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The Plant Based Runner: A Personal Guide to Running, Healthy Eating, and Discovering a New You
Quit Stalling and Losing Steam with This Personal Health Guide
Have you suffered from lethargy every time you try to cultivate a healthy habit?
Do you start out strong with new diets, but ultimately return to your old habits within weeks or months?
Are you frustrated by your lack of forward momentum?
Are you tired of starting full on but then ultimately fizzling out?
Then you need the help of Jonathan Cairns, author of The Plant Based Runner: A Personal Guide to Running, Healthy Eating, and Discovering a New You.
This book isn’t like any other running manual you’ve read. It’s a hard-hitting, no-nonsense but compassionate look at how to finally break through to a healthier version of yourself and cultivate a diet that makes you look and feel better long-term.
Woven from Cairns’ personal story, the guide explores how to get from a path of subtle destruction to a path of health and wellness. It shows you how to take your first steps, and how to keep moving forward. It offers tips on how to become a better you, mentally and physically.
Specifically, this book will teach you:
Where motivation comes from and how you can get more of it
The power of habit and how you can build ones that actually stick
How gratitude plays into your daily routines
The best place to start (it isn’t where you think!)
How to get your head in the game for real
How to resolve the cognitive dissonance that comes with making real change
Which recipes will help you feel healthy and well every hour of the day
What runs Cairns has completed, and what you can learn from each
The best resources and training plans to turn when in doubt
Why it’s so important that you make meaningful change now
At the end of the day, Cairns simply used running as his favorite tool to fitness and made a conscious decision to eat only what made him feel well – following rules that apply to almost any human.
He sticks by the principle that food is either healing or harming us, and we need a guide to make better decisions, which is why all his recipes and running plans are enclosed. Everything is tried and tested by Cairns, from the simplest breakfast to the most elaborate post-workout meal.
If you’re tired of breaking down, stalling out and losing steam, it’s time to make a better decision. It’s time to implement simple changes that add up to incredible results. You deserve it.
So don’t wait. Buy this book NOW to change your life – quite literally step by step.
Have you suffered from lethargy every time you try to cultivate a healthy habit?
Do you start out strong with new diets, but ultimately return to your old habits within weeks or months?
Are you frustrated by your lack of forward momentum?
Are you tired of starting full on but then ultimately fizzling out?
Then you need the help of Jonathan Cairns, author of The Plant Based Runner: A Personal Guide to Running, Healthy Eating, and Discovering a New You.
This book isn’t like any other running manual you’ve read. It’s a hard-hitting, no-nonsense but compassionate look at how to finally break through to a healthier version of yourself and cultivate a diet that makes you look and feel better long-term.
Woven from Cairns’ personal story, the guide explores how to get from a path of subtle destruction to a path of health and wellness. It shows you how to take your first steps, and how to keep moving forward. It offers tips on how to become a better you, mentally and physically.
Specifically, this book will teach you:
Where motivation comes from and how you can get more of it
The power of habit and how you can build ones that actually stick
How gratitude plays into your daily routines
The best place to start (it isn’t where you think!)
How to get your head in the game for real
How to resolve the cognitive dissonance that comes with making real change
Which recipes will help you feel healthy and well every hour of the day
What runs Cairns has completed, and what you can learn from each
The best resources and training plans to turn when in doubt
Why it’s so important that you make meaningful change now
At the end of the day, Cairns simply used running as his favorite tool to fitness and made a conscious decision to eat only what made him feel well – following rules that apply to almost any human.
He sticks by the principle that food is either healing or harming us, and we need a guide to make better decisions, which is why all his recipes and running plans are enclosed. Everything is tried and tested by Cairns, from the simplest breakfast to the most elaborate post-workout meal.
If you’re tired of breaking down, stalling out and losing steam, it’s time to make a better decision. It’s time to implement simple changes that add up to incredible results. You deserve it.
So don’t wait. Buy this book NOW to change your life – quite literally step by step.
174 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 17, 2019
105 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
March 10, 2019
I received a copy of this book for review, but all opinions are my own.
Two main takeaways I loved from this book:
Know your why
Change the plan, don’t change the goal
Cairns is an overweight, divorced father turned wannabe vegan ultra runner. This book explores his journey between those points. Although I don’t subscribe to the full extent of his beliefs and dietary choices, I really appreciate the path he took to them. He read a lot and read the information presented with a critical lens to arrive at the place that worked best for him and his progress as an athlete. He’s 100% correct, there’s information out there to support whichever side you wish to follow, you need to know your body and your why. And realize that nothing will change until you do.
What I eat definitely has an impact on how I feel/run, but I’m not yet compelled to give up sugar, dairy and meat. I did love his advantage of Irish (or at least not American-English) slang for this poetry when it comes to refined sugar: white is shite. While I have no desire to or interest in running an ultra, I enjoyed following his journey and the interspersed quotes and race recaps.
Two main takeaways I loved from this book:
Know your why
Change the plan, don’t change the goal
Cairns is an overweight, divorced father turned wannabe vegan ultra runner. This book explores his journey between those points. Although I don’t subscribe to the full extent of his beliefs and dietary choices, I really appreciate the path he took to them. He read a lot and read the information presented with a critical lens to arrive at the place that worked best for him and his progress as an athlete. He’s 100% correct, there’s information out there to support whichever side you wish to follow, you need to know your body and your why. And realize that nothing will change until you do.
What I eat definitely has an impact on how I feel/run, but I’m not yet compelled to give up sugar, dairy and meat. I did love his advantage of Irish (or at least not American-English) slang for this poetry when it comes to refined sugar: white is shite. While I have no desire to or interest in running an ultra, I enjoyed following his journey and the interspersed quotes and race recaps.
October 27, 2021
Knyga nuvylė. Tikėjausi sužinoti daugiau apie mitybą, treniravimąsi būnant veganu (su kokiais iššūkiais susiduriama, kaip jie sprendžiami ir pan.).
Gavau istoriją apie tai, kad norint bėgioti, reikia bėgioti (duh). Norit "sveikai" maitintis reikia atsisakyti daugumos produktų, nes jie yra "blogi". Kodėl blogi, kokiais tyrimais vadovautasi nelabai radau.
Gavau istoriją apie tai, kad norint bėgioti, reikia bėgioti (duh). Norit "sveikai" maitintis reikia atsisakyti daugumos produktų, nes jie yra "blogi". Kodėl blogi, kokiais tyrimais vadovautasi nelabai radau.
April 1, 2019
A very motivational book, so easy to read and written from the heart. If you’re looking for a poke to get you up and running and eating better this should be your first stop.
March 17, 2019
I ordered two copies of The Plant-Based Runner after hearing the author speaking about the book on the radio (one for me and one for the accountability partner he suggested we recruit!). Listening to him speak about how he saw a photo of himself after a New Year's celebration and realised he didn't recognise himself anymore really struck a chord with me. It was after that experience that he put on a pair of old shoes and struggled around the block for a jog (I liked that he said he went out in the dark because he didn't want anyone he knew to recognise him). He has come along way since then running marathons and ultra marathons but he made "getting fit" seem possible.
The book has lived up to my expectations. The book has a very easy to read and relatable voice. Before I had even finished the introduction I had decided that I could and, more importantly, would take myself and the dog around the block.
The author has a way with words, I'd say that's down to his Irish roots and I'm really enjoying reading and feeling the fire in my belly once again to take action. I've laughed out loud and felt moved by his personal struggles.
Looking forward to seeing some positive results from taking action.
P.S. he also has humorous cartoons dotted throughout. I liked this one:
Nurse: The Doctor would like a stool sample, a urine sample and a sperm sample.
Old Man (to wife): What did she say?
Woman: She wants your underwear.
The book has lived up to my expectations. The book has a very easy to read and relatable voice. Before I had even finished the introduction I had decided that I could and, more importantly, would take myself and the dog around the block.
The author has a way with words, I'd say that's down to his Irish roots and I'm really enjoying reading and feeling the fire in my belly once again to take action. I've laughed out loud and felt moved by his personal struggles.
Looking forward to seeing some positive results from taking action.
P.S. he also has humorous cartoons dotted throughout. I liked this one:
Nurse: The Doctor would like a stool sample, a urine sample and a sperm sample.
Old Man (to wife): What did she say?
Woman: She wants your underwear.
March 3, 2022
Meh
Jonathon has overcome many obstacles in his life that he shares in this book. I think he does a great job talking about the importance of changing mindset and creating determination in order to better ourselves and do things we may never have originally thought possible. What I don’t like about this book is the toxic diet culture, labeling of things as “good” or “bad”,telling readers to cut out entire food groups, and the consistent use of negative self talk as motivation such a calling himself a “fat cow” for not getting up to go for a run. These can be triggering or dangerous statements to some, even if it’s what he has found to work for himself.
Jonathon has overcome many obstacles in his life that he shares in this book. I think he does a great job talking about the importance of changing mindset and creating determination in order to better ourselves and do things we may never have originally thought possible. What I don’t like about this book is the toxic diet culture, labeling of things as “good” or “bad”,telling readers to cut out entire food groups, and the consistent use of negative self talk as motivation such a calling himself a “fat cow” for not getting up to go for a run. These can be triggering or dangerous statements to some, even if it’s what he has found to work for himself.
August 6, 2020
A little helpful
There isn't a lot of structure to the writing of this book - I would have preferred a chronological account of the author's journey into ultra marathon running rather than jumping around. It feels like a lot of anecdotes that don't hold together. However, there are some useful tips and, as a runner and a new convert to the plant based diet I found that Jonathan's experience of giving up all animal products mirrored my own when it comes to energy levels and performance.
There isn't a lot of structure to the writing of this book - I would have preferred a chronological account of the author's journey into ultra marathon running rather than jumping around. It feels like a lot of anecdotes that don't hold together. However, there are some useful tips and, as a runner and a new convert to the plant based diet I found that Jonathan's experience of giving up all animal products mirrored my own when it comes to energy levels and performance.
March 27, 2019
This book is about more than becoming a vegetarian based runner, it's really about how to effectively make changes to your personal health and lifestyle. Even if you hate running or can't imagine giving up meat, it is an interesting read.
Jonathan Cairns tells about his own personal journey from overweight couch potato to ultra marathoner, describing thought processes, mistakes, and successes along the way. He does it in an entertaining and illuminating manner.
I'm a bit skeptical of some of the claims made about the vegetarian and vegan lifestyle because of other research I've done. But Jonathan provides a good list of books and other references that he used to guide his decision making.
A quick and interesting read. I know I'll make some changes to my life based on his book.
Note: I was given a free advance copy of the book in return for my honest review.
Jonathan Cairns tells about his own personal journey from overweight couch potato to ultra marathoner, describing thought processes, mistakes, and successes along the way. He does it in an entertaining and illuminating manner.
I'm a bit skeptical of some of the claims made about the vegetarian and vegan lifestyle because of other research I've done. But Jonathan provides a good list of books and other references that he used to guide his decision making.
A quick and interesting read. I know I'll make some changes to my life based on his book.
Note: I was given a free advance copy of the book in return for my honest review.
April 19, 2020
Starting over after 30 years
At the beginning of this year (2020) I made up my mind that my lifestyle needed to change, I gave up alcohol (initially for 90 days) and got my feet on the street.
I really enjoyed this book and a lot has resonated with me, I am returning to running after 30 years and started with Couch to 5k in 9 weeks and and have felt the pain Jonathon described of those early weeks and months.
I am determined to keep on this path, will take inspiration from Jonathan 's experiences and advise with discipline, training plans and good eating habits. Not sure if I have a marathon or ultra race in my future, 10k after Corona virus lockdown is over in sunny Manchester is my next challenge but now I can see the way forward and have a good idea what lies ahead.
At the beginning of this year (2020) I made up my mind that my lifestyle needed to change, I gave up alcohol (initially for 90 days) and got my feet on the street.
I really enjoyed this book and a lot has resonated with me, I am returning to running after 30 years and started with Couch to 5k in 9 weeks and and have felt the pain Jonathon described of those early weeks and months.
I am determined to keep on this path, will take inspiration from Jonathan 's experiences and advise with discipline, training plans and good eating habits. Not sure if I have a marathon or ultra race in my future, 10k after Corona virus lockdown is over in sunny Manchester is my next challenge but now I can see the way forward and have a good idea what lies ahead.
May 20, 2024
Honestly what I feel let this book down was the fat shaming. Running is joyful and whilst people do it for different reasons, the parts which focus on fat is uncomfortable to read and might be upsetting for people with a history of disordered eating.
I'm also not a fan of completely restricting foods. Again, not great for people who struggle with food anyway and also not entirely backed by contemporary literature... That said, he does say that he's writing what has worked for him.
I otherwise found it a nice read for a long train journey. I always enjoy reading about people's running journey. I'm in my 40s myself and considering my first marathon soon and some more half marathons. I'll give the recipes and training plans a go.
I'm also not a fan of completely restricting foods. Again, not great for people who struggle with food anyway and also not entirely backed by contemporary literature... That said, he does say that he's writing what has worked for him.
I otherwise found it a nice read for a long train journey. I always enjoy reading about people's running journey. I'm in my 40s myself and considering my first marathon soon and some more half marathons. I'll give the recipes and training plans a go.
July 6, 2021
Good book if you are new to the concept
I enjoyed the book. I think it’s a good starting book for people that are new to running. There are good information but like everything, take it with a grain of salt. While I agree with a lot of the dietary changes he made, I’m a believer of the 80/20 rule or the “pegan” diet (Dr. mark hyman). While I have watched all the documentaries the author lists in the end of the book, we still consume locally & humanly raised meats. My body needs meat! Not a lot, but it does. With that said, everybody and every body is unique. It takes a little bit of time, trial and error, to find what works best for each one of us.
I enjoyed the book. I think it’s a good starting book for people that are new to running. There are good information but like everything, take it with a grain of salt. While I agree with a lot of the dietary changes he made, I’m a believer of the 80/20 rule or the “pegan” diet (Dr. mark hyman). While I have watched all the documentaries the author lists in the end of the book, we still consume locally & humanly raised meats. My body needs meat! Not a lot, but it does. With that said, everybody and every body is unique. It takes a little bit of time, trial and error, to find what works best for each one of us.
May 31, 2023
I enjoyed the author's story of basically transforming from a couch potato to an ultra runner and totally changing his views on diet and how to eat to fuel your body and feel your best. I liked the books he recommended, races, recipes and training plans at the end. I took away 1 star because I didn't like how he often talked about running to be skinny. People run for many different reasons so that bothered me at times. Overall though, I liked this book and would recommend.
December 27, 2020
Practical and easy to follow companion to success
Looking for a bit of support on the path to improve your fitness and overall wellness, I found this book offering an easy to follow eating and running training plan. Its down-to-earth approach offers a very feasible path to positive outcomes. Highly recommended.
Looking for a bit of support on the path to improve your fitness and overall wellness, I found this book offering an easy to follow eating and running training plan. Its down-to-earth approach offers a very feasible path to positive outcomes. Highly recommended.
October 14, 2021
This was fun, but the title is a little misleading. In the beginning the author discloses that the original title was Fit After Fifty, and that is much more appropriate. I’m a 32-yo marathon running looking to transition to a plant-based diet, and this book is more about changing your habits later in life to become more active and healthy. So this book wasn’t exactly what I was looking for …..
November 8, 2021
Respect for discipline
The approach and lifestyle isn't for everyone but it sure is respectable. This proves that hard work might be hard and lead to more work....but with rewards that perpetuate the actions.
I enjoyed this read.
The approach and lifestyle isn't for everyone but it sure is respectable. This proves that hard work might be hard and lead to more work....but with rewards that perpetuate the actions.
I enjoyed this read.
Read
February 20, 2022A good.range of.!motivation and.facts
It was really good to see real examp!es of success but more importantly of failure. The recipes are also i!aspirational - I'm hoping to have a go at them soon!
It was really good to see real examp!es of success but more importantly of failure. The recipes are also i!aspirational - I'm hoping to have a go at them soon!
March 22, 2022
Was/am in a rut. Running Mental and Health Wise
Was given this as a gift. Has helped me personally in a small way. And will hopefully help me I'm the long run
Good advice ideas and where he got his help and ideas
Was given this as a gift. Has helped me personally in a small way. And will hopefully help me I'm the long run
Good advice ideas and where he got his help and ideas
December 29, 2022
This book helped give me that final push to get back to my healthy self. I signed up for a 5k in February with a dear friend - now I have no excuse to not run. Excited to get back into it and feel healthy again!
January 2, 2023
This book spoke to my soul
I was unsure that this would be a good book for me because I have read similar in the past. But his words were honest, real and touched my vulnerabilities like none before. Thank you, sir, I feel inspired to change
I was unsure that this would be a good book for me because I have read similar in the past. But his words were honest, real and touched my vulnerabilities like none before. Thank you, sir, I feel inspired to change
June 12, 2019
Ear bashing
Did not expect such a self important tone! I was hoping for inspiration to move to more plant based eating but am left feeling the opposite
Did not expect such a self important tone! I was hoping for inspiration to move to more plant based eating but am left feeling the opposite
July 4, 2020
Fantastic book in regards to motivation, but I did expected more, especially about plant based food. A bit unorganized.
December 2, 2021
Inspiring read
This book is absolutely fantastic, I really enjoyed reading it from start to finish and would recommend any runner to give it a go, You won’t be disappointed!
This book is absolutely fantastic, I really enjoyed reading it from start to finish and would recommend any runner to give it a go, You won’t be disappointed!
February 15, 2022
Fun read but was hoping this would go deeper into plant based running and performance changes.
August 30, 2024
A very inspiring account of a plant- based runner.
March 5, 2025
This was very easy to read and very digestible and motivating!! I wasn’t expecting it to be so biographical but it did make it more engaging :>
March 19, 2022
I have just finished reading this book for the second time. I read it last year and really enjoyed it. The structure work really well as it intersperses Jonathan’s marathon experiences with guidance on many things, including nutrition and mental strength.
I revisited this book as I needed some motivation to continue my own running and healthy eating journey. We all need a little extra encouragement from time to time.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering improving their nutrition, physical fitness and mental strength. You do not need to be pursuing a lifestyle of marathon running or plant-based eating for this book to be beneficial, but there are many tips on how lots of little changes can bring about great benefits!
I revisited this book as I needed some motivation to continue my own running and healthy eating journey. We all need a little extra encouragement from time to time.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering improving their nutrition, physical fitness and mental strength. You do not need to be pursuing a lifestyle of marathon running or plant-based eating for this book to be beneficial, but there are many tips on how lots of little changes can bring about great benefits!
June 3, 2022
Inspired me to take up running recently
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews