Extreme Running

Ultra running defies conventional logic. Yet this most brutal and challenging sport is now one of the fastest growing in the world. But is it an antidote to modern life or a symptom of a modern illness? Adharanand Finn travelled to the heart of the sport to find out - and to see if could become an ultra runner himself. His journey took him from the deserts of Oman to the snow-capped peaks of the Rockies, and from a 24-hour track race in Tooting to his ultimate goal, the 105-mile Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc.

Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world's greatest distance runners and learn their secrets - and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong.

Travis Macy has summited glacial peaks in the French Alps, rappelled into limestone caves in China, and raced through parched deserts in Utah. In 2013 he famously won the Leadman Series, a combination of nearly 300 miles of high-altitude trail running and mountain biking over the course of five epic endurance races. Macy achieved all of these victories without elite professional training or even exceptional strength, speed, or flexibility.

Long before Cory Reese strapped on his first pair of running shoes, he learned the key to being a successful ultrarunner: He knew how to suffer. In Nowhere Near First, Cory shares his deeply personal story about experiencing his father’s suicide at a young age, and how this led to a career in endurance running and a desire to live life to the fullest. Nowhere Near First is a humorous, captivating, and uplifting account of Cory’s memorable ultramarathon experiences.

Ross Edgley has spent decades perfecting the principles and practice of extreme fitness to achieve the impossible. Following a career-threatening injury in 2018, Ross was forced to reassess his training and take the next steps in a lifelong journey of redefining what the human body is capable of. In Blueprint, Ross shares the cutting-edge training program that empowered him to rebuild his body from surgery and a doctor’s gloomy prognosis in just 365 days to complete a world record swim.

Welcome to the Barkley Marathons, a fever dream of an ultra event, inspired by a prison break, heralded by a conch blast, paid for in cigarettes and socks, and completed only by a select few. A race in which competitors haul themselves up mountains, through extreme weather conditions, beyond pain and exhaustion, mile after mile. Completed 60 miles? That’s just the fun run. In the Spell of the Barkley is a story of sporting obsession, exploring what drives individuals to challenge themselves at the limits of what is possible – and what it takes to succeed.

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 (31 miles), 50 miles, 100k (62 miles), or 100 miles - is growing astronomically each year. 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.

Joe De Sena designed the Spartan races to test overall conditioning: strength, flexibility, endurance, and speed. His signature take-no-prisoners approach to achieving physical and mental fitness has taken the endurance world by storm and inspired millions. Now, in Spartan Fit!, De Sena breaks down that approach and gives listeners the tools they need to conquer the course.

This book has a single purpose - to inspire you to run! Through sharing a detailed account of my first three years of pursuing running from the middle to back of the pack, it will hopefully show you you are capable of much more than you may think. After my dad's major health scare, it was time for me to change everything. Little did I know how much I would learn after taking on some physical exercise. A radical diet change allowed me to lose a forth of my body weight and it gave me boundless energy to get outside and explore.

In 1986, the legendary fell runner Joss Naylor completed a continuous circuit of all 214 Wainwright fells in the Lake District, covering a staggering distance of over 300 miles - plus many thousands of metres of ascent - in only seven days and one hour. Those in the know thought that this record would never be beaten. It is the ultimate British ultramarathon. The person taking on this superhuman challenge would have to be willing to push harder and suffer more than ever before. There Is No Map in Hell tells the story of a man willing to do just that.

Zwischen Wanderdünen und Oasen: Ultra Running durch eine der heißesten Wüsten der Welt. Rafael Fuchsgruber und seine Partnerin Tanja Schönenborn haben sich Großes vorgenommen: Laufend wollen die beiden Ausnahmesportler die Wüste Namib durchqueren. 1000 Kilometer in rund zwei Wochen, über 400 Liter Trinkwasserbedarf - eine absolute Weltpremiere. In diesem packenden Reisebericht nimmt das bekannte Extremlauf-Paar Sie mit auf diese Tour der Extreme.

In his follow-up to the best-selling Ultra-Marathon Man, world-renowned ultra marathoner Dean Karnazes chronicles his unbelievable exploits and explorations in gripping detail; Karnazes runs for days on end without rest, across some of the most exotic and inhospitable places on earth, including the Australian Outback, Antarctica, and the back alleys of New Jersey.

Ultra-OCR Man tells the story of an unlikely athlete, Evan Perperis, who grew up to serve in the United States Army’s Special Forces. He uses his 44 cumulative months of combat experience, mostly Iraq, to excel in the extreme sport of Ultra-distance Obstacle Course Racing (OCR). Through his journey he honors the memory of his fallen friends and soldiers as well as defying the limits of what some believe is possible in the sport.

"It's a meditative act," they said. But it's far from meditative for Alexandra Heminsley when yet another wave slams into her face. It's survival. When she laced up her shoes in Running Like a Girl, all she had to do to become a runner was to get out there and run. But swimming is something else entirely. The water is all-consuming, confusing her every move, sabotaging every breath. Determined, Alexandra will learn to adapt, find new strengths, and learn to work with the water.

In 2005, during a four-month cycling trip through Africa, Martin Parnell was struck by the power of sport and its ability to bring people together and to bring about change. Five years later, the 55-year-old mining engineer, husband, father and grandfather dedicated a year of his life to run 250 marathons with the aim of raising $250,000 for the charity Right to Play, an international humanitarian organization that reaches out to disadvantaged children around the world.

Most of us never truly get the chance to feel free in our environments, we never get to experience the amazing skill and abilities that our bodies inherently have. We don't often push our own limits. Free running changes all of this.

This book goes into the origin of free running and parkour and the philosophy of the sport as well as the risks and future of the sport. By investing in this book, you can get a grasp of all you need to know about this amazing sport.

Parkour is a sport that requires extreme mental focus and physical strength, but it is also a sport that anyone can learn. You don't need any special equipment to get started, but that doesn't mean it's easy to do. The aim of this audiobook is get a complete beginner up and running (pun intended!) in the basic elements of Parkour. This book will help to give you the confidence and basic skills you need to start participating in the sport.