Rating: 
Summary: Advanced Marathoning is a winner
Review: The dynamic duo of Pete Pfitzinger, renowned exercise physiologist and two- time Olympian, and Scott Douglas, former editor of the Running Times, have teamed up to write the latest and greatest text about marathoning. Quite simply, this book is a must read; the authors have produced a theoretically sound, easy-to-read, and entertaining manual for anyone seeking to run (i.e. as opposed to "finish" or "run-walk") a sub-four hour marathon. Advanced Marathoning has a number of outstanding features: Numerous easy-to-read, day-by-day, training plans. From peak mileage at 55 miles per week over 12 weeks to 93 miles per week over 24 weeks, nine different marathon schedules are laid out and explained with daily detail. A Multiple Marathons training plan. For runners who wish to tackle more than the standard yearly spring and fall marathon plan, the book details methods for racing marathons as close as four weeks apart. A sidebar in each chapter which profiles a world class marathoner. These tales from the trenches illustrate how some of the principles of marathon training are applied in real life. Practical advice about how to balance high commitment marathon training with the rest of a "normal" life. Since not all of us can make a living winning prize money in road races, the authors present practical tips for incorporating high mileage training into the rest of your busy life. An entertaining writing style. The best line of the book comes on page 205 where the authors warn about trying to run back-to-back marathons in less than 4 weeks: Your main concern should be about recovery, recovery, and more recovery not only from your first marathon but also from the lobotomy that led you to come up with this plan. Despite its many strengths, the book has two minor drawbacks: Hill training is glossed over. Hills are an essential part of almost any marathon training program. The authors acknowledge this, but they aren't specific about where, when, and how hills can be incorporated into a training plan. The core strength training and flexibility training sections are brief. Specific diagrams illustrating some of the exercises written about would have been very helpful. These drawbacks, however, pale in comparison to all of the "good stuff." To repeat, this book is a must read.
Rating:
Summary: It really works
Review: This is really the only book to read on marathoning if you are not just trying to make it through the 26.2 miles. Somewhere in the book, the author says, "We wish we could just tell you, do this, and you will run faster", but they know they have to explain to you why. Honestly though, if you just do what they tell you, you WILL run faster. I went from a 4-hr marathon to 3:34, qualified for Boston, and ran there (a legendary tough course) in 3:24. If that's not serious progress I don't know what is. Just buy the book, and follow their schedules, and you CAN achieve your goals! (N.B. this is not for those who want an "easy way out" - it is still a LOT of work. High mileage, hard speed sessions, etc. - but if you are motivated it will get you there.)
Rating:
Summary: It really works
Review: This is really the only book to read on marathoning if you are not just trying to make it through the 26.2 miles. Somewhere in the book, the author says, "We wish we could just tell you, do this, and you will run faster", but they know they have to explain to you why. Honestly though, if you just do what they tell you, you WILL run faster. I went from a 4-hr marathon to 3:34, qualified for Boston, and ran there (a legendary tough course) in 3:24. If that's not serious progress I don't know what is. Just buy the book, and follow their schedules, and you CAN achieve your goals! (N.B. this is not for those who want an "easy way out" - it is still a LOT of work. High mileage, hard speed sessions, etc. - but if you are motivated it will get you there.)
Rating:
Summary: The only book for serious marathoners
Review: This is the only book I have seen that really treats racing the marathon seriously. The preponderance of material out there relates to first-time marathoners who, in all honesty, are only looking to complete the distance, whatever else they might think they are doing. This information is of very little help to the experienced marathoner looking to improve performance and really move to the next level of actually racing the full distance. If that is what you want, this is the book. Period.
Note: while Pfitzinger's Road Racing for Serious Runners and Daniels' Running Rormula are equally good books for competitive runners, they focus on racing a variety of distances, so the marathoning information is understandably limited. If marathon performance is your focus, this book is really the way to go.
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