Sunday Times Sports Book of the Year Shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award Winner - Best New Writer category at the British Sports Book Awards After years of watching Kenyan athletes win the world's biggest long-distance races, Runner's World contributor Adharanand Finn set out to discover what it was that made them so fast - and to see if he could keep up. Packing up his family, he moved to Iten, Kenya, the running capital of the world, and started investigating. Was it running barefoot to school, the food, the altitude, or something else? At the end of his journey he put his research to the test by running his first marathon, across the Kenyan plains. This edition includes a new chapter covering the 2012 Olympics.

Published as a quality jacketed hardback in 2013, Steve Chilton's illuminating and entertaining history of one of athletics' most demanding sports, as well as the most demandingly amateur, took the world of running by storm and quickly broke out of its niche. Sandstone Press is delighted to now present the book in a paperback form. It will find ever more admirers to inspire.

For those willing to go to the edge, for those who love to run close to the sky, here are some of the world's most challenging and beautiful running trails and races. Twelve trails are covered in depth, and many more are included. From Norway to South Africa, Hong Kong to Colorado, and Switzerland to Columbia, these profiles are accompanied by travel information, as well as stories from those with experience on these trails, whether talking about the music they run to, or the good will shared among fellow runners.

The Hash House Harriers - sometimes called the drinking club with a running problem. It is the largest non-competitive running club in the world. Hashing involves running from a pub, following a trail of flour around a circular course for five miles or so, and then returning to the pub for a beer or ten. This is four years in the life of 'Navigator' - a geographically-challenged hasher from the Isle of Wight. He travels with the Hash to wonderful places like Denmark, Germany, Amsterdam, Birmingham, Bradford, Howarth and Cardiff. He also visits Harwich; 'miss Harwich' - no, not a beauty contest - more a piece of lifestyle advice Hashing involves running, drinking, singing - and in some cases taking your clothes off, but not necessarily in that order. It is a fun activity that should not be taken seriously in any way. This is a light-hearted yet highly entertaining read, laced with the mischief and adventures that befall an 'adult' social club with a wickedly-juvenile approach to their shared hobby; running.. or was that drinking?

Following the success of original Wild Running this new, completely rewritten edition provides the ultimate guide to the best wild trails in Britain. 50 of the original list have been retained with 150 new routes, picked for their fantastic terrain, sensational views and ease of navigation. Stunning photography and engaging writing chart the history of each run, route and landscape, making this a must-have guide for runners and explorers alike. The ultimate guide for the runner looking to break free from the gym and city. Includes sections on training, getting started, staying safe & racing.Graded from easy to challenging, including directions, terrain data and safety advice, with Ordnance Survey 1:250,000 route maps and downloadable 1:50,000 maps and GPX routes.

The ultimate pain-to-personal-best guide to running injuries, covering prevention, detection and rehabilitation. Runners suffer from the highest injury rates of all recreational athletes. Whether you are a novice or elite-level runner, guide yourself through a step-by-step process of avoiding and managing injury. Written by a globally respected physiotherapist who has worked with Olympic and World Champion athletes, Running Free of Injuries will help runners to understand their body, identify weaknesses and develop a natural defence against injury. The book covers the most common running injuries that occur to the foot, ankle, lower leg, hip, knee and pelvis and includes key exercises applicable to all levels of fitness.

As part of his seventy-fifth birthday celebrations, Ray Matthews set himself a challenge to run seventy-five marathons in seventy-five days to raise seventy-five thousand pounds. Impossible was the judgement of most. But only those who risk going too far can find out how far they can go… Raised in a Catholic, working-class family in Rotherham, Ray was forced to make important decisions throughout his youth that would give him the mental strength to endure a series of physically gruelling challenges in later life. He became a boxer at the age of ten, forging the standards that led to a positive lifestyle and his belief that the difference between the possible and the impossible often lies between our own two ears.  Path to Success documents how you need to be willing to stand on the start line, mentally and physically, because vision without action is nothing more than a dream. 'A humorous and uplifting memoir with intertwining reminders to live your life away from other people’s expectations.' Amber Stainrod, editor of Aroundtown Magazine

Shaping up for a triathlon is serious business. "Triathlon Training For Dummies" is packed with insider tips and proven methods for training for a triathlon and pumping yourself into the best possible shape by race day. It helps you find the motivation you need to stick to your program, eat better to maximize your energy, and prevent injures both before and during the race.

This authoritative guide helps you evaluate your cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, endurance, and flexibility, and to set manageable realistic training goals. You'll learn how to establish a workout schedule, choose a target finish time get the right, affordable equipment you'll need for each leg of the race, and maximize your fitness and form for swimming, biking, and running. You'll also get plenty of help in putting it all together as you focus your training, add dual workouts, become a quick-change artist, and save time during transitions. Discover how to: Choose an event to train for based on your fitness levelGet into your best possible shapeSelect the right equipment and sportswearTrain for an Olympic, Sprint, or Ironman triathlonFuel your body and prevent injuriesPrepare for training sessionsMaintain energy and recover quicklySet training schedules for every triathlon eventTreat common training and racing injuriesLive like an athlete

"Triathlon Training For Dummies" comes complete with resources for finding triathlons near you, lists of items to bring along on race day, and tips on registration formalities and racing etiquette.""

Real Women Run is an innovative feminist ethnography that consists of a series of linked essays and presentations about women who run at the intersections of queer, feminist, and running identities. Faulkner uses feminist grounded theory, poetic inquiry, and qualitative content analysis to examine women's embodied stories of running: how they run, how running fits into the context of their lives and relationships, how they enact or challenge cultural scripts of women's activities and normative running bodies, and what running means for their lives and identities. During a two-and-a-half-year ethnography with women who run, Faulkner engaged in an intersectional qualitative content analysis of websites and blogs targeted to women runners, a grounded theory poetic analysis of 41 interviews with women who run, and participant observation at road races. Real Women Run speaks to the call for a more physical feminism. This ethnography sees women's physical and mental strength developed through running as a way to embrace the contradictions between a deconstructed focus on the mind/body split and the focus on individuals' actual material bodies and their everyday interactions with their bodies and through their bodies with the world around them.

As contributing editor of the US edition of Runners' World and best-selling author, Hal Higdon has helped countless runners achieve their distance goals. Now, he's created the definitive guide on today's most popular distance, the 13.1-mile, half marathon. This book contains everything needed to know about running the half marathon, including where to begin, what to focus on, pacing, how to avoid injury, how to track progress, how to stay the course and how to improve. Whether this is their first or their fiftieth half marathon, there is a plan for everyone. it provides customisable programmes, ranging from novice to advanced (there's even a walking-only plan), as well as tried and tested strategies, race day tips and motivation from other half-marathoners around the globe.

Marathons have become too easy for some runners. What was once the pinnacle of achievement in a runner's life is now a stepping stone for extraordinary adventure in ultramarathoning. The number of ultrarunners--those running distances of 50k (31miles), 50 miles, 100k (62 miles), or 100 miles--is growing astronomically each year.
Dean Karnazes' Ultramarathon Man and Chris McDougall's Born to Run have inspired tens of thousands to try these seemingly superhuman distances. But to date, there has been no practical guide to ultramarathoning. Now, Bryon Powell has written Relentless Forward Progress, the first how-to manual for aspiring ultrarunners. Powell covers every aspect of training for and racing ultra distances. This encyclopedic volume prepares runners for going farther than they have ever gone before and, in the process, shows them that they are capable of the "impossible."

This book is both a lesson in true grit and determination, but its goal is one that is attainable. 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.

Running is a great way to keep fit, stay healthy, relieve stress and experience new places. The Good Run Guide is your companion to the great running to be found in some of the most scenic locations of England and Wales. Run through the stately grounds of Chatsworth in the Peak District; traverse Hadrian's Wall on the Scottish Border and visit the breath-taking castles of coastal Northumberland. Explore coastal coves in the north Cornwall; summit Pen-y-ghent in the Yorkshire Dales or escape the hustle and bustle of the City along the banks of the Thames. Experienced runners Louise Piears and Andy Bickerstaff, two of the founders of the Good Run Guide, the UK's leading independent running website, have hand-picked 40 of their favourite runs. Ranging in length from 3.4 to 10.7 miles (5.4 to 17.2 kilometres), there are routes for runners of all ability and fitness levels, on a range of surfaces. Each run features details of the run distance, the flat equivalent distance, difficulty, hilliness, climb rate, terrain and other useful information so you know exactly what you're undertaking before you set off. There is also a bespoke map, annotated with route descriptions and key route features, to aid navigation.

'The Perfect Run is sure to increase your appreciation and enjoyment on the run, and that's a big payback' - Runner's World

The "perfect" run, when you are in a full flow and feeling totally unstoppable, can be elusive, but this practical expert guide, written by a celebrated Runner's World writer Mackenzie Havey, will ensure you find it time and time again and in the process transform your running performances.

At some point in every runner's career they experience the "perfect" run, when they are in full flow and feel totally unstoppable. Your worries about the day and physical aches and pains melt away. Your body and mind are in complete sync and the run feels effortless.

Even still, the path to achieving the perfect run remains mysterious. It often materializes in the unlikeliest of circumstances-in adverse weather or on a day when everything else seems to be going wrong. Conversely, when we try hard to create the right conditions for that perfect run, it often doesn't come about.

In The Perfect Run, Mackenzie L. Havey reveals everyone has the potential to enjoy more joyful and flow-driven running, no matter your experience, pace, or sporting ambitions.

This ground-breaking book features insights from elite athletes, neuroscientists, coaches, and everyday runners to provide a road map for how to cultivate the right conditions for the "perfect" run. These ideas will not only help facilitate the potential for more successful running but, more significantly, can also be translated into other areas of your life to help provide a sense of calmness, self-control, and fulfillment far beyond the running trails.

In the spring of 2021, as the UK's latest pandemic lockdowns were lifted, Nick Butter set out from the Eden Project to become the fastest person to cover every mile of Britain's mainland coastline on foot. Battling the most extreme winds Britain had seen in 100 years, days of torrential rain and the unrelenting hills of Western Scotland and Cornwall, Nick suffered two broken bones and countless injuries, whilst taking on two marathons a day, every day, for 100 days. Covering an extraordinary 5,250 miles, running for over 12 hours a day, struggling to take in the 8,000 daily calories required to fuel his body, Nick battled sleep deprivation and extreme weight loss as he pushed his body and mind to their limit. Supported by close friends and family (including his ever-dependable right-hand man, Andy Swain, whose diary extracts feature in this book), Nick experienced spiralling lows and euphoric highs. As he traversed footpaths, country lanes and busy A roads, he passed through over two thousand coastal communities, buoyed along by supporters cheering from windows, balconies, passing cars and pavements, by school children and fellow runners, and by the stunning sights and sounds of the British coast. Run Britain is Nick's account of his extraordinary adventure.

After the young South African athlete Caster Semenya won the 800m title at the 2009 World Championships she was obliged to undergo gender testing and was temporarily withdrawn from international competition. The way that this controversy unfolded represents a rich and multi-layered example of the construction of gender in wider society and the interrelationships between sport, culture and the media. This is the first book to explore the case in depth, from socio-cultural, ethical and legal perspectives. Analysing what came to be called "the Caster Semenya Case" in a comprehensive and multi-disciplinary fashion, and covering issues from media discourses and the rhetoric and regulations of the sport's governing bodies to the reaction of the athlete herself, the book explores the ethics of how gender norms in sport, and in society more generally, are constructed through appearance, behaviour and sporting performance. This 2009 controversy can be taken as an indicator of the tensions of the time, and served as a link between medical sciences, society and gender. Including discussions of key concepts such as 'intersex', 'body norms', and 'fairness', Gender Testing in Sport is fascinating and important reading for anybody with an interest in sport studies, gender studies or biomedical ethics.

The remarkable true story of an unrivalled journey to recreate the greatest run in film history: 15,621 miles, five-times across the United States. 'Rob Pope has made his name revelling in challenges that range from the unconventional to the extraordinary.' BBC News Becoming Forrest is the incredible story of Englishman Rob Pope, a veterinarian who left his job in pursuit of a dream - to become the first person ever to complete the epic run undertaken by one of Hollywood's most beloved characters, Forrest Gump. After his momma urged him "to do one thing in life that made a difference", he flew to Alabama, put on his running shoes, and sped off into the wilderness. His remarkable journey covered 15,600 miles, the distance from the North to the South Pole and a third of the way back. Over a grueling 18 months, braving injuries, blizzards, forest fires and deadly wildlife, he crossed the United States five times. During one of the most turbulent periods in recent American history, Rob immersed himself in American life. His time on the open road saw him forever changed, trying to make that difference, in the process of Becoming Forrest. This is a tale of one man who just wanted to make a difference.

A world class athlete and author of "Way of the Peaceful Warrior", presents an inspirational path to unleashing full potential. Gymnast Dan Millman examines the motives for athletic excellence and offers a transformative guide to success that is as applicable in everyday life as it is in sports.

Before 1968, women's athletics in higher education meant playdays and sports days. That spring, when the National Division of Girls and Women in Sports announced that national collegiate sports championships for women would begin in 1969, Marlene Mawson, a new hire on the physical education faculty at the University of Kansas, was charged with establishing a women's athletics program. 'I was on my own,' Mawson recalls, 'because there was no precedent for creating a women's athletics program with a meager budget.' That meant planning sports competition schedules, staffing coaches, organizing policies and procedures for coaches and athletes, coordinating practice schedules, budgeting, and directing the new KU intercollegiate sports program for women without intervention or guidance. In their first decade, KU women's teams competed in national championships in volleyball, basketball, softball, and gymnastics. In this book, Mawson, who was inducted into the KU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009, describes her remarkable career, from her early years in Missouri to her retirement. With behind-the-scenes views and insights that reflect a lifetime's experience, her memoir weaves together the history of the development of women's athletics at the University of Kansas and the story of the birth of women's intercollegiate athletics across the United States - from the Olympic Development Committee to Title IX to the NCAA. It is an engaging account of groundbreaking personal achievement by a woman in the world of college sports, and a stirring record of an extraordinary but little-documented decade in the evolution of women's athletics.

An enlightening biography and gripping sports narrative that takes us behind the scenes into the lives of some of the world’s most elite runners in Kenya and their coach, Patrick Sang. "I highly recommend this book." —Meb Keflezighi At a secluded training camp in Kaptagat, Kenya, a small town nearly 8,000 feet above sea level in the Great Rift Valley, three-dozen world-class runners, including Olympic champions, world record holders and the fastest marathoner of all-time, share simple dormitory-style rooms and endure grueling workouts six days a week. These determined, devoted, and selfless runners are who they are because of a man named Patrick Sang. One of the greatest—and least-heralded coaches in the sport—Sang is described by his athletes as a “life coach.� In We Share the Sun, Sarah Gearhart takes us inside this high-octane world of elites of which few are even aware of and even fewer have ever seen. We are immersed in Sang’s remarkable story, from his college days in the US to winning an Olympic medal in the steeplechase, and his journey to become a man who redefines what coaching means. There is no singular secret to athletic success, but, as readers will learn, Sang’s holistic philosophy is like no other approach in the world. It is rooted in developing athletes who can navigate the pressures of elite competition—and life itself. In these pages, we explore Sang’s influence on his athletes — including his unique and longstanding relationship with marathon world record holder Eliud Kipchoge — as they prepared for the delayed Tokyo Olympics and other competitions. We witness the remarkable recovery of two-time New York City Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor after a freak accident as he strove to earn his first Olympic medal. And we follow one of the world’s most dominant mid-distance runners, Faith Kipyegon, as she attempted a historic repeat title in the 1,500 meters three years after the birth of her first child. We Share the Sun brings forth the remarkable lives and stories of East African runners, whose stories are seldom shared. Through Gearhart's vivid prose, we experience the richness that exists in Kenya as we come as close as we possibly can to running alongside a current and future generation of elites—and the man who molds them into champions.

Triathlon is more than the sum of its parts. You can swim, cycle, and run but you need more to become a triathlete. If you want to prepare for your first triathlon, this easy-to-understand introduction to the sport is what you need. Roch Frey and Paul Huddle, two of the most respected names in multisport coaching, cover all the bases to get you to the starting line and help you finish your first race. The book contains information on everything from weight training to flexibility up to nutrition. It also contains detailed workout schedules for the sprint and Olympic distances to guide you through your training period. Triathlon: Starting Out is an easy-to-use training book that will help you visualize the race and make it to the finish line. With Roch and Paul at your side, anyone can do a triathlon!