2007 Holiday Gifts For Your Favorite Runner: Books
Posted December 13th, 2007 at 3:30 PM by Jimmie R. Markham
Section: Running & Training, Motivation, Books, Tools & Resources
If you are having trouble deciding on a gift this season for your favorite runner (or yourself!), here’s a hint: runners love running books. Training manuals, biographies of the legends they seek to emulate, nutrition guides, books that describe how to ramp up the mental aspects of a runner’s performance, fiction, there’s really no end to the range of books you can find nowadays. Here’s a few titles that will help you decide what book to get your favorite aspiring track or marathon star:
Pre: The Story of America’s Greatest
Running Legend, Steve Prefontaine
By: Tom Jordan
This is the ultimate inspirational biography. Steve Prefontaine is a legend in running, perhaps even more than ever even 37 years after his tragic death in a car crash. You can’t go wrong buying your favorite runner this book.
The Competitive Runner’s Handbook: The Bestselling Guide to Running 5Ks through Marathons
By: Bob Glover and Shelly-Lynn Florence Glover
Bob Glover is a respected running coach who has been a major influence on the sport. His book titled The Runner’s Handbook has inspired millions to get on the roads. This book teach all of those runners how to become fast.
Running with the Buffaloes: A Season Inside with Mark Wetmore, Adam Goucher, and the University of Colorado Men’s Cross-Country Team
By: Chris Lear
Author Chris Lear (who we interviewed recently) follows the University of Colorado Cross-Country team for an entire season and records the highs, the lows and everything in between. Warning: if you want to spend any time with your runner this holiday season, don’t give him or her this book. He or she will become addicted to it.
Again to Carthage
By: John L. Parker Jr.
This is the long-awaited sequel to the cult classic running novel Once a Runner, which has been described by running experts as the best novel ever written about running.
Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes
By: Monique Ryan
I haven’t read this one yet but none other than Alan Culpepper describes it as, “a must read whatever your competitive goals may be. Monique’s vast knowledge is evident, and this book will serve as a complete source for all your nutritional inquiries. From making optimal food and fluid choices, meal planning and timing, to event specific needs, this book has it all.”
Running Within: A Guide to Mastering the Body-Mind-Spirit Connection for Ultimate Training and Racing
By: Jerry Lynch and Warren A. Scott
I know it’s got an off-putting, new-age title. Even so, don’t let that stop you from buying it for your favorite runner, who will appreciate the tools this excellent book offers for the mental aspects of running.
***Note: We encourage EVERYONE to see a doctor before altering their diet, taking a supplement and/or performing athletic, fitness or other strenuous physical activity. It is your responsibility to evaluate the accuracy, completeness and usefulness of any information, instruction, opinion or advice contained in the content. Please also see our complete disclaimer.***
Tags: competitve running, gifts for runners, how to run fast, mental aspects of running, nutirtion for runners, pre bio, prefontaine biography, running biography, running books, running novel, sequel to once a runner, sports nutrition
Like what you see? Subscribe to our feed!
The Final Sprint
[…] Don had some great ideas on this topic.You can read a snippet of the post here.Running with the Buffaloes: A Season Inside with Mark Wetmore, Adam Goucher, and the University of Colorado Men’s Cross-Country Team by Chris Lear Author Chris Lear (who we interviewed recently) follows the University of Colorado … […]
December 13th, 2007 at 12:06 pm[…] Davion Wong posted a great article about car buying.Here’s a quick snippet.This is the ultimate inspirational biography. Steve Prefontaine is a legend in running, perhaps even more than ever even 37 years after his tragic death in a car crash. You can’t go wrong buying your favorite runner this book. … […]
December 13th, 2007 at 1:06 pm[…] Read the rest of this great post here […]
December 13th, 2007 at 2:17 pm[…] Training manuals, biographies, nutrition guides… here and here and dvds there and there […]
December 18th, 2007 at 12:20 amI would add Once a Runner by John L. Parker to any runner’s must read list.
February 20th, 2008 at 9:22 pm