My favorite of the three running books my Mom gave me for Mother’s Day was Running on Empty: An Ultramarathoner’s Story of Love, Loss, and a Record-Setting Run Across America by Maschall Ulrich.
In the book, Marshall describes his great adventure running from coast to coast. I was a bit worried that I wouldn’t enjoy it since I am not a marathon runner, let alone an ultra-marathon runner, but the running talk was very down to earth. Apparently, when you are running 3,000 miles you don’t worry too much about your split times. 😉
Most of the story is about the mental and emotional issues he faced on the road. Although he also details his physical struggles, because he had to put those out of his mind to reach his goal, the psychological struggles take the forefront, and I found those easy to relate to.
One thing that struck me was his selfishness, and his unapologetic honesty about it. He admits up front that his running took precedence over his family, and while he regrets the damage that did to his relationships with his children, he doesn’t seem to wish he had made different choices. He had to run and run to deal with what he was (or wasn’t) dealing with. Still, it makes me wonder if a wife and/or mother could do the same thing to such acclaim, without getting judged for neglecting her husband and children. (I have added Run Like A Mother by Dimity McDowell and Mile Markers by Kristin Armstrong to my reading list to see what they have to say about this!)
Maybe I was too wrapped up in the story, but I didn’t really come away with any great insights into running or life. On the other hand, when my family thinks I am taking running too seriously with my 5:00 am wake-up calls and ice baths, I can point to Marshall and say, “He had his toenails removed so they wouldn’t cause any issues–at least I’m not that crazy!”
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I'm going to have to check it out. I did read Mile Markers. It's not so much a story but it's based separated in topics that's she's wrote for Runners World. I still enjoyed it and her perspective. It's really what lit the "fire" in me to give running another try
I enjoyed the book too. But you're right, I don't think a woman could write a book from that same perspective without being ripped to shreds. I reviewed it on my site in April! http://jillwillrun.com/2011/04/26/running-on-empt…
I use to be that person when my husband would have toe nails fall off! I would say "why do you do it?" Well, now I know! I wouldn't go as far as hurting my relationship or nor would I run if I knew it would hurt me possibly. I love the fact that you get up early and do it, I can't. However, I prefer to run after work to release the stress. I love putting my feet in ice water afterwards too, since I've done that and bi-weekly massages my neuropathy has died down a lot!