Running Like a Girl by Alexandra Heminsley

Reviewed By Carol Sargent – “I LOVED THIS BOOK”

I really enjoyed it, as a runner I "got it"! I understood her hesitation to get started, her fear of failure, her inability to believe in herself, her total lack of confidence and motivation. The book is great because it starts with an overweight, unfit lady who reluctantly sets herself some goals and finds herself on a journey of self-discovery. She re-connects with her father who she hasn't had much in common with since puberty through a mutual respect of firstly, what he actually achieved in his younger years and the effort involved and then through the unfailing support and advise which he is able to give her at every stage of her training and even during her races.

This book is hilarious to existing runners because we have been through it and thought all the negatives and feel her pain but also because we have experienced the life changing highs that success brings. I don't mean winning a race, because few of us will ever do that, I mean finishing something that you thought was impossible!

But this book, I feel, is a must read for ALL beginners because it says so clearly that it's ok to be tired, scared, despondent. It's ok to feel like you want to give up but look what is achievable for an ordinary, overweight, unfit person who eats wrong things, if you do try, and you don't give up. There is a runner in most of us (body permitting) and anything is possible.

I'm glad she covered her injuries because for a beginner that can be enough to stop you but this shows that you can have an injury, get treatment, do physio, recover and continue, it doesn't have to be the end, but it could so easily be the excuse!

The history in part 2 was fascinating and insightful as I'm sure most of us had no idea of the struggles of the first long distance female runners and the negativity they encountered and their amazing strength of character that saw them achieve their goals and pave the way for others. As for the references to injuries and events etc at the tail end of the book, it's an excellent idea for new runners as it gives masses of information which is really useful. I have to admit I skimmed through these pages as I'm sure most existing runners will, knowing why it's there but amazed to find that I knew it all anyway! Having the injury part is useful because that can be referred back to at any time if you feel a niggle and want to check if it's anything to worry about.

In summary, this book had me laughing, brought a tear to my eye and made me feel very proud. This is not just her story it's the story of all ordinary but extraordinary runners.

About Carol

I've always enjoyed sport and keeping fit, I actually can't imagine my life being anything other than hectic and full on and now my kids are older there is more time for my sport instead of theirs!!! My love of running started when a personal trainer told me I absolutely COULD do it, even when I thought I couldn't! We trained for the Eastleigh 10 km road race and I was panicked ( which for anyone who knows me, knows that I panic about most things)!!

That race, 12 years ago was my first step to the best time of my life. I now have 4 marathons, 7 half marathons, 2 Hell Runners, 2 Brutal's, a 24 hour team endurance race ( soon to be 2) and more 10km road races, cross country races and park runs than I care to think about under my belt. Not to mention an amazing set of friends who enjoy doing these things with me. Most of this I have achieved since joining HERC.

I have also started to dip my toe into triathlon and am finding myself enjoying that too. My husband and best friend is my biggest motivator, he never ever fails to encourage me and he thinks I'm capable of everything and anything. He is always there to support me and be my pack horse! Running is a way of life for me and although sometimes my body screams 'enough' thankfully my head always knows best, I've never yet fallen out of love with running but I often get frustrated with what I see as my lack of progress. My worst criticism of myself would be my lack of competitiveness, I'm far happier to help others achieve than I am to push myself