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Second Wind: One Woman's Midlife Quest to Run Seven Marathons on Seven Continents
Second Wind is the story of an unlikely athlete and an unlikely Cami Ostman, a woman edging toward midlife who decides to take on a challenge that stretches her way outside of her comfort zone. That challenge presents itself when an old friend suggests she go for a run to distract her from the grief of her recent divorce. Excited by the clarity of mind and breathing space running offers her, she keeps it up—albeit slowly—and she decides to run seven marathons on seven continents; this becomes Ostman’s vision quest, the thing she turns to during the ups and downs of a new romance and during the hard months and years of redefining herself in the aftermath of the very restrictive, religious-based marriage and life she led up until her divorce. Insightful and uplifting, Second Wind carries the reader along for the ride as Ostman runs her way out of compliance with the patriarchal rules about "being a woman” that long held her captive and into authenticity and self-love. Her adventures—and the personal revelations that accompany them—inspire readers to take chances, find truth in their lives, and learn to listen to the voice inside them that’s been there all along.
304 pages, Paperback
First published October 7, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
September 21, 2014
I felt comfortable with Cami Ostman from the opening line, "I started this journey by running out on my life." Right away, I knew I was in a storyteller's hands. Her tightly written introduction covers a lot of personal ground, from the broken home of her childhood, to religion, to marriage and divorce. Ostman and I are about the same age, and we have a lot in common, including running (though I'm not a marathoner). By the end of the intro, I was hooked. Reading "Second Wind" was like sitting down with a new friend to swap life stories over hot cups of tea, taking delight and comfort in every new thing you have in common.
This memoir is indeed the "midlife quest" it claims to be. As with other quests, this one brings big challenges. Ostman treats them as opportunities for personal growth. It was delightful to cheer her on as she learned from each marathon and grew in wisdom and self-confidence. She's a human being, not superwoman; how lovely to find someone who is willing to live life on the pages of a book and let you see her humanity, mistakes, fears, and problems along with the times she accomplished great things.
Reading about Ostman's journey as a woman and a runner, at times I thought, "If Cami can do this, I can do it," which is a nice thing to think as the result of reading a book. I may never complete a marathon, but Ostman offers a great example of finding something you can do, that you want to do, and giving it your whole heart.
This book is a gift to all women with a questing spirit. It encourages us to believe in the power of committing to that quest, whatever it might be. Who knows what great things might happen if we all ran in Ostman's shoes?
This memoir is indeed the "midlife quest" it claims to be. As with other quests, this one brings big challenges. Ostman treats them as opportunities for personal growth. It was delightful to cheer her on as she learned from each marathon and grew in wisdom and self-confidence. She's a human being, not superwoman; how lovely to find someone who is willing to live life on the pages of a book and let you see her humanity, mistakes, fears, and problems along with the times she accomplished great things.
Reading about Ostman's journey as a woman and a runner, at times I thought, "If Cami can do this, I can do it," which is a nice thing to think as the result of reading a book. I may never complete a marathon, but Ostman offers a great example of finding something you can do, that you want to do, and giving it your whole heart.
This book is a gift to all women with a questing spirit. It encourages us to believe in the power of committing to that quest, whatever it might be. Who knows what great things might happen if we all ran in Ostman's shoes?
May 30, 2020
This is a great read full of journey...geographically, mentally, spiritually, and logistically. I found that this book is a perfect balance of personal and cultural experiences while traveling continent to continent and also applying a self discovering aspect to the story. This book is truly full of inspiration but I also like that it has a human component to it, showing the struggles that she goes through in her current and past life and finding strength from within to complete her quest. It is also interesting to hear stories from around the world, in some cases places I have never heard of. Not overly detailed about the act of running itself, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for an inspirational journey full of hope.
April 24, 2012
I found this book watching a good friends house, and had decided on this stay-cation to quit smoking (again) and replace it with more running. Vacations are supposed to be the best time to quit nasty habits, right? Well it worked! And this book did too! Soaking on Epsom salts in a bathtub while reading this wholly pleasant memoir was beyond inspirational- I clung to it while tempted to not run, to smoke, to laze, to give myself an "out"- and it was a great guide.
I am now inspired to continue my running program and I really want to train up to half marathon. Heck, at 32 I'm younger than this author was on her journey start, I think I've got a chance!
I am now inspired to continue my running program and I really want to train up to half marathon. Heck, at 32 I'm younger than this author was on her journey start, I think I've got a chance!
December 22, 2010
I was intrigued by the running, particularly running marathons, as a metaphor for life premise but was disappointed that the book was not very well written.
July 11, 2013
She's a little heavy on the spiritual aspect of her running and writing experience, but otherwise, I loved this adventure book.
July 9, 2022
This book hit a lot of sympathetic spots for me. It's about running, but not competitively. It's also about overcoming the religious fundamentalism with which one has been infused, and it's about mid-life crises, travel, and personal growth. And even better yet, the protagonist is from the beautiful Pacific Northwest! What's not to like?
In the wake of exiting an 11-year marriage, Cami Ostman wasn't sure who she was. Growing up in a conservative evangelical tradition, she had been taught that divorce was wrong. She began to distrust her religious roots, her life choices, and her limited worldview. But how was she going to expand her horizons? And where was she to find purpose and meaning in this new phase of her existence?
She returns to running, a hobby with which she had previously dabbled, encouraged by a friend, Bill. The two of them decide to travel to Prague together, where Bill plans to run a marathon. He asks her to join him. Ostman fears this challenge, which represents far more running than she has ever done before. Nonetheless, for the sake of the adventure and in solidarity with Bill, she travels to Europe and does her first marathon.
Well, sort of. Not everything goes as planned. Bill and Cami arrive late, lose their way on the race, and have to find a creative way to make up their miles later. It's a comedy of errors almost from the outset. Nonetheless, Cami learns important things about herself in the process.
As the book progresses, Ostman begins to consider a larger goal: What if she were to attempt a marathon on each of the seven continents of the world? Thus begins a hilarious, thoughtful, and poignant narrative of travel and personal discovery. Beginning with a small event in a remote Australian town, Ostman chases her quest, focused not on personal bests, but on what each race has to teach her. She doesn't want to give up on God or spirituality, but she needs to find a new sense of her identity, to begin to trust the person she is, listening to the inner wisdom she has been granted.
Ostman proves a gracious, authentic, and winsome tour guide, not just through Japan, South Africa, and other foreign countries, but through the inner landscape of her own soul. She wrestles with the warped and limiting messages she has been saddled with, searches for answers in this new phase of her life, and finds ways to slowly accept the person she is rather than the one she was expected to be. Ostman never becomes a fast runner, averaging 12-minute-miles on many of her races. But that was never the point of her marathons.
I don't know that Ostman's tale will resonate for everyone, but for those of us who like to run, are of a certain age, and have wrestled with our own souls in some way, her story provides a senses of unanimity. We all have to struggle to find ourselves. But we don't have to do so alone. Ostman offers us solidarity along the road to mental health and personal flourishing.
In the wake of exiting an 11-year marriage, Cami Ostman wasn't sure who she was. Growing up in a conservative evangelical tradition, she had been taught that divorce was wrong. She began to distrust her religious roots, her life choices, and her limited worldview. But how was she going to expand her horizons? And where was she to find purpose and meaning in this new phase of her existence?
She returns to running, a hobby with which she had previously dabbled, encouraged by a friend, Bill. The two of them decide to travel to Prague together, where Bill plans to run a marathon. He asks her to join him. Ostman fears this challenge, which represents far more running than she has ever done before. Nonetheless, for the sake of the adventure and in solidarity with Bill, she travels to Europe and does her first marathon.
Well, sort of. Not everything goes as planned. Bill and Cami arrive late, lose their way on the race, and have to find a creative way to make up their miles later. It's a comedy of errors almost from the outset. Nonetheless, Cami learns important things about herself in the process.
As the book progresses, Ostman begins to consider a larger goal: What if she were to attempt a marathon on each of the seven continents of the world? Thus begins a hilarious, thoughtful, and poignant narrative of travel and personal discovery. Beginning with a small event in a remote Australian town, Ostman chases her quest, focused not on personal bests, but on what each race has to teach her. She doesn't want to give up on God or spirituality, but she needs to find a new sense of her identity, to begin to trust the person she is, listening to the inner wisdom she has been granted.
Ostman proves a gracious, authentic, and winsome tour guide, not just through Japan, South Africa, and other foreign countries, but through the inner landscape of her own soul. She wrestles with the warped and limiting messages she has been saddled with, searches for answers in this new phase of her life, and finds ways to slowly accept the person she is rather than the one she was expected to be. Ostman never becomes a fast runner, averaging 12-minute-miles on many of her races. But that was never the point of her marathons.
I don't know that Ostman's tale will resonate for everyone, but for those of us who like to run, are of a certain age, and have wrestled with our own souls in some way, her story provides a senses of unanimity. We all have to struggle to find ourselves. But we don't have to do so alone. Ostman offers us solidarity along the road to mental health and personal flourishing.
November 4, 2013
I’m not a runner. I’ve never even wanted to run around the block, never mind a marathon. But after reading Second Wind, a riveting account of not just one big run, but of seven marathons (on seven continents), I believe I finally understand the appeal.
Cami Ostman didn’t always run. Emerging from the “shattered structures” of her life, not once, but twice, she found a new structure for herself in marathon running. It was a place where she “was breathing. When I ran,” she writes, “I centered my entire attention on my body in the present moment and got some relief from the emotional gymnastics that were the result of my shattered life. Like a prayer, but without a specific petition, running called me to quiet my thoughts.”
Personally, I’d have chosen yoga.
The idea of running a full marathon was not appealing to her at first. But starting small, with short runs close to home, she found she liked it. Equipped with no more than her running shoes and her iPod Shuffle, Cami set her sights on a “midlife vision quest,” one that “wasn’t always easy, quick, tidy or even much fun some of the time” and in the process found a model for how to reconstruct her life.
Cami writes with an easy, conversational tone, sprinkling just enough metaphor to bring her story alive. Here is a passage from her Introduction:
"Marathon racers, just like people in relationships with other human beings, all run together and yet alone. Sometimes you have to choose whether to keep up with others, or to find your own pace at the back of the pack. Also, a race, just like a life, feels most secure when it’s well organized and there’s a lot of support along the course, but it is often more interesting to get lost and to have to rely on strangers to help you find your way again.”
And this gem, toward the end of one of her earlier races:
"The end of a long race is like the last bite of Christmas dinner. You’re full. You don’t need to eat that last forkful of mashed potatoes and gravy, but you’ve already cleaned your plate of everything else, so it seems ridiculous to leave one little pile of food for the garbage disposal. It’s the same with the finish line. You’ve proved your point and run your race. You’re ‘full,’ as it were, of the experience, but that last little stretch remains. So you go for it.”
Between May 2003 and March 2010, Cami ran 26.2 miles in Prague, the Czech Republic; Mudgee, Australia; Whidbey Island, Washington; Panama City, Panama; Tateyama, Japan; Langebaan, South Africa; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and King George Island, Antarctica. Woven among these very different races are stories of the world-wide Sister Cities program, her budding and blossoming relationship with Bill, now her husband, and the countryside in which she ran.
In Australia, the race began differently. “There was no horn or gun or even a megaphone,” she writes. Then, “Some things, even some of the most life-changing experiences, start that way. No one says, ‘This [fill in the blank] is going to be one of the most radical rites of passage you will ever travel through, so pay attention.’ Someone just says ‘Okay, go ahead now,’ and you find yourself in the middle of an unexpected lightning storm with your life flashing before you.”
Second Wind is filled with such nuggets. Each chapter describes a separate race, with a few additional chapters filling us in on her training and planning before hand. But each chapter -- practically each page -- is filled with life affirming observations. In South Africa, we read, “… we never know all that any commitment entails before we hit the hard parts.” Then adding, a page later, “Lots of things in life deserve to be quit and left behind, but those things (activities, commitments, projects) that enrich us and reward us deserve better effort. They deserve for us to empty ourselves into them, trusting that we will be refilled and revived when all is said and done. The key is to know which things are which.”
We watch as Cami discovers different parts of herself and decides “not to silence any of the parts of me … to tolerate the tensions … among all the different voices inside my head.”
She admits to “the fear I’d had,” at the beginning of her new marriage to Bill, “that I would slide into a nuptial numbness and forget the commitment I’d made to personal examination and authenticity. … I suppose I’d been afraid … that lethargy and self-acceptance were the same thing.”
“Running and marriage have a lot in common,” she writes early on. “Sometimes in running you find yourself on your favorite trail, the wind gentle, the perfect song playing on your iPod; your muscles are strong, you have a companion at your perfect pace, and you fancy yourself the fastest Kenyan soaring over the finish line at record speed. Other times, salty and sweaty and cramping, with mucus dribbling out of your nose and the rain pouring down and mud splashing up, you hate your companion and you complete your run simply because the only way back to where you want to be is the way you came. You finish only because you started it. But I could see a third way too: You run some of the way with your ill-fitted companion, whom you love (but who makes you mad), at a pace that is roughly your own but maybe a little faster than you’d like to go -- until you realize you can meet your partner at the end, rain or shine, angry or happy. You can accept your Inner Wisdom and your Inner Bitch and let them run together.”
We learn about how we all can get stuck in life sometimes, but what really counts, as Cami says, is to “see a way to break free and find your second wind.”
Reading Second Wind, I felt I knew what it must be like to run, to run smoothly, and for a very long time. And I liked it. I liked the feeling of “finding my pace,” of “pushing through the pain” and persevering, of learning through it all (as Cami did) to trust myself. And I particularly liked that I could do all this from the comfort of my easy chair and ottoman.
I recommend this to all arm-chair, virtual runners like myself who enjoy uplifting stories of real people and their searches for what makes “a good life.”
Cami Ostman didn’t always run. Emerging from the “shattered structures” of her life, not once, but twice, she found a new structure for herself in marathon running. It was a place where she “was breathing. When I ran,” she writes, “I centered my entire attention on my body in the present moment and got some relief from the emotional gymnastics that were the result of my shattered life. Like a prayer, but without a specific petition, running called me to quiet my thoughts.”
Personally, I’d have chosen yoga.
The idea of running a full marathon was not appealing to her at first. But starting small, with short runs close to home, she found she liked it. Equipped with no more than her running shoes and her iPod Shuffle, Cami set her sights on a “midlife vision quest,” one that “wasn’t always easy, quick, tidy or even much fun some of the time” and in the process found a model for how to reconstruct her life.
Cami writes with an easy, conversational tone, sprinkling just enough metaphor to bring her story alive. Here is a passage from her Introduction:
"Marathon racers, just like people in relationships with other human beings, all run together and yet alone. Sometimes you have to choose whether to keep up with others, or to find your own pace at the back of the pack. Also, a race, just like a life, feels most secure when it’s well organized and there’s a lot of support along the course, but it is often more interesting to get lost and to have to rely on strangers to help you find your way again.”
And this gem, toward the end of one of her earlier races:
"The end of a long race is like the last bite of Christmas dinner. You’re full. You don’t need to eat that last forkful of mashed potatoes and gravy, but you’ve already cleaned your plate of everything else, so it seems ridiculous to leave one little pile of food for the garbage disposal. It’s the same with the finish line. You’ve proved your point and run your race. You’re ‘full,’ as it were, of the experience, but that last little stretch remains. So you go for it.”
Between May 2003 and March 2010, Cami ran 26.2 miles in Prague, the Czech Republic; Mudgee, Australia; Whidbey Island, Washington; Panama City, Panama; Tateyama, Japan; Langebaan, South Africa; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and King George Island, Antarctica. Woven among these very different races are stories of the world-wide Sister Cities program, her budding and blossoming relationship with Bill, now her husband, and the countryside in which she ran.
In Australia, the race began differently. “There was no horn or gun or even a megaphone,” she writes. Then, “Some things, even some of the most life-changing experiences, start that way. No one says, ‘This [fill in the blank] is going to be one of the most radical rites of passage you will ever travel through, so pay attention.’ Someone just says ‘Okay, go ahead now,’ and you find yourself in the middle of an unexpected lightning storm with your life flashing before you.”
Second Wind is filled with such nuggets. Each chapter describes a separate race, with a few additional chapters filling us in on her training and planning before hand. But each chapter -- practically each page -- is filled with life affirming observations. In South Africa, we read, “… we never know all that any commitment entails before we hit the hard parts.” Then adding, a page later, “Lots of things in life deserve to be quit and left behind, but those things (activities, commitments, projects) that enrich us and reward us deserve better effort. They deserve for us to empty ourselves into them, trusting that we will be refilled and revived when all is said and done. The key is to know which things are which.”
We watch as Cami discovers different parts of herself and decides “not to silence any of the parts of me … to tolerate the tensions … among all the different voices inside my head.”
She admits to “the fear I’d had,” at the beginning of her new marriage to Bill, “that I would slide into a nuptial numbness and forget the commitment I’d made to personal examination and authenticity. … I suppose I’d been afraid … that lethargy and self-acceptance were the same thing.”
“Running and marriage have a lot in common,” she writes early on. “Sometimes in running you find yourself on your favorite trail, the wind gentle, the perfect song playing on your iPod; your muscles are strong, you have a companion at your perfect pace, and you fancy yourself the fastest Kenyan soaring over the finish line at record speed. Other times, salty and sweaty and cramping, with mucus dribbling out of your nose and the rain pouring down and mud splashing up, you hate your companion and you complete your run simply because the only way back to where you want to be is the way you came. You finish only because you started it. But I could see a third way too: You run some of the way with your ill-fitted companion, whom you love (but who makes you mad), at a pace that is roughly your own but maybe a little faster than you’d like to go -- until you realize you can meet your partner at the end, rain or shine, angry or happy. You can accept your Inner Wisdom and your Inner Bitch and let them run together.”
We learn about how we all can get stuck in life sometimes, but what really counts, as Cami says, is to “see a way to break free and find your second wind.”
Reading Second Wind, I felt I knew what it must be like to run, to run smoothly, and for a very long time. And I liked it. I liked the feeling of “finding my pace,” of “pushing through the pain” and persevering, of learning through it all (as Cami did) to trust myself. And I particularly liked that I could do all this from the comfort of my easy chair and ottoman.
I recommend this to all arm-chair, virtual runners like myself who enjoy uplifting stories of real people and their searches for what makes “a good life.”
February 11, 2021
This one has been on my to read shelf for far too long so finally picked it up and I adored it so! I was afraid that since it was about running and marathons (two things I don't do at all) that this wouldn't be for me necessarily but I was so wrong in the best way. So much of Cami's experiences and lessons can translate to anyone really.
I loved how open she was about her life and the things that have happened to and shaped her like when her period, during the marathon in Panama, became "gushing" and blood coated her legs. And her drive to finish in Antarctica was met with a lot of hard, difficult road blocks but she still was determined to get there and run a marathon length even if she wasn't running an "official marathon".
I'm not religious, really, at all but reading about how religion helped her as a child and an adult was very interesting to me as well. I can completely understand her need to have the stability she did from her time as a very religious individual.
I loved how open she was about her life and the things that have happened to and shaped her like when her period, during the marathon in Panama, became "gushing" and blood coated her legs. And her drive to finish in Antarctica was met with a lot of hard, difficult road blocks but she still was determined to get there and run a marathon length even if she wasn't running an "official marathon".
I'm not religious, really, at all but reading about how religion helped her as a child and an adult was very interesting to me as well. I can completely understand her need to have the stability she did from her time as a very religious individual.
May 26, 2018
Cami’s struggles are relatable to any runner, but especially women runners. Her menstrual explosion in Panama was, for better or for worse, one I connected with. A great read.
May 20, 2019
What a struggle to get thru this book. It was not very well written and I didn’t find the story all that interesting.
July 6, 2019
I really enjoyed this. I don’t think I will every run a marathon but she made me want to, for one insane moment. Really I just want to take her trips.
January 31, 2020
This was an okay read. I couldn’t get myself to like Cami much, she seemed whiney and annoying.
March 12, 2020
Even though I'm not a runner, there were many times I identified with Ms. Otman's goals, feelings and challenges. I love that she learned to courage to move away from rules that limit one's dreams.
December 10, 2019
This is not just another book about running or elite athleticism. Readers don’t need to be runners or athletes to be inspired & uplifted by Cami Ostman’s "Second Wind".
Her story is a compelling testament to the power of perseverance and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.
From the author’s dedication at the front of the book, “To back-of-the-packers everywhere,” it seems as if her words are especially intended for the underdogs of the world. And while I knowingly count myself as one such ”back-of-the-packer”, I couldn’t have imagined just how fierce her journey of grit & self-discovery would ultimately be.
Whether in running or in other aspects of life, there are streams of wisdom to be gleaned from Ostman’s accounts as she pushes on with her ambition to run 7 marathons on 7 continents. Despite the fact that running never seems to come easy for her, she discovers within herself ways to keep making forward progress, no matter how gradual, amidst a staggering array of roadblocks, trials, & tribulations.
Readers will find themselves trudging alongside her in the wildest of circumstances & adventures, as steps become miles, & miles become marathons. In the process, we come to realize that we're in fact running towards more resilient and empowered versions of ourselves.
I highly recommend this page-turner for both non-runners & runners (fast or slow!) alike.
Her story is a compelling testament to the power of perseverance and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.
From the author’s dedication at the front of the book, “To back-of-the-packers everywhere,” it seems as if her words are especially intended for the underdogs of the world. And while I knowingly count myself as one such ”back-of-the-packer”, I couldn’t have imagined just how fierce her journey of grit & self-discovery would ultimately be.
Whether in running or in other aspects of life, there are streams of wisdom to be gleaned from Ostman’s accounts as she pushes on with her ambition to run 7 marathons on 7 continents. Despite the fact that running never seems to come easy for her, she discovers within herself ways to keep making forward progress, no matter how gradual, amidst a staggering array of roadblocks, trials, & tribulations.
Readers will find themselves trudging alongside her in the wildest of circumstances & adventures, as steps become miles, & miles become marathons. In the process, we come to realize that we're in fact running towards more resilient and empowered versions of ourselves.
I highly recommend this page-turner for both non-runners & runners (fast or slow!) alike.
September 7, 2012
I'VE NEVER STOOD FACE to face with Cami Ostman but we "met" several months ago when I followed up on a lead for a potential writing project. Cami was issuing a call for submissions on women who've experienced extreme religion. Fast forward to now and I'm thrilled to say that Cami liked my essay and it will be published in an anthology due out next spring. I'll post more on this later.
With a pile of "to read" books stacked on my nightstand, I finally read Cami's fascinating memoir, Second Wind: One Woman's Midlife Quest To Run Seven Marathons on Seven Continents (Seal Press, 2010). I'm glad I did.
I was once a fairly dedicated runner. My most extravagant jaunt took place in the middle of a blue Caribbean ocean as I propelled my then-thin body around the uppermost deck of a Princess cruise ship. But I've got nothing on Cami.
In 2001, after a failed marriage, Cami began questioning many of the religious beliefs she'd grown up with. Struggling with deep depression, she found that running offered a way for her to clear her head and find her way.
It takes a tremendous amount of physical as well as mental and emotional endurance to run 26 miles. Sore muscles are normal and expected. A marathoner must summon inner strength to override the body's desire to hang it up. Crossing the finish line affirms the runner's tenacity and can't help but build her self esteem.
Not only does the reader go with Cami to seven continents to tackle these tremendous challenges, but we go inside her head to understand what drives her, what hinders her and ultimately what she learns about her life. She calls it a "Vision Quest."
I liked the way Cami personified her many-faceted psyche. Along the way, we are introduced to the "Bitch," "Inner Wisdom," the "Warrior" and the "Princess." All are vital in helping Cami succeed. And all of us have these same parts of ourselves whether we run marathons, tend a garden, change diapers or help the homeless. You don't need to be a marathoner to "get" Cami's book, to hear the message and apply it inwardly.
Cami has a Facebook page with lots of cool photos of her travels and triumphs. As a licensed therapist, Cami's website and blog reveal her passion for helping others achieve their best as she has so admirably done. You'll like this book.
With a pile of "to read" books stacked on my nightstand, I finally read Cami's fascinating memoir, Second Wind: One Woman's Midlife Quest To Run Seven Marathons on Seven Continents (Seal Press, 2010). I'm glad I did.
I was once a fairly dedicated runner. My most extravagant jaunt took place in the middle of a blue Caribbean ocean as I propelled my then-thin body around the uppermost deck of a Princess cruise ship. But I've got nothing on Cami.
In 2001, after a failed marriage, Cami began questioning many of the religious beliefs she'd grown up with. Struggling with deep depression, she found that running offered a way for her to clear her head and find her way.
It takes a tremendous amount of physical as well as mental and emotional endurance to run 26 miles. Sore muscles are normal and expected. A marathoner must summon inner strength to override the body's desire to hang it up. Crossing the finish line affirms the runner's tenacity and can't help but build her self esteem.
Not only does the reader go with Cami to seven continents to tackle these tremendous challenges, but we go inside her head to understand what drives her, what hinders her and ultimately what she learns about her life. She calls it a "Vision Quest."
I liked the way Cami personified her many-faceted psyche. Along the way, we are introduced to the "Bitch," "Inner Wisdom," the "Warrior" and the "Princess." All are vital in helping Cami succeed. And all of us have these same parts of ourselves whether we run marathons, tend a garden, change diapers or help the homeless. You don't need to be a marathoner to "get" Cami's book, to hear the message and apply it inwardly.
Cami has a Facebook page with lots of cool photos of her travels and triumphs. As a licensed therapist, Cami's website and blog reveal her passion for helping others achieve their best as she has so admirably done. You'll like this book.
June 9, 2011
This is a great memoir. I found this book by chance. After reading "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Haruki Murakami, I wanted more books on running. Second Wind was one of the first that popped up on my local library's site. I'm really happy with that happenstance. Ostman talks about being open to these types of chance encounters, or open to loosening one's need for control and staying open and welcoming to what might result. In her case, after a childhood in a broken home, she joins a religion because of the structure it offers. But after 15-20 years (from about age 15-30 or 35) practicing that religion, she realizes she doesn't know herself and has never had the space to fully understand who she is and become who she wants to be. She ditches her marriage and goes on a quest to find herself, which may sound cliché, but it will resonate with you if you have ever experienced a moment of reflexivity.
I haven't really given anything away with that brief plot intro. What's important about this book is that Ostman marks her transition through the project of running a marathon on every continent. She takes you through the many emotional ups and downs that come with such a project and with such a transformational moment in her life. The writing is solid, with great details when they are necessary and excellent analysis, ruminations, and reflections throughout. Ostmas is a psychologist by trade, and if you've been to grad school you'll recognize certain patterns of thinking and certain conclusions she reaches. I did at least.
I found this book at a perfect moment. I'm in a transitional stage as well, particularly due to a terrible accident which left me burned on 30% of my body and wishing I could have been the one with 80% of my body burned instead of my partner (as if there were a choice, right?). These facts make the book resonate for me, but I can objectively say that the writing is fantastic and that this book is a strong read and a strong memoir.
Seal Press promotes itself as books for women, by women, but this book is most certainly for anyone in my opinion.
I haven't really given anything away with that brief plot intro. What's important about this book is that Ostman marks her transition through the project of running a marathon on every continent. She takes you through the many emotional ups and downs that come with such a project and with such a transformational moment in her life. The writing is solid, with great details when they are necessary and excellent analysis, ruminations, and reflections throughout. Ostmas is a psychologist by trade, and if you've been to grad school you'll recognize certain patterns of thinking and certain conclusions she reaches. I did at least.
I found this book at a perfect moment. I'm in a transitional stage as well, particularly due to a terrible accident which left me burned on 30% of my body and wishing I could have been the one with 80% of my body burned instead of my partner (as if there were a choice, right?). These facts make the book resonate for me, but I can objectively say that the writing is fantastic and that this book is a strong read and a strong memoir.
Seal Press promotes itself as books for women, by women, but this book is most certainly for anyone in my opinion.
March 27, 2011
Totally a great armchair read! I hate running, and frankly I'm not big on introspection either, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Ostman is introspective, but in a way that keeps coming back to some central themes rather than just running (haha) in circles. Her themes make sense for women of a certain age--like me.
And her adventures (She's running a marathon on every continent) are hysterical - from getting shafted by a tour company in the Arctic and coming up with a way to best them, to helping her naive but kindly husband figure out how to get a good night's sleep in unusual circumstances.
The fact that Ostman is what she calls a "back-of-the-packer," someone who doesn't run fast or well, helped me get into this. I don't care for Sports books, but this is about winning not by being the fastest, but by having a life, setting goals, and just getting on with things, come what may.
If I were to sum this book up in a sentence, it would be "Vive la tortoises in a world of hares."
And her adventures (She's running a marathon on every continent) are hysterical - from getting shafted by a tour company in the Arctic and coming up with a way to best them, to helping her naive but kindly husband figure out how to get a good night's sleep in unusual circumstances.
The fact that Ostman is what she calls a "back-of-the-packer," someone who doesn't run fast or well, helped me get into this. I don't care for Sports books, but this is about winning not by being the fastest, but by having a life, setting goals, and just getting on with things, come what may.
If I were to sum this book up in a sentence, it would be "Vive la tortoises in a world of hares."
September 5, 2013
This book was about the author’s journey to recreate herself in part by running a marathon on each of the seven continents. She had married early and was extremely religious - always heeding to God or her husband. Through the rigors of marathon training she learned to listen to her instincts (Inner Wisdom and Inner Bitch) and start living for herself.
I didn’t find the story particularly revolutionary. I think the author went through a fairly typical self-discovery process. I enjoyed her sense of adventure and stick-to-it-ness though and especially enjoyed her quote at the end about how necessary it is for all of us to tell our own stories.
Quote I Liked:
When we tell our stories, we invite ors to tell theirs to us in return. When we tell our stories, we create them and become the narrators of our own lives. When we tell our stories, we chart our own courses.
I didn’t find the story particularly revolutionary. I think the author went through a fairly typical self-discovery process. I enjoyed her sense of adventure and stick-to-it-ness though and especially enjoyed her quote at the end about how necessary it is for all of us to tell our own stories.
Quote I Liked:
When we tell our stories, we invite ors to tell theirs to us in return. When we tell our stories, we create them and become the narrators of our own lives. When we tell our stories, we chart our own courses.
March 15, 2014
I was surprised by Ostman's unconventional pursuit of seven marathons, as she made this a goal before she even became infatuated with distance running. Yet that perhaps reflects more on my expectations, and did not detract from her attempt to meet a challenging goal. In fact, because Ostman is not an elite athlete, I can see her book appealing to new runners, to those who would like to become more infatuated with the sport, or even to those who love the sport but don't care about speed and competition.
Ostman's habit of running with the voices in her head (not crazy voices, just her identity for the pieces of her past and her personality) competing for her attention was a little off-putting to me. Considering that I was pulled to this book initially because it was about her recovery from a conservative, fundamentalist Christian background, however, this fits the overall theme.
Ostman's habit of running with the voices in her head (not crazy voices, just her identity for the pieces of her past and her personality) competing for her attention was a little off-putting to me. Considering that I was pulled to this book initially because it was about her recovery from a conservative, fundamentalist Christian background, however, this fits the overall theme.
March 1, 2011
I loved this book. Ostman's journey of self-discovery through marathon running was inspirational and insightful. I love running as a way to push myself and my personal boundries. Ostman does the same. I also get great satisfaction from setting goals, either short or long term, and eventually attaining them. Her story inspired me, especially her trek to the continent of Antartica to run her final marathon on the 7th continent. A very satisfying read...I should vow to go back to it at some point to reread again when I find myself straying from my own goals.
August 3, 2011
This book was not quite what I had expected. I love, love, loved the portions where she talked about the marathons themselves. But I think that there is a fine line authors sometimes cross when the write about themselves or their expeirences. That line that crosses into the land of "self-indulgant" and I think that this author crossed that line several times.
As a runner, I appreciated the aspects of this book that dealt with that subject and I also found the speak of travel and cultures to be interesting as well. But the talk of her inner journey seemed a little overly indulgant.
As a runner, I appreciated the aspects of this book that dealt with that subject and I also found the speak of travel and cultures to be interesting as well. But the talk of her inner journey seemed a little overly indulgant.
August 15, 2012
I had mixed emotions about this book. Inspirationally, I thought it was pretty great... But the undertones of her bitterness toward God left a pretty heavy blanket on everything. It's clear she still has a lot to work through emotionally, even though I believe she thinks she's trumped most of that by man-hating the "big bad God" she boxed him into, becoming a counselor, and running a whole lot. Either way, when you sift through her own emotional baggage and relate to the running aspects, it can be pretty interesting!
February 8, 2011
I was in a class with Cami called Writing the Modern Memoir. Since I met Cami, I've admired her and been impressed with her writing, her goals, and her caring and adventurous personality. Since starting to read her book I am even more impressed with the growth she has gone through in her personal life, the creative life she has created for herself, and her willingness to share her experiences with the rest of us. I would definitely suggest adding this to your must read list.
July 16, 2011
I found this book very inspiring. Cami's story is really very amazing and yet she is also very easy to relate to. Reading this book had me itching to start exercising more (never a bad thing) and I frequently found myself googling vacation spots around the world, daydreaming about all things travel. Her story sucks you in so that by the time I finished the last page, I kind of felt like I'd finished a journey of my own!
August 19, 2012
My idea of exercise is walking from the sofa to the fridge. So I enjoyed the vicarious thrills of this young woman's travels and travails. I thought it might be hard to relate to, full of running trivia and all, but it's really very inspiring as an armchair read. It didn't so much make me want to take up running and just pay more attention to what I was already enjoying doing. And that's a good thing. Thoroughly recommend this book to anyone at a crossroads in life.
January 7, 2011
Second Wind combines my two favorites things.........marathons & self growth. Probably considered 'chick lit', it has the adventure & growth that marathoning brings. Not used to the revelations of a back of the pack person but amazingly the thoughts are fairly similar. Just missing the 'gotta reach that goal' aspect.
February 18, 2011
A mid-life woman is dragged into running by her 2nd husband...and then decides to accept his challenge to run a marathon on each continent. The beginning of the book focuses on why she left her 1st marriage..the rest is dedicated to the races. If you've ever run a marathon, or run at all, you'll know exactly how she feels. She's not fast...but she gets the races done.
November 24, 2012
Eat Pray Run. But I loved it. It reads more like a series of blog posts, but I didn't mind. I loved her story and following her journey. If you are looking for a finely written memoir, look elsewhere. But her writing is solid enough to express her compelling story. Highly recommend to anyone interested in running, changing your life, or both at the same time.
January 17, 2014
This book has helped motivate me to run and (hopefully) run a marathon someday. (Okay maybe a half marathon!)
Spoiler Alert:
The one thing I don't like about this book is that she, while she is a Christian at the beginning, she is no longer a Christian at the end. I would love to have coffee with her and discuss this. This does make me sad :(
Spoiler Alert:
The one thing I don't like about this book is that she, while she is a Christian at the beginning, she is no longer a Christian at the end. I would love to have coffee with her and discuss this. This does make me sad :(
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 5, 2014
I got a lot out of this book. I run about the same pace as the author (a bit slower actually), also started later in life, and I am running my first marathon tomorrow. I loved how running gradually became her thing. I learned some things about distance running from another woman's perspective. I also enjoyed her insights and epiphanies.
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