Over the last ten years, Ayers has completed a vast array of races. She runs them all while admittedly not getting much faster, much thinner, or much more disciplined—though she has managed to be on national television, split open her pants, and get electrocuted. Ayers intersperses her hilarious yet relatable struggles with insights about how and why she keeps running.A self-proclaimed ambassador of slow runners, Ayers has completed dozens of endurance challenges, including Tough Mudder, the Ragnar Relay, Muddy Buddy, Warrior Dash, Run Amuck, the Army Ten-Miler, the Country Music Marathon, and many more mud runs, obstacles courses, and races. Her race descriptions will entertain seasoned runners and non-runners alike. Woven into the chaos of her running adventures is compassionate reassurance for anyone who feels like they aren’t fast enough, athletic enough, or strong enough to finish a tough race.Though told with humor, Confessions’ stories share an underlying theme of Ayers’ serious reverence for the sport of running and the running community. Ayers describes experiences such as participating in a 1,000-mile relay for Boston Marathon bombing victims, and being overcome by emotion while observing wounded veterans struggling to finish a race. Her stories prove how life-enriching it can be to physically fight for something and to cheer on others who are doing the same.For anyone who has considered trying a marathon, an obstacle race, or simply taking up running for the first time, Ayers is your ambassador. If she can do it, you can too.

    His life is about being bold and risky. So when Jesse felt himself drifting on autopilot, he hired a rather unconventional trainer to live with him for a month-an accomplished Navy SEAL widely considered to be "the toughest man on the planet"! Living With a Seal is like a buddy movie if it starred the Fresh Prince of Bel- Air. . .and Rambo. Jesse is about as easy-going as you can get. SEAL is. . . not. Jesse and SEAL's escapades soon produce a great friendship, and Jesse gains much more than muscle. At turns hilarious and inspiring, Living With a Seal ultimately shows you the benefits of stepping out of your comfort zone.

    From a muay Thai bout in Bangkok to Rio, where he trained with jiu-jitsu royalty, to Iowa, where he matched up against the toughest in MMA, Sheridan threw himself into a quest to understand how and why we fight. In The Fighter's Mind, Sheridan does for the brain what his first book did for the body. To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world's most fascinating and dangerous men, including celebrated trainers Freddie Roach and Greg Jackson; champion fighters Randy Couture, Frank Shamrock, and Marcelo Garcia; ultrarunner David Horton; legendary wrestler Dan Gable, and many more. What are their secrets? How do they stay committed through years of training, craft a game plan, and adjust to the realities of the ring? How do they project strength when weak, and remain mentally tough despite incredible physical pain? A fascinating book, bursting at the seams with incredible stories and insight, The Fighter's Mind answers these questions and many more.

    Now Ross focuses on mental strength, stoicism and the training needed to create an unbreakable body.Ross Edgley famously ran a marathon pulling a 1.4-tonne car and climbed a rope the height of Everest (8,848m), after living with Yamabushi warrior monks in Japan and partaking in Shamanic pain rituals with fire ants in the Amazon jungle. On his epic 1,780-mile journey around Great Britain, which lasted 157 days, Ross swam through giant jellyfish, arctic storms, ‘haunted’ whirlpools and polluted shipping lanes, going so hard, and so fast, his tongue fell apart.Ross’s previous book, The World’s Fittest Book, was a Sunday Times No.1 bestseller and explored the science of physical fitness. Now, in The Art of Resilience, Ross uses his swim experience and other amazing endurance feats, where he managed to overcome seemingly insurmountable pain, hardship and adversity, to study the performance of extreme athletes, military and fitness specialists and psychologists to uncover the secrets of mental fitness and explore the concept of resilience, persistence, valour and a disciplined mindset in overcoming adversity. This ground-breaking book represents a paradigm shift in what we thought the human body and mind were capable of and will give you a blueprint to become a tougher, more resilient and ultimately better human – whatever the challenge you face.

    With the latest findings about the mental and physical benefits of exercise, personal stories from scientists and laypeople alike, as well as researched-based prescriptions for readers, Gretchen Reynolds shows what kind of exercise—and how much—is necessary to stay healthy, get fit, and attain a smaller jeans size. Inspired by Reynolds's wildly popular “Phys Ed” column for The New York Times, this book explains how exercise affects the body in distinct ways and provides the tools readers need to achieve their fitness goals, whether that's a faster 5K or staying trim.

    The only book on running authored by a sports medicine specialist, this informative guide offers: A primer on running's most common injuries, emphasizing prevention and recovery, to get you through the grueling training months unscathed. Essential strengthening exercises, stretches, nutrition, and hydration tips.?

    Developed by CrossFit Endurance founder Brian MacKenzie and featuring instruction from some of the world's top endurance and CrossFit coaches, Power, Speed, ENDURANCE unveils techniques, drills, and training strategies that will optimize your performance and overall work capacity while decreasing your susceptibility to injury.Through thousands of step-by-step color photographs and detailed narrative, Power, Speed, ENDURANCE breaks down proper running, cycling, and swimming mechanics like never before. MacKenzie's unique system of building strength, speed, and power is aimed at reaping continual results, without injury. In fact, he devotes an entire chapter to the "broken down" athlete, equipping you with the knowledge to prevent, repair, and treat injuries brought on by poor mechanics and tight overworked muscles. In addition, MacKenzie outlines a straightforward approach to nutrition, hydration, and electrolyte balance that will increase your energy, boost your performance, and accelerate your recovery.Whether you're a self-trained athlete looking to compete in your first endurance event, a seasoned competitor looking to reach your highest potential, or a CrossFit athlete looking to increase stamina, Power, Speed, ENDURANCE will help you reach your goal.In this book, you will learn how to: develop proper running technique using the Pose Method properly fit yourself on a bike improve cycling mechanics on a road, time-trial, and mountain bike swim effortlessly and improve freestyle-stroke mechanics through skill-based drills and exercises accelerate work capacity and minimize fatigue by building muscle, speed, and power incorporate a CrossFit Endurance strength-and-conditioning program into your training routine maximize nutrition, hydration, and electrolyte balance to improve performance and body composition prevent, repair, and treat nagging injuries associated with endurance sports and improve range of motion using Starrett's Movement and Mobility Method

    He has interviewed serial killers and been in the line of fire. But the most terrifying moment of his life didn't occur on the job--it occurred at home, when his 18-year old daughter asked, "How would you feel about running a marathon with me?" At the time, Foreman was approaching 51 years old, and his last marathon was almost 30 years behind him. The race was just sixteen weeks away, but Foreman reluctantly agreed. Training with his daughter, who had just started college, would be a great bonding experience, albeit a long and painful one. My Year of Running Dangerously is Foreman's journey through four half-marathons, three marathons, and one 55-mile race. What started as an innocent request from his daughter quickly turned into a rekindled passion for long-distance running--for the training, the camaraderie, the defeats, and the victories. Told with honesty and humor, Foreman's account captures the universal fears of aging and failure alongside the hard-won moments of triumph, tenacity, and going further than you ever thought possible.

    Lieberman illuminates how these ongoing changes have brought many benefits, but also have created novel conditions to which our bodies are not entirely adapted, resulting in a growing incidence of obesity and new but avoidable diseases, including type-2 diabetes. He proposes that many of these chronic illnesses persist and in some cases are intensifying because of "dysevolution," a pernicious dynamic whereby only the symptoms rather than the causes of these maladies are treated. And finally—provocatively—he advocates the use of evolutionary information to help nudge, push, and sometimes oblige us to create a more salubrious environment.(With charts and line drawings throughout.)From the Hardcover edition.

    Discover the hard science that will help you run faster, endure for longer, and avoid injury.Analyze your running style and learn how to enhance your gait for optimum efficiency and safety.Transform your performance with exercises targeting strength, flexibility, and recovery - each exercise annotated to reveal the muscle mechanics so you know you're getting it right.Understand the science behind your body's energy systems and how to train to maximize energy storage and conversion.Follow training and exercise programs tailored to different abilities and distances, from 5K to marathon.Whether you are new to running or an experienced runner, this book will help you achieve your goals and stay injury-free.

    Jon Wertheim to overturn some of the most cherished truisms of sports, and reveal the hidden forces that shape how basketball, baseball, football, and hockey games are played, won and lost.Drawing from Moskowitz's original research, as well as studies from fellow economists such as bestselling author Richard Thaler, the authors look at: the influence home-field advantage has on the outcomes of games in all sports and why it exists; the surprising truth about the universally accepted axiom that defense wins championships;  the subtle biases that umpires exhibit in calling balls and strikes in key situations; the unintended consequences of referees' tendencies in every sport to "swallow the whistle," and more.Among the insights that Scorecasting reveals:Why Tiger Woods is prone to the same mistake in high-pressure putting situations that you and I areWhy professional teams routinely overvalue draft picks The myth of momentum  or the "hot hand" in sports, and why so many fans, coaches, and broadcasters fervently subscribe to itWhy NFL coaches rarely go for a first down on fourth-down situations--even when their reluctance to do so reduces their chances of winning.In an engaging narrative that takes us from the putting greens of Augusta to the grid iron of a small parochial high school in Arkansas, Scorecasting will forever change how you view the game, whatever your favorite sport might be.

    Until recently he held the American 24-hour record and he was one of the elite runners profiled in the runaway bestseller Born to Run.In Eat and Run, Jurek opens up about his life and career as a champion athlete with a plant-based diet and inspires runners at every level. From his Midwestern childhood hunting, fishing, and cooking for his meat-and-potatoes family to his slow transition to ultrarunning and veganism, Scott’s story shows the power of an iron will and blows apart the stereotypes of what athletes should eat to fuel optimal performance. Full of stories of competition as well as science and practical advice—including his own recipes—Eat and Run will motivate readers and expand their food horizons.

    This isn't just another running book.101 Simple Ways to be a Better Runner boils down the best training advice from the worlds of coaching and science to give you actionable strategies to become stronger, faster, and more resilient.It's divided into five main sections:- Workouts, Races, and Performance (like why you need randomness and heavy weights)- Running Gear (what's essential - and what's crap)- The Runner's Diet (small tweaks you can make today to get more from your food)- Recovery and Injury Prevention (how fast could you be if you rarely or never got hurt?)- Motivation and Random Training Tips (how most runners run longer in their races - and more)And that's just a glimpse of all 100+ lessons you'll learn (in less than 2 minutes each).Written by Jason Fitzgreald, a 2:39 marathoner and the creator of StrengthRunning.com, 101 Simple Ways to be a Better Runner is a practical, actionable guide to helping you reach your running goals. If you want to run a fast 5k, finish your first marathon, or just lose weight and stay in shape - this book is for you.You don't need the most expensive running gear or better genetics. You need simple training tweaks that give you "small wins" to keep you motivated.That's exactly what this book delivers.

    Readers will learn how Bryant studied an opponent, how he channeled his passion for the game, how he played through injuries. They’ll also get fascinating granular detail as he breaks down specific plays and match-ups from throughout his career.Bryant’s detailed accounts are paired with stunning photographs by the Hall of Fame photographer Andrew D. Bernstein. Bernstein, long the Lakers and NBA official photographer, captured Bryant’s very first NBA photo in 1996 and his last in 2016—and hundreds of thousands in between, the record of a unique, twenty-year relationship between one athlete and one photographer.

    In his fast-paced, ultimate guide to 5K running races, celebrated running coach Pete Magill reveals the 25 crucial keys to setting your next 5K PR. Magill shares hard-earned lessons he gained while leading 19 teams to USA national championships and setting multiple American and world age-group and masters records. Fast 5K shares Magill’s essential keys to finding your fastest running fitness and race readiness. The 25 keys include optimal training mileage, effective tempo runs, VO2 max workouts, hill repeats, plyometrics that work, ways to prevent injuries, recovery tips, guides to diet and racing weight, choosing racing flats, and much more. Offering three 12-week and one 16-week 5K training plans, Fast 5K is the key to your best 5K running times. Pete Magill is a world-class 5K runner, personally holds multiple American and world age-group records in track & field and road racing and is a 5-time USA Masters Cross Country Runner of the Year. Now in this distilled guide, you can get world-class advice on how to run your fastest 5K ever.