Book Review : Paul Tergat , running to the limit

I had just finished reading this book which consists of 222 pages. This book is a short biography of former marathon world record holder Paul Tergat. It is well laid out and provided Paul Tergat's running training, nutrition and of course his life. There are a lot of photos and running tips as well.

Paul Tergat , running to the limit

Here are some of the tips from Tergat:

How to make your first race a success

• For your first race, you should choose an easy course with a few uphill sections as possible

• Take your last meal 3 or 4 hours before the start of your race. Drink enough. In the last 1 or 2 hours you can still go for an energy bar and water or sport drink.

• Don't run in new shoes. Use the ones that you have already been using

• Line up in the last third of the field. Do this so you don't stand in the way of faster runners and it will be easier for you to find your race pace on the first kilometer

• Try to run in a comfortable pace from the beginning. Don't follow other runners. Most of the runners, even the experienced ones than you , begin too fast.

• If you are able to, overtake some runners on the last kilometer. It will help you to make your first race a real success.

Tergat's Thoughts

• If you want to achieve something special, a personal best, a record or breaking a barrier, you have to sacrifice yourself. In training, there is no shortcut.

• Never think something is impossible before you try. When you say it is impossible, that means you have given up already

• Never blame your personal surroundings when you are not able to reach your goals. It is not your background that counts but what you makes out of your life. Your destiny lies in your hands.

In one of the chapters, it "talk" about Gabriele Rosa whose company, ROSA & ASSOCIATI, train a lot of famous marathoners like Paul Tergat, Moses Tanui, Martin Lel, Sammy Korir, Robert Cheruiyot and many more.

"Train yourself to enjoy yourself and to improve your physical shape" - Dr Rosa

"Nothing is impossible if you try" - Paul Tergat

Overall this book provides the bio of Paul Tergat, training tips for runners and tips about running in Kenya. This is one of those biography book that won't bore you with too many words.