am a self taught person. I have a drive to teach myself what I can from books. And if material is not very well presented, I will find the resource that helps me. This book is the resource that was my best study companion for my Personal Trainer Certification Exam.

I will put it this way, The Personal Trainer Text book "Talks -AT- You." Douglas Brooks: Program Design for Personal Trainers, book: "Speaks -TO- You." If you don't already know the concepts presented in this book, then congratulations for taking the initiative to enhance your working knowledge. This book is for you.

Since I am new to the Personal Fitness Trainer Industry, I am so grateful to the author for sharing his years of fruitful experience with us into presenting what works best. I was feeling a bit frustrated while I was studying for my Personal Trainer Certification course. I said, Okay. These are the guidelines... but "HOW DO YOU IMPLEMENT IT ALL?" I wanted to learn how "bridge theory into application." So, when I came across this book, I bought it. And then... everything had started to -come together-! I did absolutely great on my written exam. And I say, I owe a lot of my "working knowledge" and successful time taking my written exam to the author of this book. If you are like me, and want to really understand the mechanics behind the guidelines this is the resource for you.

There is a lot to learn being a Personal Trainer, especially if you are new... like me. I'll say this. I paid a bit more for this book than what I could later find it for. I paid $60 for this book being a USED BOOK. And the clencher was that on the inside of the book, written in pencil was the price: $1.50. Argh! I paid $60 for what someone paid less than $2.00 for. I thought about this. And I will say this, this book is worth every cent I paid for & is worth more than it's weight in gold. Knowledge is power. And this is the book that will give me the cutting edge I need in this industry to get to where I want to be & learn to deliver the effective programs I want to know how to do. And not by blind application & rote, but yeilded by thought provoking awareness and complete "know how" vigilence.

When I am done reading this book, you can be sure that I will buy his latest books. I am waiting for my Personal Trainer Certification exam results... but when you kicked butt on an exam: You Know It before you leave!

I really like this book. I TTC but I'm also a runner. I was very happy to know you can be pregnant and run at the same time. I thought running was a taboo for pregnant ladies. It shows you step by step by month on how to run, eat, etc. GREAT book!!

I picked up Running and Pregnancy before we even started trying to conceive so that I would be educated about my exercise choices once we achieved a pregnancy. I am pleased to say that this book is very realistic and doen-to-earth. They debunk some of the exercise myths (don't let your heart rate get above 140) and provide reasonable guidelines to active pregnant women. I am almost 16 weeks, still running strong and look forward to continuing to run through my pregnancy.

I found this book to be easy to read and full of advice based on the latest studies. I enjoyed the book because it is the most comprehensive reference on current information about running and pregnancy I have found.

The book is written by a woman who has run with two pregnancies, and is full of stories from other women who have run with their pregnancies. It talks about their experiences, motivations, and suggestions/cautions. The book also provides material about how running and conception interact, diet, strengthening exercises, stretching, and the truth about aerobic exertion during pregnancy.

As a runner, I think the book is an excellent addition to my pregnancy book collection, and recommend it to all similar runners who are thinking about or have become pregnant.

This is a fun book that details briefly the changes that happen to your body during pregnancy and focuses on the runners body. The author had first hand experience of running throughout her pregnancy. The factual data is supported by 2 page case studies of women runners who had children. Some of them ran all the way through, some switched to cross training and some had to stop. There is a whole spectrum of experiences.

It is an inspirational and supportive book, and helped me get through my exercise on days when I did not feel like it. I also passed it on to my mother when she had issues about my exercise .I recommend it to any runner thinking about having a baby.

Wonderful read, got for a gift and he has loved reading all about the history, says it is very neat to learn where it all began!

Don't get misled by that nasty orange dustcover, this is a fun and rowdy read for both Sooner and Horn fans as well as for anyone who wants to get a taste of the most colorful sports rivalry in America. Shropshire's witty essays give insight into the culture of both locker rooms and include some stories that even diehard fans will not have heard. Don't read this book in bed--my wife finally got tired of being awakened by my laughter and took refuge in the guestroom. Two corrections for the author: 1)it was OU President George Lynn Cross, not President Bill Banowsky, who first told the regents that "he wanted to build a university that the football team could be proud of" and 2)it is the Oklahoma-Texas rivalry, not the Texas-Oklahoma rivalry.

As an OU Alumni, who "was there" at more Sooner Red River victories in the "Switzer and Stoops Eras" than covered in the book, my recommendation is that "Runnin with the Big Dogs" should be renamed "Fightin with the Gladiators"! Shropshire numerous attempts at home spun humor often fall incomplete(not up to par with Dan Rather and certainly not Will Rogers). The book has the same familar style of Texan "truthiness" to it that we're use to hearing from another Longhorn Fan who lives in the White House. The author is clearly biased toward the Longhorn side of the barbed wire fence (otherwise he would have mentioned Oklahoma's victory in a real "Red River War" in a long standing border dispute between Oklahoma and Texas in 1931 with Oklahoma National Guardsmen standing down the Texas Rangers). The one subject covered extensively that I enjoyed was on former OU Player Joe Don Looney. It brought back memories attending football games with my Dad in the early 60s when Looney was star halfback at the UCLA of the Southwest (University of Cameron Lawton Area).

Dallas, TEXAS, denizen Mike Shropshire, former drinkin' buddy of Joe Don Looney, claims to have written a balanced look at "the True, Unvarnished story of the Texas-Oklahoma Football wars." Bevo poop! Although the cover resembles a myopic blimpbasket view of the Cotton Bowl 50 yard line on gameday (1/2 crimson, ½ burnt orange,) the book starts with a long, lugubrious re-celebration of the 2005 Longhorn National Championship in Pasedena. Their first in 35 years. [Hoopla. Hoopla. yawn. yawn.] Shropshire forgets to mention that during this long Longhorn dry spell, the Sooners cruised the Sooner schooner to 4 more (1974, 1975, 1985, 2000.)
At times wallowing in egregious generalizations - like the hallucination that all Sooners were cheering FOR the Longhorns in the Rose Bowl (Dude! My favorite football teams are the Sooners, Da Bears, whoever is playing UT at the time and whoever is playing Oregon (Duckin' corrupt cheatin' - karma gotta get `em!) once the book settles into its purpose, it does live up to its titular hype. Shropshire's premise, supported with aplomb and humour, is that both program's goal is to beat the other in the annual contest - that they frequently happen to have to amass enough talent to beat everybody else in the country in the process is just gravy on the grits.
There are some photos in the middle - more would be better, and color (to see the beautiful crimson and cream) would be best. And it has an index - how else to locate the shy, quiet, blushing Boz?
/TundraVision, Amazon Reviewer, former annual Adolphus resident, Commerce & Cotton Bowl Survivor, urging everyone to watch TV's bright "Friday Night Lights" before the dullards at NBC prematurely end its season.

I am part of an on line running club and one person came on saying how this was a great book. I bought it pretty much that same day on line along with 3 other books on running.
While the book may be a good idea for a new runner, if you can already go a mile or two, you can skip this one. It is strickly for beginners.
If you are new at running, great book!

This book has changed the way I see running and has inspired me to train for a marathon. It's so incredibly helpful and motivatingThere isn't one person I haven't showed it to who hasn't wanted to start running. This includes my flatmate, her dad, her little sister, my mom, and my best friend. The enthusiastic approach, stories of inspiration, charts, and running plans for every stage of runner has turned it into something I read and use every day. It's the best.

I bought this book in March and I have been running ever since. I was an overweight asthmatic who hated to exercise but was determined to get fit. This book made it easy to start running with their 60-second-secret plan. They have you run for 60 seconds, walk for 3 minutes and repeat three times. Each week you repeat more times or run for longer stretches of time. I found it easy to get going and stay motivated. With the help of this book I have now been running for over 4 months and can run for 13 minutes, walk two minutes and repeat twice!

I love the format of "Running made easy" it's modern, exciting and filled with practical advice and information that's fun to read and mostimportantly easy to apply. This is the first book on running that I really enjoyed reading and the only book I continually refer to. The book has a wealth of information on all aspects of running. The personal stories of other runners achievements were exactly what I needed to motivate me to start running again and with this book as a handy reference I trained for and succesfully completed my first marathon. I highly recommend this book to both existing runners and those considering taking up running.

A sports medicine PH D told me I wouldn't be able to run again ...but I proved him wrong!! Due to bad calcium deposits, the doctor told me that the pain would grow and grow until I wouldn't be able to run again.

I think you are supposed to go through the exercises twice but I did them only once, 20 min a day for 20-24 days.

I am no athlete but since then, I ran a Full Marathon, several Half-marathons and plenty of ten millers. That was 3 years ago, I still run between 20 - 40 miles a week. I run pain free, worst case I get a slight discomfort that I can't tell if it is from regular training for the past ailment anymore.

This book is about how to move efficiently. Maybe, I just changed the way of moving that caused the problem.

10 months on, I just want to say I hope I didn't appear too critical of this book. I highly recommend it. It's a deserved classic, and a bargain. It really is a no-brainer... buy it! You'll be glad you did. As long as you are prepared to spend time following the program. The methods focus on subtle movements, not straining for hours in the gym.

The only 'down side' is that it focuses on technique only, not nutrition, training schedules etc. But I guess that is the focus of the book. And does an excellent job. It is presented in a no-nonsense, straightforward and quite personable style.

Heggie himself is/was a student of the methods of Moshe Feldenkrais, who appears to have been a remarkable mind is his own right.

My original comments were (and are still true)... This is an older running book. I bought it together the brilliant 'chi running' which is much more recent. I thought it was dated at first, but I gave it a chance and it was worth the time. It did help my technique, as I was training for a first marathon. I valued the contribution, but don't make this your only training manual.

This book takes you through a thorough series of Feldenkrais exercises to open up your movement in your running. He not only shows and tells you how to find a healthy, easy running style, he gets you to feel it. Using the exercises in this book I eliminated knee pain I've had for years and finally got rid of the pain from an upper back injury no specialist seemed able to fix. I have to say thanks to Jack Heggie for writing this book.

The book applies the Feldenkrais method to running in a very logical way. It begins with the big picture, and then focuses on the details. The exercises in this book are well thought out, and WILL make a difference in your running. I noticed a significant improvement after only the first chapter, and I just kept improving with each subsequent chapter. You begin by studying the relationship between the upper and lower body while walking. The shoulders should move in a direction opposite the hips. Most people, myself included, do not do this properly and it affects breathing and everything else involved in running. I spent an evening working on this, and immediately noticed a huge improvement in my running. Breathing suddenly became easier, and my stride became less jarring. Through each chapter, the improvements continued. This book is a must for every runner. It will make all the difference.

I got this book to extend my rubber resistance training. It's the only book on the topic I found at Amazon at the time. I was interested in the book but when it came and I saw the 2 small blue rubber bands attached, I was happy that it was an inclusive package. You didn't have to go out to buy the exercise equipment now that you had the book. I tried out much of the exercises and they do feel good. However, the rubber band feels harsh in my hand after a while and I have to do the exercises with my exercise gloves so I don't burn or chafe...

Simple, easy to follow, this book outlines some great at-home workouts. I was especially impressed with the "chair" exercises, important for me at this moment since I have a broken foot.

I not only would recommend it to all, I will buy many copies and give them as gifts to friends I know need exercise that is easy and fun to do.

Great book. The illustrations are clear and easy to see, and they make sense for a beginner. It stresses the importance of stretching, warmup, and aerobics, but its focus is on strength. I recommend thin gloves for using the rubber bands.

I now own a lot of resistance training books of various sorts - using dumb-bells, or the thera-band. This book is unique, the only one I found using large rubber bands (I didn't even know such things existed). I had hesitated to buy this book because of the reviewers who said the rubber bands were harsh in thier hands. When I got the book and tried the exercises I found there was absolutely no discomfort from using the bands without gloves, that was a relief. In addition, I LOVE the exercises, they somehow get at muscles in a different way than other methods. The exercises are well explained and the photographs make it easy to see exactly how to do each one. This book is among my favorites. I did not want to use the order form for new bands at the back of the book because I was afraid prices might have gone up or something since the book was published, so I did a web search on SPRI Rubber Band and found a site called LeighCrews.com, or DynaLife (it's connected somehow) where you can buy rubber bands of different widths for more or less resistance. (Hint: if you buy 20 instead of 1, the price per unit goes down drastically.) Overall, this is a great book and a great method for getting in shape and staying in shape.

As an "outsider", Greg Emmanuel quickly grasped the dynamics of the long-lasting rivalry between Ohio State and The University of Michigan. While the history of the games' action through the years is quite thorough, his accurate comparison of universities represented by these two great football powers is very perceptive. Having graduated from both schools, I would agree with the comparisons. It's a good read.

An entertaining read about arguably the greatest rivalry in sports, and everything that went into the 100th game in 2003. The detailed appendix, notes, and index can settle most arguments and bets on what's happened over the course of the rivalry. A good holiday gift idea for any sports fan (and obviously any Ohio State or Michigan fan).

Emmanuel successfully weaves the story of the 100th meeting between Michigan and Ohio State -- the 2003 battle in Ann Arbor to decide the Big Ten championship -- into the century long history between these two perennial powers.

The narrative is compelling, and uncovers the historial reasons for the bitter rivalry between the two states and spends ample time on past classic meetings. It also gets into the not-so-subtle differences between the fans of the two schools, which is the real sustaining power for the rivalry today.

All in all, this is an excellent look at one of sports' greatest rivalries and would be a great addition to the book collection of alums or fans of either school, or just college football fans in general.

If your going to take the NATABOC test buy this book! No doubt...you need it!

This edition of the book has several new questions. The simulated written sym is a nice additon to the book. Aside fromt he questions, the study hints are helpful in preparing your studying strategies.

I am currently still using this exam review, and am finding it very useful. It divides AT into five separate categories, and it's easy to identify where your weak spots are...and what areas you need to study more closely. If you are taking the BOC in the next year, I would definately recommend using this book as a tool when studying.

Easy to follow. Starts off easy and adjusts with a learning curve for all interesting in different aspects of Biomechanics.

Book is very in depth. Pictures in the book are pretty lame. Although, everything is explained well in the book. Not worth 65 dollars, buy the product used if you can.

This book is very accessable, which was obviously one of the goals of the author.

Read it slowly and carefully and you will undoubtedly aquire some of the understanding necessary to consider human movement in terms of natural mechanics.