The main interest of the book is that it can be read in many different ways.

Indeed, the Roche couple insists on the need to leave room for intuition, sensations and listening to the body. So if you like a Cartesian approach to training (with a nice chart and statistics that only you understand), this part will probably leave you wanting more. While they do not neglect the technical aspects and offer small, very practical training plans, they favour anecdotes from the daily life of the SWAP team. The second part develops the main principles of what should be the training of the “happy runner.” Megan and David point out, among other things, that just because it’s easy doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an effort (first principle: “Easy means easy, not the absence of pain”) and that you become strong by working on your speed (third principle: “Build strenght from speed”). Let’s Leave Room for Sensations Photo : courtesy On the contrary, they draw on their respective experiences, using anecdotes from their teams and proposing reflections that sometimes seem to be “common sense,” but that it is always useful to keep in mind. Contrary to what titles such as “Power yourself with Kindness” or “Know your “why?”” might suggest, the two authors do not get lost in long philosophical considerations, disconnected from the reality of athletes.

The first rule, “Embrace the process,” invites readers to put races and competitions into perspective, to place them in a broader framework that includes training and even everyday life.

Cat bradley ultra runner