Run Your Butt Off!: A Breakthrough Plan to Lose Weight and Start Running (No Experience Necessary!) Paperback – March 15, 2011

My last year was a nightmare in terms of derailed exercise and it was finally time to (again!) restart my running. I didn't like running, but every few years I would lie to myself and pretend I did. Usually at least I'm biking or swimming (in addition to muscle-y type exercise) so I'm generally in O.K. shape. However, with age kicking in, work related time crunches and overall 'meh' I realized I wasn't doing much of anything endurance related. Plus, somehow I'd gained a few pounds I haven't seen since I was preggers. Not a good combination at all. I really needed to start MOVING again. So, what else, buy a book!This one is definitely geared to the total newbie runner, but that's what I wanted. I've done up to 10 milers in the past and I know that every time I start a 'program' I manage to hurt myself. Add age and increased weight and I knew I needed a different approach. This book certainly came through. It has a 'plan' that is not unfamiliar, but I've never tried before--it is a walk, then walk-run program that is EASY TO FOLLOW.I've read many plans and some are incredibly convoluted and detailed...just not necessary. This one breaks 30-34 minute exercise periods into varying blocks--starting with 1 minute intervals of walking and on up until you are running 30 minutes straight in 12 phases. The phases can correspond to weeks, or you can spend more time in each phase as needed. Some of the jumps between times seem more challenging when reading about doing it, but by the time you are there, you really are ready.Each phase corresponds to a chapter--there are nice motivational comments by people (realistic people!) who have done the program.Also, as the title points out, one of the points of this is to lose some weight. We are not talking gimmicks here, just a bunch of sound advice regarding what goes in vs. what comes out. Even if the weight doesn't change overly much, the measurements just might. Also, there is an emphasis on calories in vs. calories out, with room for you to make your own decisions about specific meal philosophies.One big plus, and something I've not been good about before, was the emphasis on logging. It's one of those things I knew I 'should' do and this was very motivating to do it. (I started using one of the many online versions of this) and boy did that make a difference when it came to the weight loss aspects! Even though I was mostly after the fitness, the eating modifications (and weight loss) really made a big difference.All in all this is eminently suitable to the new runner (and YAY a book that doesn't insist you buy fancy shoes until you are at a point when you might start actually needing them). As with most exercise books, I do wish a little more time was spent on the importance of a proper bra (need one of those sooner than the fancy shoes...). Very non-technical and a program that is easy to follow. I have found my 'run' again--no injuries and I'm back up to 30 minutes of running again...and looking for more. No pain, and lo-and-behold, this time I think I really do like the running.Highly recommended!JTG (well the non-greyhound in the family anyway!)Oh, and I also found a free app for my phone that I could plug the phases into and that makes the interval times even easier to follow.

For most of my life, I have HATED running. With a passion. It isn't like I didn't have any experience with it either: in school, I played soccer; I stopped playing soccer in high school, when the running requirements were upped. After I left high school, I spent 10 years in the Navy. Although I ran because I had to, it was always something I dreaded, and something to do because I had to. This book has changed the way that I feel about running.My biggest problem with running was always that it was too hard. I never was a natural runner; everybody was always faster than me. Running the 1.5 mile PRT in the Navy always left me out of breath, gasping for air. I realized with this book that I was going about the entire running thing all wrong.Instead of expecting you to be able to run like the wind at the beginning of this book, it just has you going for a short time. It tells you to run for either 30 seconds or a minute (I can't remember). Over time, this book has you building up until you can run for 30 minutes straight. From there, you can increase your running if you wish, slowly. This book also doesn't focus on the speed that you run. This is perfect for slow people like me. This book also doesn't force you to progress any faster than you're comfortable.I was able to skip past the first week, which requires that you can walk for an hour. I had been walking for at least a couple of years, but I wanted something more challenging. Once I transitioned to running, that first minute was hard. In the book, you walk between your bursts of running. I was so happy at first for those walking breaks.I injured my foot in the first week or two of this program, and had to temporarily suspend this program. I was able to get back into it after I healed, and now I am running again. I am on week 6, which has you running for 7 minutes and walking for 3 minutes at a time as a rest. That might not seem like much to some people, but as someone who would gasp for breath running up and down the street one time, this is a major thing for me. After the seven minutes, I'm not gasping for air either like I used to be.Even though there have been times in my life where I had to run, this is the first time in my life that I run and kinda like it. I'm not the fastest runner in the world, but I'm doing it; I'm really proud of the slow improvement that I've been seeing.As other reviewers have said, this is not a book for advanced runners. That's not the purpose of this book. This book is for those people who wish they could run, but never thought that they could because it is too hard.

I bought the Kindle edition and right away I read the first four chapters - then went back to page one and from now on will read ahead only one chapter at a time. Too much information too soon if I don't, as each chapter outlines the plan for the week.The hard copy book contains paper worksheets that can be written on. Obviously the Kindle edition doesn't. In Appendix B the book gives a URL to download "printable" worksheets from a website. Unfortunately, that website doesn't exist, so I had to make my own with Excel based on the examples shown in the "e-ink" book.Other than that, very informative, educational and motivational. I'm a 52 year old mother of grown children and I can do this!!

I'm a former runner/workout fanatic who packed on the pregnancy weight. In the 3 years since my kid was born, my body has turned on me...herniated disk, plantar fasciits, pnemonia...and 'no time' to run. I've had a few false starts over the last few years, and decided to give this book a try. It's not that I didn't 'know' what needed to be done to lose the weight, but I just couldn't seem to put the weight loss puzzle together. Now for the first time, I'm holding myself accountable for what & how much I eat rather than trying to follow a diet plan, and I'm easily succeeding at running by leaving the former all or nothing approach behind. I'm proud to say I went shopping for smaller jeans this week! I'm also glad Amazon is selling it...Runner's World is doing the free trial/installment plan of selling it. There's something...wierd about that, and I just can't find the words for it.