BOOKS THAT CAN HELP...
July 14, 2024 BOOKS THAT CAN HELP...”ENDURE”
I'm going to highlight Book{s} that have helped me over the years in Running and/or Triathlons....{Or even Life...lol}.
The books that I am going to highlight....are Biographies/Autobiographies/In depth studies on Training...not only on the physical but also on mental and how your personal life affects your training. Consistence and Balance!!
Bobby Jones {One of the Greatest Golfers} once said “Competitive Golf is played mainly on a 5 and one half inch course…The distance between your ears”. That can be said about almost anything in life…including any Endurance Sports like running or Triathlons.
“Alex Hutchinson’s ENDURE is so much more than a sports book. It is a voyage to the outer reaches of Human capacity----from polar trailblazers trying not to freeze to death to gold miners in scalding shafts trying not to heat to death. Ultimately, though, it is the journey to the greatest interior---the human mind---that is the most fascinating. Anyone who has ever felt exhausted, whether from heat or cold or altitude or pain or simply a loss of will, is going to find their own experience in this book”. D Epstein, The Sports Gene
Here is just a taste…
“The limits of endurance running, according to physiologists, could be quantified with three parameters: Aerobic capacity, also known as VO2 max, Which is analogous to the size of a car’s engine; Running economy, which is an efficiency measure like gas milage; and Lactate threshold, which dictates how much of your engine’s power you can sustain for long periods if time.” Pg 2
“…It’s actually the brain alone that sets and enforces the seemingly physical limits we rencounter during prolonged exercise”. Pg 38
“Whether the brain plays a role in determining the limits of endurance is no longer in doubt; the debate now is how”. Pg 52
Part 2 of this book deals with LIMITS!!!
Chapter 5…..Pain
Chapter 6…..Muscle
Chapter 7…..Oxygen
Chapter 8…..Heat
Chapter 9…..Thirst
Chapter 10….Fuel
Part 3 deals with LIMIT BREAKERS {This is a MUST READ!!!!}
Chapter 11…..Training the Brain {This deals with “Brain Endurance Training”}
Chapter 12…..Zapping the Brain {“…Teach athletes that they’re capable of more than they think”.}
Chapter 13…..Belief {THIS IS THE KEY CHAPTER!!!}
“Harnessing a belief effect….very strategically and slowly developing maximal trust, belief, and evidence with your
athletes and coaches over time”…”For athletes, the simplest way of acquiring justified belief about your capabilities is to test them: whatever you’ve done before, you can do again plus a little more”…”In an honest accounting, training is the cake and belief is the icing---but sometimes that thin smear of frosting makes all the difference.” {or that Boston Crème Donut at the end of a run}!
This book is one if not my favorite and informative book on Endurance!!! It was funny…I had planned on reviewing this book this week but last week Eddie Ross mentioned I need to review this book…and I responded that I would this week….
We are capable of so much more …..!!!! The world tends to put limits on us…Sometimes those limits are helpful as a guide but NOT as a rigid barrier in life. In this book the sub 4-minute mile was a barrier that could not be reached…. everyone thought it…well not everyone…Rodger Bannister didn’t and soon after he broke that barrier many more did too. They believed it was possible. Last winter I watched on U tube all the best Milers run on the indoor New Balance track and over 50 runners broke the 4 minute mile.
Ok…Now I’m going to get on a soap box…We tend to believe there is a warranty on everything…we see that everywhere. Cell phones have a 2 year warranty and must be replaced…cars, homes…It’s funny how those time limits change! We have been led to believe we have a warranty too! Life expectancy in the U. S. for men and women is in the high 70’s…If we believe we will die in the 70’s then just maybe we will. Yes…. accidents happen and can cut a life short but for others we have the ability to live extremely long and productive and fulfilling lives. The Documentary “LIVE TO 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones” is a must…Yes exercise and diet are important but so is attitude {being positive/living without fear} and community {sharing your life/having a purpose}. Those who know me well…have heard me correct many who refer to me and others as “old” …. lol I’m “older” a recognition of my chronological age not “old” which is an attitude! Yes…Physically I show signs of getting older…I am not as fast or strong as I was in my teens…it takes longer for me to rebound from injuries. And that is part of the aging process…I started losing my hair in my 30’s…now that bothered me...lol
I will end with this…” I believe we are not meant to live years or decades but centuries and more”!!!
Thanks,
Ran
