Chi Marathon: The Breakthrough Natural Running Program for a Pain-Free Half Marathon and Marathon - Softcover

"Learning the easiest way to run a marathon--like finding the easiest way to swim one--isn't undemanding. It's exacting, in place of exhausting. It requires critical, not reflexive, thinking. But that sort of difficulty is the sort that leads to Mastery, Happiness, and even a high-functioning brain. Chi Running is on the cutting edge of how people will pursue physical, mental and spiritual fitness in the 21st Century." --Terry Laughlin, author of Total Immersion: The Revolutionary Way to Swim Better, Faster and Easier


"Chi Marathon is the perfect plan for sustainable running for all ages, abilities and for all distances, whether you enter an event or not." --Mark Cucuzzella, MD, Professor, West Virginia University School of Medicine

"Running is meant to be enjoyed, not endured. Thanks to Danny Dreyer you can release your fear of injury so that you can enjoy what is important--the ability to get out into the open air and do what is so natural, pacifying, and nourishing to the mind and body." --Catherine McKiernan, former Olympian, world cross-country champion, and winner of the London, Amsterdam, and Berlin marathons

"Chi Marathon emphasizes the mental and physical components of running and encourages runners to be aware of how their bodies are responding during a run. The tone of the book is positive, and it supports the idea that proper technique is the key to pain-free running. The Dreyers expertly detail how to prepare for a race...many runners are likely to find value in the Dreyers' program." --Booklist

"The Dryers don't believe in "no pain, no gain" for runners. Instead, their holistic approach is a smarter and healthier way for runners to fully develop balanced body mechanics for an injury-free life. The old school, conventional running trends have created too much ill-health and pain for all athletes, but Chi Marathon changes all that. Regardless of your age and experience, you'll learn how to run efficiently from head to toe. The result is more enjoyable, and you will now finish marathons and other endurance races feeling refreshed rather than wasted." --Dr. Philip Maffetone, author of The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing

From the authors of the bestselling Chi Running, a game-changing training guide for injury-free long distance running.

In Chi Marathon, Danny Dreyer, creator of the revolutionary ChiRunning program, highly respected running coach, and accomplished distance runner, takes a whole-body approach to long-distance running—much like T’ai Chi—making ease and efficiency of movement the prime goal of one’s training. Chi Marathon is the first book to focus not on building stamina first (though that is covered here) but on how to run all those miles without harming your body. A staggering 80 to 90 percent of marathoners face injuries during their training. This book debunks the myth that marathoners need to push through and beyond pain, and presents a technique-based plan for pain- and injury-free, high-performance half and full marathons. Chi Marathon also shows how to improve your performance by developing your own race-specific training plan tailored to your event, and will help you cross the finish line feeling strong no matter your age, body type, or running ability.

-Run a marathon or half marathon free of pain and injury

-Transform your racing with the training triad: form, conditioning, and mastery

-Tap into your chi, an energy source more powerful and enduring than muscles

-Teach your mind and body to work together as a team and master your event

This is the book that distance runners have been waiting for. With Chi Marathon you can enjoy the run and feel confident no matter the distance.