Running for Dummies by Florence Griffith Joyner, John Hanc, Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Synopsis

Running For Dummies is for everyone with a desire to run. If you’re a reforming couch potato, it helps ease you into a healthier lifestyle. If you have Olympic aspirations, take a look at different ways to improve your training. This easy-to-understand guide is also for those who want to:

• Lose weight
• Decrease blood pressure
• Live longer
• Relieve stress
• Boost creativity
• Find a fun way to exercise

Find dependable guidance for buying running shoes. Explore ways to maximize your training program. Discover the races you’ll enjoy running. Coauthored by the “World’s Fastest Woman” and World Record holder Florence (Flo-Jo) Griffith Joyner, Running For Dummies has world-class advice on these topics and many more:

• Nutrition and weight loss
• Hitting your stride
• Speed training
• Reaching your peak
• The day of the race
• Marathon training
• Identifying and treating injuries
• Cross-training and treadmill training
• Running for kids and seniors

Run around the block or around town. Tired of pavement? Run through the woods. Keep track of your personal progress in handy running logs in the back of the book and enjoy full-color photos of Flo-Jo competing. Improve your health, feel good about yourself, and have fun! With several million runners on the road today, you’ll find a lot of company, encouragement, and friends benefiting from this healthy and fun activity.

Library Journal

Fabled runner Griffith Joyner ("Flo-Jo") died in September 1998, in the midst of this book project, co-written with Hanc (The Essential Runner, LJ 3/1/94). In the familiar, attractive "...for Dummies" format, the usual subjects are covered: benefits, mechanics, motivation, shoes, nutrition, stretches, hill training, safety, weather, regimen, races (leading up to a marathon), injuries, cross-training, and weights. Photos of Flo-Jo enhance the section on techniques, stretches, and weights. Although the book is geared toward both sexes, one chapter addresses special concerns for women, children, and seniors. Overall, the authors have provided the tools beginning runners need while giving more advanced runners sound advice, too. The book is not gadget-happy, except for one superfluous section on cross-training equipment like stationary bicycles. An excellent purchase for both public and academic libraries. (Index and 16-page color photo tribute to Griffith Joyner not seen.)--Kathryn Ruffle, Coll. of New Caledonia Lib., Prince George, BC Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

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Biography

Florence Griffith Joyner, the "World's Fastest Woman," won three gold and one silver medal in track and field at the '88 summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, in addition to a silver medal at the '84 Games in Los Angeles. In 1989, she was voted "Most Outstanding Amateur Athlete in America" and was inducted into the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1995.
John Hanc is a running and fitness columnist for Newday and contributes frequently to Runner's World magazine. He is the author of The Essential Runner and The Essential Marathoner.