Ultramarathon Man

Ultrarunning legend Dean Karnazes has run 262 miles - the equivalent of ten marathons - without rest. He has run over mountains, across Death Valley, to the South Pole, and is probably the first person to eat an entire pizza while running. With an insight, candour and humour rarely seen in sports memoirs, Ultramarathon Man has inspired tens of thousands of people - nonrunners and runners alike - to push themselves beyond their comfort zones and simply get out there and run. Ultramarathon Man answers the questions Karnazes is continually asked: - Why do you do it? - How do you do it? - Are you insane? and the follow-up queries: - What, exactly, do you eat? - How do you train to stay in such good shape?

The inspiring journey of Dean Karnazes, an internationally recognized endurance athlete who has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits. Includes a new epilogue detailing his training and diet tips. '[Karnazes'] spirited memoir . . . can help mere mortals who want to push past their perceived limits or simply jump-start their sedentary lives.' - Chicago Tribune WHY DO YOU DO IT? HOW DO YOU DO IT? ARE YOU INSANE? Dean Karnazes is an internationally recognised endurance athlete who has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits. In this remarkable memoir, he recounts the personal events that have led to him becoming an extraordinary athlete. The seeds of his talents were seen early - at the age of nine he rode his bike alone over fifty miles to his grandmother's house. As an adult, he's taken part in a marathon across Death Valley, a 200 mile, twelve-person relay race (which he ran solo, of course) and one of the biggest and most controversial challenges of all - the first marathon ever run to the South Pole. In Ultramarathon Man, Dean recounts all these races and other unbelievable achievements. He introduces us to the sometimes bizarre emotional and psychological make-up of endurance runners, as well as the peculiar mores surrounding the subculture of ultra-endurance athleticism. The book is filled with fascinating characters and situations from the touching (how his running helped to pull his family back together) to the absurd (organising to meet the pizza delivery man on the highway during his run!). Dean's story will amaze, fascinate and inspire even the most comfortable couch potatoes. And in a new epilogue, Karnazes answers the two questions he's most often asked: What, exactly, do you eat and How do you train to stay in such good shape?

Charlie Engle’s “fascinating account of the high and low points of his life as an ultramarathon runner…is uplifting and inspirational” (Publishers Weekly) as he describes his globe-spanning races, his record-breaking run across the Sahara Desert, and how running helped him overcome drug addiction—and an unjust stint in federal prison. After a decade-long addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol, Charlie Engle hit bottom with a near-fatal six-day binge that ended in a hail of bullets. As Engle got sober, he turned to running, which became his lifeline, his pastime, and his salvation. He began with marathons, and when marathons weren’t far enough, he began to take on ultramarathons, races that went for thirty-five, fifty, and sometimes hundreds of miles, traveling to some of the most unforgiving places on earth to race. The Matt Damon-produced documentary, Running the Sahara, followed Engle as he lead a team on a harrowing, record breaking 4,500-mile run across the Sahara Desert, which helped raise millions of dollars for charity. Charlie’s growing notoriety led to an investigation and a subsequent unjust conviction for mortgage fraud for which he spent sixteen months in federal prison in Beckley, West Virginia. While in jail, Engle pounded the small prison track, running endlessly in circles. Soon his fellow inmates were joining him, struggling to keep their spirits up in dehumanizing circumstances. In Running Man, Charlie Engle tells the surprising, funny, and emotional story of his life, detailing his setbacks and struggles—from coping with addiction to serving time in prison—and how he blazed a path to freedom by putting one foot in front of the other. “A fast-paced, well-written account of a man who accepts pain, pushes beyond imagined limits, and ultimately finds redemption and peace” (Booklist), this is a raw and triumphant account about finding the threshold of human endurance, and transcending it.

The Road to Sparta is the story of the 153-mile run from Athens to Sparta that inspired the marathon and saved democracy, as told--and experienced--by ultramarathoner and New York Times bestselling author Dean Karnazes. In 490 BCE, Pheidippides ran for 36 hours straight from Athens to Sparta to seek help in defending Athens from a Persian invasion in the Battle of Marathon. In doing so, he saved the development of Western civilization and inspired the birth of the marathon as we know it. Even now, some 2,500 years later, that run stands enduringly as one of greatest physical accomplishments in the history of mankind. Karnazes personally honors Pheidippides and his own Greek heritage by recreating this ancient journey in modern times. Karnazes even abstains from contemporary endurance nutrition like sports drinks and energy gels and only eats what was available in 490 BCE, such as figs, olives, and cured meats. Through vivid details and internal dialogs, The Road to Sparta offers a rare glimpse into the mindset and motivation of an extreme athlete during his most difficult and personal challenge to date. This story is sure to captivate and inspire--whether you run great distances or not at all.

“A Runner’s High wakes up the appetite to run long distances. Dean takes us on a lifelong journey of ultramarathons, through the ups and downs, the friendships and lonely moments, and the struggles and rewards of each race. Dean writes in a direct and intimate way that keeps us reading like he runs—without stopping.”—Kilian Jornet, author of Above the Clouds and world champion ultramarathoner “A Runner's High is a powerful narrative on life, running and finding meaning through perseverance. Every runner should read this book.”— Jason Koop, Coach and bestselling author New York Times bestselling author and ultramarathoning legend Dean Karnazes has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits, from running in the shoe melting heat of Death Valley to the lung freezing cold of the South Pole. He’s raced and competed across the globe and once ran 50 marathons, in 50 states, in 50 consecutive days. In A Runner’s High, Karnazes chronicles his extraordinary adventures leading up to his return to the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run in his mid-fifties after first completing the race decades ago. The Western States, infamous for its rugged terrain and extreme temperatures, becomes the most demanding competition of Karnazes’s life, a physical and emotional reckoning and a battle to stay true to one’s purpose. Confronting his age, his career path, and his life choices, we see Karnazes as we never have before. For Karnazes, the running experience is about the runner and the trail. It is not the sum of achievements but a story that continues to be told each day, with each step. A Runner’s High is at once an endorphin-fueled adventure and a love letter to the sport from one of its most celebrated ambassadors that will leave both casual and serious runners cheering.

An influential ultra-marathoner shares the stories of his athletic achievements in some of the world's most exotic and inhospitable regions, where he pushed the limits of human endurance in profound and humorous ways. 40,000 first printing.

In Eat and Run, ultrarunner Scott Jurek opens up about his life and career as an elite athlete, and about the vegan diet that is key to his success.