June 1st is Global Running Day! Whether you've never run a mile or you're training for a marathon, these books can help increase your love for one of the world's most popular sports.
Running: Getting Started by Jeff Galloway
"Running: Getting Started will take anyone, at any level of fitness, into the running lifestyle. Jeff Galloway offers a step-by-step program that is easy to use and easy to understand. Included are lots of tips on nutrition, staying motivated, building endurance, shoes, stretching and strengthening, and much more. Jeff Galloway has introduced over 150,000 people to running while reducing or eliminating aches, pains, and injuries suffered during most training programs." -From the Publisher
I Hate Running and You Can Too: How to Get Started, Keep Going, and Make Sense of an Irrational Passion by Brendan Leonard
"[A] motivating guide to running longer distances than some might think sensible-whether that's a 5K or a marathon ... Filled with 75 charts and graphs that give readers a sensible way to think about running, [the book] breaks down the reality of the training miles versus race miles, how to stay motivated, and what to do when faced with setbacks." -From the Publisher
A hilarious little book that really combines a love and hate for running - something we all feel at times no matter how much you've run.
The Incomplete Book of Running by Peter Segal
"In The Incomplete Book of Running, Sagal reflects on the trails, tracks, and routes he’s traveled, from the humorous absurdity of running charity races in his underwear—in St. Louis, in February—or attempting to “quiet his colon” on runs around his neighborhood—to the experience of running as a guide to visually impaired runners, and the triumphant post-bombing running of the Boston Marathon in 2014. With humor and humanity, Sagal also writes about the emotional experience of running, body image, the similarities between endurance sports and sadomasochism, the legacy of running as passed down from parent to child, and the odd but extraordinary bonds created between strangers and friends. The result is “a brilliant book about running…What Peter runs toward is strength, understanding, endurance, acceptance, faith, hope, and charity” (P.J. O’Rourke)." -From the Publisher
Another funny book, written by "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me!" host Peter Segal. The audiobook version is fantastically read by Segal himself!
The Born Again Runner: A Guide to Overcoming Excuses, Injuries, and Other Obstacles―for New and Returning Runners by Pete Magill
"As a drug-addled young man, Pete Magill once found himself in the ER, with his body telling him to give up. Taking up running seemed impossible—but he willed himself to do it anyway. Magill went on to become one of the fastest masters runners ever, and a sought-after coach. Over a glowing (albeit hard-won) career, he has heard every excuse people use to stop running or never start—from achy knees and sore ankles, to advanced age and arthritis, to too many cigarettes or years on the couch. In every case, Magill’s best advice is to do what he did: Run anyway—at a pace and mileage that work. Through inspiration, science, and anecdote, Magill gets runners out the door; through personal action plans, he sets them on the right path; and through the best exercises to protect and rehabilitate the body, he keeps them going—showing a way forward for new and sidelined runners who haven’t before realized how close they are to fun and pain-free running!" -From the Publisher
Still Running: The Art of Meditation in Motion by Vanessa Zuisei Goddard
"Running is more than just exercise. Running is a practice, a moving meditation, that brings the power of stillness to all the activities in our lives. Vanessa Zuisei Goddard combines her experience leading running retreats with her two-decade practice of Zen to offer insight, humor, and practical guidance for grounding our running, or any physical practice, in meditation. When we see running solely as exercise and focus on improving our times, covering a certain number of miles, or losing weight, we miss the deeper implications of this art. Whether you are a new or experienced runner, you will learn how to be more embodied through thirteen running practices to help improve your focus and running form. Using mantras and visualizations, as well as a range of other exercises, Goddard offers ways to practice running as a moving meditation with an eye toward bringing the power of stillness to all the activities in your life. Ultimately, Still Running is a book about freedom, ease, and the joy of movement; it's about the power of stillness and learning how to use that power to live wholeheartedly." -From the Publisher
26 Marathons: What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life from My Marathon Career by Meb Keflezighi, with Scott Douglas
"When Meb Keflezighi - the first person in history to win both the Boston and New York City marathons as well as an Olympic marathon medal - ran his final marathon in New York City on November 5, 2017, it marked the end of an extraordinary distance-running career. Meb's last marathon was also his 26th, and each of those marathons has come with its own unique challenges, rewards, and outcomes. In 26 Marathons, Meb takes listeners on those legendary races, along every hill, bend, and unexpected turn of events that made each marathon an exceptional learning experience, and a fascinating story." -From the Publisher
Bravey: Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain, and Other Big Ideas by Alexi Pappas
When “Renaissance runner” (New York Times) Alexi Pappas—Olympic athlete, actress, filmmaker, and writer—was four years old, her mother died by suicide, drastically altering the course of Pappas’s life and setting her on a search for female role models. When her father signed his bereaved daughter up for sports teams as a way to keep her busy, female athletes became the first women Pappas looked up to, and her Olympic dream was born. At the same time, Pappas had big creative dreams, too: She wanted to make movies, write, and act. Despite setbacks and hardships, Pappas refused to pick just one lane. She put in a tremendous amount of hard work and wouldn’t let anything stand in her way until she achieved all of her dreams, however unrelated they may seem to outsiders. In a single year, 2016, she made her Olympic debut as a distance runner and wrote, directed, and starred in her first feature film. But great highs are often accompanied by deep lows; with joy comes sorrow. In Bravey, Pappas fearlessly and honestly shares her battle with post-Olympic depression and describes how she emerged on the other side as a thriving and self-actualized woman. Unflinching, exuberant, and always entertaining, Bravey showcases Pappas’s signature, charming voice as she reflects upon the touchstone moments in her life and the lessons that have powered her career as both an athlete and an artist—foremost among them, how to be brave." -From the Publisher
Spirit Run: A 6,000-Mile Marathon Through North America's Stolen Land by Noé Álvarez
"Growing up in Yakima, Washington, Noé Álvarez worked at an apple-packing plant alongside his mother, who "slouched over a conveyor belt of fruit, shoulder to shoulder with mothers conditioned to believe this was all they could do with their lives." A university scholarship offered escape, but as a first-generation Latino college-goer, Álvarez struggled to fit in. At nineteen, he learned about a Native American/First Nations movement called the Peace and Dignity Journeys, epic marathons meant to renew cultural connections across North America. He dropped out of school and joined a group of Dené, Secwépemc, Gitxsan, Dakelh, Apache, Tohono O'odham, Seri, Purépecha, and Maya runners, all fleeing difficult beginnings. Telling their stories alongside his own, Álvarez writes about a four-month-long journey from Canada to Guatemala that pushed him to his limits. He writes not only of overcoming hunger, thirst, and fear--dangers included stone-throwing motorists and a mountain lion--but also of asserting Indigenous and working-class humanity in a capitalist society where oil extraction, deforestation, and substance abuse wreck communities. Running through mountains, deserts, and cities, and through the Mexican territory his parents left behind, Álvarez forges a new relationship with the land, and with the act of running, carrying with him the knowledge of his parents' migration, and--against all odds in a society that exploits his body and rejects his spirit--the dream of a liberated future." -From the Publisher
