Product Description

Hailed by the "Wall Street Journal" and featured twice in six months in cover stories in "Runner's World" magazine, First's unique training philosophy makes running easier and more accessible, limits overtraining and burnout, and substantially I cuts the risk of injury-while producing faster race times.The key feature is the "3 plus 2" program, which each week consists of: quality runs, including track repeats, the tempo run, and the long run, which are designed to work together to improve endurance, lactate-threshold running pace, and leg speed; and aerobic cross-training workouts, such as swimming, rowing, or pedalling a stationary bike, which are designed to improve endurance while helping to avoid burnout.With detailed training plans for 5K, 10K, half marathon, and marathon, plus tips for goal-setting, rest, recovery, injury rehab and prevention, strength training, and nutrition, this program will change the way runners think about and train for competitive races.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3172 in Books
• Published on: 2007-12-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Customer Reviews

Efficient Training Method
I've always had the theory that if everyone who trained for a sport would cut their training time in half, their performance would improve. While this book doesn't advocate that exactly, it proves the idea that training a lot less does improve performance. The method is called the FIRST program, which stands for Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training.

The book is for anyone who wants to improve their running performance and is divided into 4 sections. The first section explains the FIRST approach, where a "3 plus 2" format is the foundation. This means you have 3 quality runs each week and 2 cross training workouts.

The second section is how to follow the program. Briefly, one day is a cross training day, then a "track repeats" day, then a cross training day, then a "tempo run" day, a day of rest, a "long run" day, and then either another rest day/or optional cross training day. Cross training days include activities such as cycling or swimming.

The 3rd section covers performance factors which include such things as running in hot and cold climates, nutrition, and injuries (readers who have plantar fasciitis that interferes with their running might also be interested in The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution).

Lastly, Section 4 covers supplemental training, which I feel is an often overlooked/skipped part of running training. Here you get info such as instructions and pics on how to strength train and stretch for running (important!!).

The book ends with a bonus section on how to qualify/train for the Boston Marathon. Additionally, you get an Appendix A (pacing table) and an Appendix B (how to calculate pacing).

Backed by studies conducted by the authors, this is a great resource for anyone who wants to get better results with less training.

Does what it says on the tin
Really intersting and clear book that will get you enthused about running and decreasing your time in a race. I'm training for a half marathon and the 3+2 method described in here actually works. There are some letters included of real people running but they don't make up the book and instead prologue a table or chapter solving the problems presented. Very useful table are included so you know what speed you should be running in speed intervals and tempo running. There are also structured suggstions on cross training. I've recommended this book to nearly all the people I know running who have complained about aches or just hitting a wall. The runs, stretches and tips in here really are invaluable and I feel so much stronger as a runner.

Useful marathon training manual, but needs metres not miles
I am a runner who has completed two marathons, best time 4:22. My goal is to get a 3-something finishing time for a marathon. I found this guide useful in constructing my own training plan for next year's run. It lays out well an incremental program for all abilities, with a variety of exercises, stretches, and strength trainings. It also gives a nice idea of how long & how fast to run each week when training depending on wanted finish time, the part I needed guidance on the most.
However there are a couple of down points about this book. Firstly, living in Finland, we only use kilometers, not miles. The book is filled with relevant times for number of miles run, and also uses "increase your speed by x seconds per mile". So this required some conversion. Also there are lots of letters in the book saying how great the book is. Whilst it's nice to see a few success stories, almost half the book is filled with these.

Still overall, it is a really useful training guide. Well thought out, and suited for all abilities. I would recommend this for anyone wanting to improve their marathon times.