The Happy Runner

Is your daily run starting to drag you down? Has running become a chore rather than the delight it once was? Then The Happy Runner is the answer for you. Authors David and Megan Roche believe that you can’t reach your running potential without consistency and joyful daily adventures that lead to long-term health and happiness. Guided by their personal experiences and coaching expertise, they point out the mental and emotional factors that will help you learn exactly how to become a happy runner and achieve your personal best.

'a really, really, really good book' – Vassos Alexander 'A masterpiece' – Paul-Sinton Hewitt CBE, parkrun founder 'A lovely book... it is really simple about getting a nice relationship with your running where it helps your life and changes with your life... Very accessible.' – Paul Tonkinson, Running Commentary presenter and author A smart running book designed for the all-too-often overlooked middle-of-the-pack runner, written by Marathon Talk's Martin Yelling and Anji Andrews. Welcome to the midpack! Running pushes us, stretches us, asks us difficult questions, challenges us. It gives us space, calms us down, picks us up, boosts our energy, rewards, inspires and fulfils us. Midpack runners – those who fall between the beginners and the elite – are the heartbeat and footsteps of the running community. In this long-overdue book, Marathon Talk's Martin Yelling and Anji Andrews share their expert knowledge, first-person stories and coaching ideas to nourish the midpackers' running experience. Covering such diverse topics as 'Making Yourself Bullet-proof' and 'How to Nail Your Race', Running in the Midpack will cultivate your running progress, and help you to become a healthy, happy and successful runner. Marathon Talk is the UK's number one running podcast.

**As heard on Dr Rangan Chatterjee's 'Feel Better, Live More' Podcast** We all know how a long walk, a slow jog or a brisk run can free our minds to wander, and give us a powerful uplifting feeling. Some call it the 'runner's high', others put it down to endorphins. But what if we could channel that energy and use it to make positive change in our lives? William Pullen is a psychotherapist who helps people dealing with anxiety, lack of motivation and addition, to work through their issues using his revolutionary method, Dynamic Running Therapy. He believes that we need a radical new approach to mindfulness: an approach that originates in the body itself. Whether you are looking for strategies to cope with anxiety, change or decision-making, or simply want to focus your mind while pounding the streets, Run for Your Life offers a series of simple mental routines that unleash the meditative, restorative powers of exercise.

Reviews of The Science of Running:"The Science of Running sets the new standard for training theory and physiological data. Every veteran and beginner distance coach needs to have this on their book shelf."-Alan WebbAmerican Record Holder-Mile 3:46.91 "For anyone serious about running, The Science of Running offers the latest information and research for optimizing not only your understanding of training but also your performance. If you want to delve deeper into the world of running and training, this book is for you. You will never look at running the same."-Jackie Areson, 15th at the 2013 World Championships in the 5k. 15:12 5,000m best If you are looking for how to finish your first 5k, this book isn't for you. The Science of Running is written for those of us looking to maximize our performance, get as close to our limits as possible, and more than anything find out how good we can be, or how good our athletes can be. In The Science of Running, elite coach and exercise physiologist Steve Magness integrates the latest research with the training processes of the world's best runners, to deliver an in depth look at how to maximize your performance. It is a unique book that conquers both the scientific and practical points of running in two different sections. The first is aimed at identifying what limits running performance from a scientific standpoint. You will take a tour through the inside of the body, learning what causes fatigue, how we produce energy to run, and how the brain functions to hold you back from super-human performance. In section two, we turn to the practical application of this information and focus on the process of training to achieve your goals. You will learn how to develop training plans and to look at training in a completely different way. The Science of Running does not hold back information and is sure to challenge you to become a better athlete, coach, or exercise scientist in covering such topics as:· What is fatigue? The latest research on looking at fatigue from a brain centered view.· Why VO2max is the most overrated and misunderstood concept in both the lab and on the track· Why "zone" training leads to suboptimal performance.· How to properly individualize training for your own unique physiology.· How to look at the training process in a unique way in terms of stimulus and adaptation.· Full sample training programs from 800m to the marathon.

It’s no secret that if you plan to run in the toughest endurance races, you need to physically prepare for the extreme demands you will be subjecting your body to. But successful runners will be quick to note that physical preparation is only part of the equation. You need to be mentally strong to withstand, and overcome, the challenges of this grueling sport. That’s where Mental Training for Ultrarunning comes in. Sport psychology consultant Addie Bracy has coached and provided mental performance consulting to elite athletes in many sports, and she herself has been a competitive distance runner for more than two decades. In Mental Training for Ultrarunning, she combines her firsthand coaching and running experience, along with profiles of ultrarunners who’ve experienced the highs and lows of the sport, to explain what you need to know and practice in order to cross that finish line. In this book, you will learn tools and techniques to help you prepare for and overcome some of the biggest mental and emotional challenges you may encounter in ultrarunning. You’ll find more than 35 practical activities that will guide you in taking an introspective look at your own potential roadblocks so you can develop and strengthen the skills you need to run with confidence. Whether you’re training for your first ultra or looking to compete at a higher level, Mental Training for Ultrarunning will prepare you for the good, the bad, and the worst experiences you might encounter on the trail, road, or track. With expert guidance from athletes who have seen it all, you’ll learn how to train your mind and anticipate all the variables that could keep you from achieving your ultimate running goals.

A New York Times bestseller for 14 weeks in 1978, Running & Being became known as the philosophical bible for runners around the world. More than thirty years after its initial publication, it remains every bit as relevant today. Written by the late, beloved Dr. George Sheehan, Running & Being tells of the author's midlife return to the world of exercise, play, and competition, in which he found "a world beyond sweat" that proved to be a source of great revelation and personal growth. But Running & Being focuses more on life than it does, specifically, on running. It provides an outline for a lifetime program of fitness and joy, showing how the body helps determine our mental and spiritual energies. Drawing from the words and actions of the great athletes and thinkers throughout history, Dr. Sheehan ties it all together with his own philosophy on the importance of fitness and sport, as well as his knowledge of training, injury prevention, and race competition. Above all, he describes what it means to experience the oneness of body and mind, of self and the universe. In this, he argues, we have the power to discover "the truth that makes men free."

The first dedicated book on marathon and half marathon training from the renowned experts at Runner's World Runner's World Big Book of Marathon and Half-Marathon Training gives readers the core essentials of marathon training, nutrition, injury prevention, and more. The editors of Runner's World know marathon training better than anyone on the planet. They have spent the last few years inviting readers to share the long, sweaty journey to the starting line, putting themselves on call to personally answer readers' questions 24/7. This book includes testimonials from real runners, more than 25 training plans for every level and ability, workouts, a runner's dictionary, and sample meal plans. Runner's World Big Book of Marathon and Half-Marathon Training is a powerful and winning resource—the ultimate tool kit for anyone who wants to get from the starting line to the finish line.

Runner's World Complete Book of Beginning Running by Amby Burfoot is the newest addition to the heralded Runner's World series focuses exclusively on the concerns of the tens of thousands of new runners who take up the sport every year. Recognizing that newcomers to a sport need all the help they can get, Runner's World now devotes an entire book to guiding the beginning runner through those challenging first days, weeks, and months. Peppered throughout with motivating tips and advice from those who have been there, this much-needed volume presents a can't-fail program that is sure to help new runners feel and look better and have more energy and less stress. Inside you'll find: • Information on nutrition and how to adjust your diet to fit your new running lifestyle • Training advice, including how to use cross-training, stretching, and strength exercises to keep enthusiasm up, weight down, and fitness at an optimum level • A special section for women runners Written by the executive editor of Runner's World magazine and covering every problem the new runner may encounter-from choosing the right shoes to preventing injury to preparing for a race-this authoritative volume provides all the information and inspiration any novice requires to turn running into a healthy, lifetime pursuit.