Road to Sparta #1 part 2 : SUMMER READING LIST

I have a pile of books next to me that I think will help me get started. But there's strange stories that appear randomly that are interesting and heartening. An example is from an ultramarathon that may be one of the most important things ever to happen in the United States.

From The International Herald Tribute (that I subscribe to on my new Kindle) a.k.a. The NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/24/us/politics/24baucus.html

Mr. Baucus, in an interview, said he had been preparing for this role since he was elected to the Senate in 1978, and viewed this as his moment — a

nd Montana’s — to make history.

“I think I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” he said in an interview in his office. “Here I am representing Montana in the United States Senate. I am at the point to be able to do something really significant, really meaningful, and it must be done.”

His interest in the issue is not new. In 2003, as Mr. Baucus was running a 50-mile ultramarathon, he lost his footing and tumbled, gashing open his head. He got up and kept running to the finish, looking so ghastly with blood caked over his right eye that a young boy cheering on runners from the sidelines refused to give him a high-five.

Two months later, Mr. Baucus needed emergency brain surgery to stop bleeding caused by the fall, giving him an up-close look at the health care system.

The surgery was done at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., which is known for delivering high-quality care at a moderate cost. But it was also done out of network, leaving Mr. Baucus with thousands of dollars in bills not covered by his gold-plated federal health insurance plan.

Since then, he and Mayo Clinic doctors have carried on a running conversation about how to encourage high-quality, rather than high-quantity, care.

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SO! If health care passes, it may be because the Senator had been trying to run 50 miles that day. And at the age of 61, too!

But these will be the other books I read while getting ready for a marathon, either Casablanca at the end of October, the Zagora Extreme Sand marathon (standard length) on New Year's Eve, or the Marrakesh Intl Marathon on January 31, 2010. Or if I could do all three, that would be a good start.

The plan then would be to do the Spanish ultratrek, 50km a day for 5 days, in July 2010. After that, the MdS and start doing longer than 50ks at one time.... makes me want to die thinking about it. But as I sit here and listen to Glenn Miller's string of pearls, it just takes the right attitude. Nice, easy, slow, don't-fight-it-but-give-yourself-to-it.

-What I Talk about When I talk about Running by Haruki Murakami. I first heard about this a year ago, and I love everything else this man has done, so I can be guaranteed a good and motivating read.

-Marathon: The Ultimate Training and Racing guide by Hal Higdon. The important thing is to find a good training plan once I get a base built up for this winter.

-Dr. George Sheehan : Getting Fit & Feeling Great, the ultimate runner philosopher.

-The China Study by Dr. Campbell

-The Engine 2 Diet, the China study in practice, by a pro triathlete, fire-fighter, entirely plant-based and anti- factory foods.

-The Lore of Running- Timothy Noakes.

For long, long, long, long distance running, flexibility is crucial so I have my two books on Capoeira and a book on stretching.

The best part is that I already own all of these books! The only one I don't have that I need is one called THE PURSUIT OF PERFECT by the living legend Tal Ben-Shahar. Seemingly a good book to help keep perspective and to grow, as only he has done for me in my life (after seeing his online Harvard positive psychology course).

OK! Next time I write I will share my strategies for cooking and following the E2 diet for this month. The hardest part is that my mom cooks one cake or batch of cookies after another, but always with fruit or something to help rationalize doing so. Mama, I love her.