I have always wanted to run a marathon. But every training schedule that I reviewed sounded too hard and too time consuming. I have 4 kids and can't spend hours upon hours training. This book makes me believe I really CAN train and run (and FINISH) a marathon. Not everyone will appreciate the fact that you aren't training for speed, but that's fine with me. I just want to run it (maybe walk here and there) and finish. Maybe after finishin a couple I'll want to train for speed, but for now, the writers of this book are speaking right to me. I love how they address the mental perspective and give you mental exercises to do in each chapter. This is a wonderful starting point for some, and is a book you'll go to over and over if you just want to stay in the game.