Run for Your Life

Cucuzzella, a physician, offers readers a path to health and a sense of well-being in this detailed fitness guide. More and more studies show that “sitting is killing us,” Cucuzzella writes, asserting that movement is the cure. Despite the book’s title, he emphasizes the value of walking as much as running, and gives equal attention to marathon training, “exercise snacks,” “relearning to breathe,” and diet. Along with exercise tips, he provides simple anatomy lessons, such as on “the care and feeding of your fascia.” In keeping with his status as an Air Force Reserve lieutenant, Cucuzzella provides “drills” throughout, beginning with an “initial prescription” for sedentary people and culminating with an appendix that provides “drills for a lifetime.” More than half of all runners are injured each year, he notes, a concern he takes particularly seriously because it’s “too easy... for an injured runner to become a former runner.” As such, he emphasizes “prehab, not rehab” and advises readers to ignore the “no pain, no gain” saying in lieu of a “no pain, thank you” approach. A runner since 13 and a marathon finisher (2 hours 24 minutes), Cucuzzella clearly knows his subject matter and is well-equipped to provide advice and encouragement to runners (and walkers) of all levels. (Sept.)