Book info

• Title Running With the Kenyans
• Author Adharanand Finn
• Year 2010
• Genre Sports

After years of watching Kenyan athletes win the world's biggest races, from the Olympics to big city marathons, Runner's World contributor Adharanand Finn set out to discover just what it was that made them so fast - and to see if he could keep up. Packing up his family (and his running shoes), he moved from Devon to the small town of Iten, in Kenya, home to hundreds of the country's best athletes. Once there he laced up his shoes and ventured out onto the dirt tracks, running side by side with Olympic champions, young hopefuls and barefoot schoolchildren. He ate their food, slept in their training camps, interviewed their coaches, and his children went to their schools. And at the end of it all, there was his dream, to join the best of the Kenyan athletes in his first marathon, an epic race through lion country across the Kenyan plains.

Thoughts

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this book. I run occasionally, but I’m not so obsessed with it that I was convinced I could read a whole book about running. However, that’s not all this was about. Part memoir, part investigation, the book tracks the author’s trip to Kenya, his preparation for a terrifying-sounding marathon, and his findings about what makes people run fast.

With Kenyan’s so very good at running, we get an insight into the bits and pieces that go into making them fast. Whilst it is about genetics and diet and training and barefoot running and so much more, we don’t get bogged down with too much detail. For me, it was a good insight into the science of being fast, without getting too heavy with the technical knowledge.

It was fun reading about some of the names I’ve seen on TV, Mary Keitany and Lornah Kiplagat, and seeing how incredibly shy they are in real life. It was also great to see the journey that everyone went on, how much passion they put into their running, and how simple things can be if you just concentrate on doing what you love. What with that, and a happy ending, I really enjoyed the read.

Rating: 4 / 5