Born to Run by Christopher McDougall

I'm thinking about trying to catch a deer with my bare hands.

NO?

You don't think I can do it?

You really should have more faith in me than that. 

I just finished reading Born to Run by Christopher McDougall.  It really and truly has got me thinking about trying to out run a deer.  Do you think it was really possible back in the hunter and gatherer days?   If a deer can't sweat and run at the same time...and it would get overheated in just over 6 miles.....

I can totally run 6 miles...

Okay.  Maybe I will work on my strategy a little bit more first.  But it's got me thinking.  Just like I've been thinking lately that if I could be any fictional character ever I'd be Ayla from the Earth's Children Series.  I'd like to rock the tone, gorgeous, hunter/gatherer body AND know all she knows about medicinal herbs.

But that's another story.  And this story is about Born to Run.  Born to Run is a mix of history about the Taruamara running tribes, good running advice, and stories about some of the more famous ultra runners from the US.

Before reading this book I didn't really know anything about ultra running.  I guess I thought you run marathons and that's it.  I ended up changing my bookmark half way through to a piece of paper just so I could jot down things I wanted to google later.  Like Jenn Shelton.  If I can't be Ayla in another life then I would like to be just like Jenn Shelton someday.
Anyone who is any kind of recreational runner would enjoy this book I think.  The following is my favorite part.  Which will someday find it's way onto an index card and be thumb tacked to the wall in front of my treadmill right next to the list of the 1996 Churchill County Cross Country race times.  That Katrina Flanders....she was fast.  And I aim to catch her someday.

 
Caballo's Lesson #2: Think Easy, Light, Smooth, and Fast.

You start with easy, because if that's all you get, that's not so bad.
Then work on light. Make it effortless, like you don't give a shit how high the hill is or how far you've got to go.
When you've practiced that so long you forget you're practicing, you work on making it smooth.  You won't have to worry about the last one - you get those three, and you'll be fast.