But why--what compels people past pain, lost toenails, 5.30 am start times, The Wall? Sports writer Matt Fitzgerald set out to run eight marathons in eight weeks across the country to answer that question. At each race, he meets an array of runners, from first timers, to dad-daughter teams and spouses, to people who'd been running for decades, and asks them what keeps them running. But there is another deeply personal part to Matt's journey: his own relationship to the sport--and how it helped him overcome his own struggles and cope with his wife Nataki's severe bipolar disorder. A combination of Matt's own How Bad Do You Want It? and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, Life Is a Marathon captures the magic of those 26.2 miles. At the end of the day--and at the end of the race--the pursuit of a marathon finish line is not unlike the pursuit of happiness. You will pick up the book for a powerful personal story about what running does for the people for whom it does the most. You will put it down with a greater understanding of what it means to be alive in this world.

    It reconnects us to our bodies and the places in which we live, breaking down our increasingly structured and demanding lives. It allows us to feel the world beneath our feet, lifts the spirit, allows our minds out to play and helps us to slip away from the demands of the modern world. When Vybarr Cregan-Reid set out to discover why running meant so much to so many, he began a journey which would take him out to tread London’s cobbled streets, climbing to sites that have seen a millennium of hangings, and down the crumbling alleyways of Ruskin's Venice. Footnotes transports you to the cliff tops of Hardy's Dorset, the deserted shorelines of Seattle, the giant redwood forests of California, and to the world’s most advanced running laboratories and research centres, using debates in literature, philosophy and biology to explore that simple human desire to run. Liberating and inspiring, this book reminds us why feeling the earth beneath our feet is a necessary and healing part of our lives.

    Learn how to transform visions into performance and to be in charge of your performance with the help of Jeff Galloway's RUN-WALK-RUNA' method.

    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.

    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.

    But there isn't one ideal form all runners should try to emulate. Instead, research and experience show that people can run effectively in a wide variety of patterns with some universal elements.In lively, accessible prose, author Jonathan Beverly details his search for common ground among physical therapists, podiatrists, biomechanics researchers, and coaches, and reveals how individual runners can apply those principles and improve their performance, avoid injury, and enhance their enjoyment on the run.With specific, illustrated exercises that show how to counteract tight muscles from excessive sitting, improve limited arm mobility from hunching over electronic devices, strengthen your feet for better balance, and improve speed by lengthening your stride, Runner's World Your Best Stride is an approachable guide to human movement and a practical tool for improved running performance.

    Andy isn't a sporting superstar, he holds down a 9-5 job and all the pressures that go with it; he isn't blessed with speed and talent; there are no multi-million pound sponsorship deals; yet this remarkable "common man" is inspiring in a way that some of today's sporting superstars have forgotten how to be. You wouldn't recognize Andy in the street, yet his story provides valuable lessons to us all: "Never give up" and "Anything is possible." Can't Swim, Can't Ride, Can't Run follows Andy Holgate's epic journey from being an overweight librarian to an Ironman triathlete. Before he could even begin the rollercoaster ride which amassed more punctures than Andy cares to remember, this would-be Superman had first to buy a second-hand bike and take swimming lessons. Along the way, he ended up in hospital, dealt with family crises, encountered crocodiles and deadly amoebas, and persuaded his friends that doing an Ironman event is what normal people do on their stag weekend. This is the inspirational, amusing and moving story of how one normal bloke learnt how to fall off a bike and not injure himself, to run a marathon despite two dodgy knees, and most importantly how not to drown.

    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.

    She was the underdog for so long -- narrowly missing out on medals in the 1999 World Championships and the 2000 Sydney Olympics -- that fans longed to see her win. Paula's rosy manner hides a tough resolve to succeed and in 2002 her luck began to turn. She won gold medals at both the Commonwealth and European championships and started to grab the headlines, bringing Britain's focus back to athletics. Paula's bravery is not limited to the track, however. She has become a passionate spokesperson against drug cheats and, inspired by her own battle with the condition, she is widely admired for her patronage of asthma charities. And even though Athens in 2004 proved to be more Greek tragedy than triumph, her popularity remains undimmed. Her remarkable life story of highs and lows is fully chronicled in this fascinating and inspiring autobiography.

    This journal chronicles Ryan Hall’s 14-week preparation for the 2010 Boston Marathon, providing practical insights into the daily regimen of someone training at the absolute peak of human performance. It also reveals the spiritual journey of an elite athlete who is a follower of Jesus Christ.Readers will discover how Ryan deals with nagging injuries and illness, bad weather, disappointing workouts, and a slavish focus on results that can take the fun out of running. Ryan runs 140 miles a week, often at altitude and a blistering pace. Yet millions of everyday runners will identify with and appreciate his intentional return to running with joy and his lifelong goal of glorifying Christ on and off the racecourse.

    With a renewed sense of purpose, she decides to take the sport that saved her life to the next level, training hard and throwing herself in at the deep end by entering the epic Marathon des Sables in the Sahara desert, despite still being a novice runner. One startling success leads to another, as she finds herself taking on ever-more-challenging races – from the Badwater Ultramarathon in Death Valley, USA, to the 6633 Arctic Ultra – all building up to her biggest challenge yet: attempting to gain the Guinness World Record time for a female running 840 miles from John o’Groats to Land’s End.This incredible story of how an ordinary mum ran her way into the record books will inspire beginner runners and die-hard marathon devotees alike, proving that, no matter where life takes you, it’s never too late to achieve your dreams and do the impossible.

    Along the way, he transforms into the man he always wanted to be. PUBLICATION IN 1 VOLUME -- COMPLETED WORK. Sebastien, a quiet and shy teacher, gets lost in the memories of his boyhood, when he was a strong and successful runner. On a whim, he decides to challenge his aging body and crumbling spirit and run the New York Marathon! From the streets of France to the streets of Brooklyn, Sebastien pushes himself past limits he didn't even know he had. A humorous and poignant autobiographical tale. A love letter to the landscapes and panoramas of New York. And a testament to the triumph of the human spirit.

    From the intimacy of the bedroom to the community of competition, some of these stories will encourage and uplift. Others will surprise and infuriate. Welcome to the beautiful and complicated world of strong women.

    This collection considers the most important reasons women run, celebrating the inspiring passion runners have for their sport and illustrating how running fosters a vitally powerful community. With unique wit, refreshing candor, and disarming vulnerability, Armstrong shares her conviction that running is the perfect parallel for marking the milestones of life. From describing running a hardfought race with her tightly-knit group of sweat sisters, to watching her children participate in the sport for the very first time, Armstrong infuses her experiences with a perspective of hope that every moment is a chance to become a stronger, wiser, more peaceful woman. Running threads these touching stories together, and through each of them we are shown the universal undercurrents of inspiration, growth, grace, family, empowerment, and endurance.

    But is the rise of this most brutal and challenging sport―with races that extend into hundreds of miles, often in extreme environments―an antidote to modern life, or a symptom of a modern illness?In The Rise of the Ultra Runners, award-winning author Adharanand Finn travels to the heart of the sport to investigate the reasons behind its rise and discover what it takes to join the ranks of these ultra athletes. Through encounters with the extreme and colorful characters of the ultramarathon world, and his own experiences of running ultras everywhere from the deserts of Oman to the Rocky Mountains, Finn offers a fascinating account of people testing the boundaries of human endeavor.