RunnerMom by Vickie Rance Leff and Kristi Greene, spiral-bound, 140 pages, RunnerMom (2004), ISBN: 0972965610
Finally a practical guide for moms and other busy women who want to add running to their lives. Full of real life tips to get and keep you motivated to stay fit. How to find the time, what to wear, how to get started, setting goals – are all in "RunnerMom". If you are a regular gal, mom or busy woman, this guide is for you. Learn to make running an enjoyable part of your life with our easy step by step program. You don't have to be an elite athlete to be a runner. Running can be fun for anyone. Authors Vickie Rance Leff and Kristi Greene are runner moms. They have made running a regular and fun part of their lives. Victoria Rance Leff is a 45 year old mother of two children, ages 8 and 6. After graduating from Ithaca College, she got her masters in social work at Simmons College in Boston. She began running as a way to handle the stress of working in oncology. She ran along the Charles River and completed (slowly) a few 5k and 10k races in her twenties and early thirties. After the birth of her second child at 39 she started running again to lose weight. Struggling to find the time to run while raising two young children, she ran on and off for a few years. Finally, with the help of other mothers and friends, she was able to integrate her love of running with being a full-time mom. At 44, she ran her first marathon and won her age division ("Camp Lejeune Marathon"), completed the Chicago, the New York and the Boston marathons. She lives with her husband and two children in North Carolina. Kristi Greene grew up in Texas. She earned a bachelor of art degree from the University of Texas in 1984 and went on to work in advertising for several years. In 1987 she began running to stay in shape. She quickly became addicted to the sport and started running almost daily, even up to the day before the birth of each of her children. Her son was born while she and her husband were living in France and her daughter was born a few years later in North Carolina. In North Carolina she began working in outdoor experiential education when both of her kids were in school. She is most proud of the three high ropes courses she has built with her employer. During her 15th year of running, she challenged herself to run a marathon before her 40th birthday. Having run only a few races, she turned to friends and colleagues for training advice. She completed her first marathon in February of 2001, four months before she turned 40, winning her age division with a time of 3:52. She ran the Chicago Marathon, finished the Boston Marathon and came in third in her age division at the Kiawah Marathon in South Carolina. What they offer in the RunnerMom book is their experience and wisdom to guide you through a great sport. They have learned not only from other runners and moms, but from their mistakes. Still, they do not consider themselves experts: "There are many more serious running books out there that can give you detailed technical information on the mechanics, nutrition and physiology of running. We just have fun running and hope you will too. It has become and remains a wonderful addition to our lives as moms".
