The Complete Book of Running for Women by Claire Kowalchik (1999, 432 pgs.)

I just had to check this book out from the library because the picture of the woman running on the cover reminded me so much of myself (NOT!) This book is exactly what the title suggests--complete. It covers how to start, what to eat, what to wear, how to find the right shoes, cross-training, racing, injury prevention, and motivation. It also discusses special concerns that women have and how they can affect performance. From the perspective of a beginning runner, I found it very informative, and I have followed several of the suggestions the author has to offer. The best thing I have done is to start getting up a half hour earlier and having a small snack and a big cup of water. Before that I was going at it with an empty stomach, and I have a hard time drinking water in the morning without food. This has make a very noticeable difference. I still can't run our entire 3 mile route (I have to blame that on the uphill parts), but I'm doing better than when I started, and it is very exhilarating when I go a little farther than I did the jog before. It is still very hard in general, but I keep remembering a comment by the author that the first year of running for her was tough, but after that it was very fun for her. So in about eight or nine months, I'll be a running addict, right?