Running: Cheaper Than Therapy: A Celebration of Running

by Chas Newkey-Burden

A witty and expertly compiled compendium of running wisdom and humour.From a short jog that lifts your mood to the closing stages of a marathon when you feel physically exhausted but emotionally invincible all at once, running delivers every Cheaper Than Therapy is a celebration of the pastime that always makes you feel better, covering every aspect of running life from jogging etiquette and the things we both love and hate about it, through to the weirdest and most wonderful marathons around the world. Also included are the funniest spectator signs ever, cool advice that could improve your PB and brilliantly insightful running philosophies.Complete with guest contributions from Parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt, political strategist Alastair Campbell, Olympian Liz Yelling and comedian David Baddiel, this brilliantly knowing compendium will be appreciated by joggers, triathletes and runners who know the joy of putting on a pair of trainers and getting out there.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help

209 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Chas Newkey-Burden is a British journalist and author. His books include The Reduced History of Britain, Great Email Disasters and Not In My Name: A Compendium Of Modern Hypocrisy (co-written with Julie Burchill). He has also written unauthorised biographies of Simon Cowell, Paris Hilton, Amy Winehouse, Alexandra Burke and six official publications for Arsenal football club.

He has written for publications including The Guardian, Four Four Two, Total Football, Time Out, Attitude and The Big Issue; and internet sites including Ynetnews, The First Post and Guardian Blogs. A former Contributing Editor to Loaded magazine and former editor of the football website icons.com, where he was also Dennis Bergkamp's official biographer. Interviewees include David Beckham, Ricky Gervais, Frank Lampard, Rachel Stevens and James Bourne.

Newkey-Burden has discussed his books, football news and the Middle East on TV and radio shows including Sky News, CNN, BBC Breakfast News, The Today Programme on Radio 4, Five Live Breakfast, TalkSport, Capital Gold and BBC Radio London. He was featured on the BBC 2 documentary Cold War Kids, the Sky One show Celebrities On Heat and The Biography Channel and Fuse Television's documentaries on Amy Winehouse.

Newkey-Burden has a blog, entitled OyVaGoy, in which he describes himself as 'philosemitic' and posts opinions firmly in support of the state of Israel, and critical of those he perceives as being against Israel.
In July 2008, the British satirical magazine Private Eye reported that Newkey-Burden had posted positive reviews of his own books on the Amazon.co.uk online bookstore.

Reviews

[Lewis Corbett · Rating 5 out of 5]

5-stars Facebook inspired me to start running and now I have a new Hobby.

[Lukas Vermeer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t think this book is intend to be bought and then read by an amateur runner like myself. Instead, it is probably intended to be gifted to a more dedicated runner who won’t actually have the time to read it.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

What an unfortunate waste of time.

There are a few bits of good information here, with little bios of famous people and their running stories, Running Philosophy and "Weird Marathons", but for every nugget of gold, there's an insane amount of trash.

Space wasting anecdotes or asides, that are not so much sprinkled, but poured throughout the book, destroying any semblence of a structure to the book. Judgmental and pointless filler:

"Funny Spectator Signs at Running Events"
"Runners you know"
"Things we hate about running"
"Things people shout at runners"

Also, why do we need to know about statistics of women who run without underwear?

I wanted to rate this a single star, but the few nuggets elevated it just enough to a 2 star. Just a shame, as it could have been halfway decent, had enough time and effort been put into it.

[Jordan B · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy read, very anecdotal running book. Some info was interesting like the food section, but most was fluff.

[Colin Forbes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seemed like a good idea, but turned out not to be so well executed in practice.

Formatted to be read in easy bite-sized chunks, it turns into something of a mishmash when considered as a whole. Snippets of terribly earnest and well-meant advice, mixed in with some amusing anecdotes, left me wondering if I was missing the joke sometimes before realising that, no, it was a genuine attempt to pass on a useful fact.

There are some nice stories about how people got into running, and how it helps them physically and / or mentally. Individually fine, but all a bit 'samey' by the end of the book.

Probably best placed in your toilet room, where your guests might read a page or two at random without ever feeling the need to read the whole thing.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for a running book club.
I wasn’t keen. Too many snippets and no coherent flow. Also pretty bothered by the comments about how quickly parkrun’s get their results out - has he ever processed a set a parkrun results and knows what’s involved?!
I didn’t feel inspired (which is why I read running books) and was racing (excuse the pun) to get to the end. Learnt a few snippets, but nothing life changing.
The book gets two stars because it generated some good discussion at the book club zoom meeting which I read it for.

[Marika Lenee Kerr · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny look at running, and how obsessive the runner can be. It discusses different kind of runners and how good running can be for you. Found some other books to read about running and some runs that I would now like to venture out and try. A must read for the runner who is discouraged or wants some encouragement of why running is so great in so many ways!

[Madeline Ahles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to on audible. While the content was good don’t know because it was a European author and references that I related as well!or connected to the reader. But glad I finished since I was listening and learned a few new things of running and the story was more informative than story line. The author does put in personal accounts of racers.

[Carianne Carleo-Evangelist · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perfect palate cleanser after a frustrating race. Less narrative and more overview of running, I liked this for reminding me why people, including myself, run. A mix of humor, anecdata and helpful advice. One I'd definitely recommend

[Kaitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny stories, cute running signs, and quick to read. I wouldn’t say this book is earth shattering or filled with information average runners don’t already know, but it gives runners a good chuckle through fun inside jokes. Definitely worth a read if running is your sport of choice.

[mr w i williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read

Excellent read, ideal read for commuting or during lunch breaks as it comes in small manegable segments. The contributions by various running writers add to the enjoyment of the read

[Rie Hama · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the author has mentioned, writings in the book was very random.
Some were interesting, some I didn't care for.
It was a fun read generally, but nothing I would remember after putting the book down.

[Pradeep Kumbhashi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it if you are already running or planning to start running or too lazy to run :)

[suzanne bond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this on the plane

One of the funniest things I've read in ages, the descriptions were spot on but I apologize to the guys sat next to me 😂

[Bonnie Zink · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this one!

[Nicki_Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seamed a great book to read. It was good, broken into bite size chunks of info that could be useful if you wanted it. Had me laughing in parts

[Kat Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was mainly good and funny, but some sections just felt elitist, and others were clearly just fat shaming.

An okay quick read for running enthusiasts, but not one I'd buy for my running friends.

[Richard and Sandra Lockhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Excellent blend of humour and education. An easy read that will encourage even those who are scared of running to give it a go.

[Kirsty Shaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really more of a coffee table book than a cover to cover one; seems like same things "rehashed" a few times throughout book. There are better on the topic.

[Candice · Rating 1 out of 5]

This runner only loves one type of runner.....himself.
Slightly sexist and not really what I was expecting. I gave it a two stars as I liked the quotes from running signs.

[Tim Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A light and fun exploration of running, that only occasionally exposes the authors own prejudices (parkrun good, half marathons not so much, marathons good for example). An enjoyable read.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, cheerful and often insightful.

[hools · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute cheerful book. Nice easy book to flick through before bed.

[Mariangeli Lozada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este libro te motiva a correr. Tiene frases inspiradoras por corredores del mundo. Es divertido y jocoso en su mayoría. Muy divertido e informativo.

[BiblioBeruthiel · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of anti-fatness in this.

[Marnie Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining and somewhat informative book about running. I enjoyed it's style of 'tidbits' of information scattered throughout personal accounts, quips and thoughts.

[Graham Hiscock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting, but entertaining and amusing.

[Mrs Lisa Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10.
A book to dip in and out of

[Colin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nyeah, I dunno. It feels a bit thrown-together really. A few celebs have submitted short pieces, looking like they are working to a minimum word count, and there are some OK anecdotes, and running lore, but it doesn't really have a point or a heart or a unifying thread. *shrug*

Just re-listened during a very long run and was struck by how he seems to repeat every interesting fact he knows, like he didn't have enough content for a whole book so decided. To. Just spin all his content out. Also. Some of it sounded like bollocks. Downgrading to a 2.

[RunHikeBikeExplore · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy to read, pick up and put down, none time consuming, quick read book. An assortment of anecdotes with a spatter of advice.