For those who have ever thought they were too old or too unfit to finish a triathlon, From Couch Potato to Endurance Athlete will prove that it is never too late to compete! This is a story about overcoming life's obstacles—from injury and business trouble to grief and loss and everything in between. Hilary Topper was a 48-year-old working mother who once upon a time had practically failed high school gym class. She was working 60-plus hours a week, running a small business. Her focus was on others—her children, her aging parents, and her staff. In the meantime, her weight kept increasing, and she was unhappy with the way her life was going. She needed a change. To turn things around, she joined a gym for the first time in her life. This book will take you on Hilary's decade-long journey as she trains for and runs her first 5K, swims the aqua-blue waters of the Caribbean, cycles a hilly course in Milwaukee, learns how to run–walk her way through the New York City Marathon, and competes in her first triathlon in Sanibel, Florida. You will be right with Hilary as she narrates each experience—even a 5.5-mile swim in the murky waters of Long Island. Hilary's story will move, motivate, and inspire. You will laugh and cry as you follow her on her journey. Even if you don't start out as an endurance athlete, after reading this book, you will walk away feeling that no matter what happens, you can cross the finish line, too.

For those who have ever thought they were too old or too unfit to finish a triathlon, From Couch Potato to Endurance Athlete will prove that it is never too late to compete! This is a story about overcoming life's obstacles—from injury and business trouble to grief and loss and everything in between. Hilary Topper was a 48-year-old working mother who once upon a time had practically failed high school gym class. She was working 60-plus hours a week, running a small business. Her focus was on others—her children, her aging parents, and her staff. In the meantime, her weight kept increasing, and she was unhappy with the way her life was going. She needed a change. To turn things around, she joined a gym for the first time in her life. This book will take you on Hilary's decade-long journey as she trains for and runs her first 5K, swims the aqua-blue waters of the Caribbean, cycles a hilly course in Milwaukee, learns how to run–walk her way through the New York City Marathon, and competes in her first triathlon in Sanibel, Florida. You will be right with Hilary as she narrates each experience—even a 5.5-mile swim in the murky waters of Long Island. Hilary's story will move, motivate, and inspire. You will laugh and cry as you follow her on her journey. Even if you don't start out as an endurance athlete, after reading this book, you will walk away feeling that no matter what happens, you can cross the finish line, too.

This book will take the reader on Hilary's decade-long journey as she trains for and runs her first 5K, swims the aqua-blue waters of the Caribbean, cycles a hilly course in Milwaukee, learns how to run-walk her way through the New York City Marathon, and competes in her first triathlon in Sanibel, Florida. The reader will be right with Hilary as she narrates each experience--even a 5-mile swim in the murky waters of Long Island.

Mark Verstegen, the world-renowned performance coach who was at the forefront of the core training revolution, now applies his cutting-edge training system to the special needs of the endurance athlete with Core Performance Endurance. Verstegen's first two books—Core Performance and Core Performance Essentials—broke new ground in fitness with their intense focus on the muscles of the core: shoulders, hips, and midsection. That focus remains the key here as he not only helps endurance athletes train more effectively, but also gives them a potent regimen of core training that will help them move more efficiently, speed recovery, and stave off overuse injuries and long-term deterioration. His plan: -helps endurance athletes at all levels—from competitive swimmers and hard-driven triathletes to everyday joggers -delivers the desired combination of strength and stamina, balance and flexibility, athletic quickness and power—to which the endurance athlete strives -provides an endurance-oriented nutrition program complete with recommendations for pre- and post-race eating

SERIOUS Training for Endurance Athletes provides the tools to create training programs and workouts that will pay off in competition. Endurance athletes, coaches, and multisport fitness buffs will learn how to design, schedule, execute, and monitor training programs for top results. Rob Sleamaker joins with Ray Browning, seven-time Ironman Triathlon winner, to produce a much improved version of the highly popular earlier edition. You'll learn to: - set up and manage your personalized training schedule; - use the S-E-R-I-O-U-S system of training--Speed, Endurance, Race-pace, Intervals, Overdistance, Up-hill Intervals, Strength; - add variety to your workouts; - develop a winning nutritional program; - prepare mentally for races; and - stay motivated to train and win. The authors share their expertise in a fun and informative way, drawing from their own experiences as champions. Plus, the book features the latest training advice for running, cycling, mountain biking, swimming, rowing, cross-country skiing, cross training, duathlons, and triathlons. SERIOUS Training for Endurance Athletes is your guide to high-level fitness and performance.

“Finding Ultra blends Rich Roll’s story of superhuman personal transformation with an amazingly practical guide to plant-based living. It’s also an enlightened manifesto for anyone wanting to transform their life.”—Dan Buettner, National Geographic Fellow and New York Times bestselling author of the Blue Zones books “An incredible story of mental, emotional, and physical endurance.”—Michael Greger, MD, FACLM, New York Times bestselling author of How Not to Die On the night before he was to turn forty, Rich Roll experienced a chilling glimpse of his future. Nearly fifty pounds overweight and unable to climb the stairs without stopping, he could see where his current sedentary life was taking him—and he woke up. Plunging into a new routine that prioritized a plant-based lifestyle and daily training, Rich morphed—in a matter of mere months—from out of shape, mid-life couch potato to endurance machine. Finding Ultra recounts Rich’s remarkable journey to the starting line of the elite Ultraman competition, which pits the world’s fittest humans in a 320-mile ordeal of swimming, biking, and running. And following that test, Rich conquered an even greater one: the EPIC5—five Ironman-distance triathlons, each on a different Hawaiian island, all completed in less than a week. One of Men’s Fitness Magazine’s “25 Fittest Men in the World,” Rich has become one of the most recognized advocates of plant-based living. In this newly revised and updated edition, he shares the practices, tools, and techniques he uses for optimal performance, longevity, and wellness, including diet and nutrition protocols. Rich reflects on the steps he took to shift his mindset and leverage deep reservoirs of untapped potential to achieve success beyond his wildest imagination, urging each of us to embark on our own journey of self-discovery.

Primal Endurance shakes up the status quo and challenges the overly stressful, ineffective conventional approach to endurance training. While marathons and triathlons are wildly popular and bring much gratification and camaraderie to the participants, the majority of athletes are too slow, continually tired, and carry too much body fat respective to the time they devote to training. The prevailing "chronic cardio" approach promotes carbohydrate dependency, overly stressful lifestyle patterns, and ultimately burnout. Mark Sisson, author of the 2009 bestseller, The Primal Blueprint, and de-facto leader of the primal/paleo lifestyle movement, expertly applies primal lifestyle principles to the unique challenge of endurance training and racing. Unlike the many instant and self-anointed experts who have descended upon the endurance scene in recent years, Sisson and his co-author/business partner Brad Kearns boast a rich history in endurance sports. Sisson has a 2:18 marathon and 4th place Hawaii Ironman finish to his credit, has spearheaded triathlon's global anti-doping program for the International Triathlon Union, and has coached/advised leading professional athletes, including Olympic triathlon gold and silver medalist Simon Whitfield and Tour de France cyclist Dave Zabriskie. Under Sisson's guidance, Kearns won multiple national championships in duathlon and triathlon, and rose to a #3 world triathlon ranking in 1991. Primal Endurance applies an all-encompassing approach to endurance training that includes primal-aligned eating to escape carbohydrate dependency and enhance fat metabolism, building an aerobic base with comfortably paced workouts, strategically introducing high intensity strength and sprint workouts, emphasizing rest, recovery, and an annual periodization, and finally cultivating an intuitive approach to training instead of the usual robotic approach of fixed weekly workout schedules. When you "go Primal" as an endurance athlete, you can expect to enjoy these and other benefits in short order: Easily reduce excess body fat and keep it off permanently, even during periods of reduced trainingPerform better by reprogramming your genes to burn fat and spare glycogen during sustained endurance effortsAvoid overtraining, burnout, illness, and injury by improving your balance of stress and rest, both in training and everyday lifeSpend fewer total hours training and get more return on investment with periodized and purposeful workout patternsHave more fun, be more spontaneous, and break free from the pull of the obsessive/compulsive mindset that is common among highly motivated, goal-oriented endurance athletesHave more energy and better focus during daily life instead of suffering from the "active couch potato syndrome," with cumulative fatigue from incessant heavy training makes you lazy and sluggish Primal Endurance is about slowing down, balancing out, chilling out, and having more fun with your endurance pursuits. It's about building your health through sensible training patterns, instead of destroying your health through chronic training patterns. While it might be hard to believe at first glance, you can actually get faster by backing off from the overly aggressive and overly regimented "Type-A" training approach that prevails in today's endurance community. Primal Endurance will show you how, every step of the way.

Are you a triathlete, runner, cyclist, swimmer, cross-country skier, or other athlete seeking greater endurance? The Endurance Handbook teaches athletes how to stay healthy, achieve optimal athletic potential, and be injury-free for many productive years. Dr. Philip Maffetone’s approach to endurance offers a truly “individualized” outlook and unique system that he has refined over three decades of training and treating athletes, ranging from world champions to weekend warriors. Maffetone’s training and racing philosophy emphasizes building a strong aerobic base for increased fat burning, weight loss, sustained energy, and a healthy immune system. Good nutrition and stress reduction are also key to this common-sense, big-picture approach. Dr. Maffetone also dispels many of the commonly held myths that linger in participatory sports—and which adversely impact performance—and explains the “truths” about endurance, such as: The need to train slower to race faster will enable your aerobic system to improve endurance Why expensive running shoes can actually cause foot and leg injuries The fact that refined carbohydrates actually reduce endurance energy and disrupt hormone balance How overtraining can be avoided in its earliest stages And much more! If you are looking to increase your endurance and maximize your athletic potential, The Endurance Handbook is your one-stop guide to training and racing effectively. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, is proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. In addition to books on popular team sports, we also publish books for a wide variety of athletes and sports enthusiasts, including books on running, cycling, horseback riding, swimming, tennis, martial arts, golf, camping, hiking, aviation, boating, and so much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Reach your peak performance with the best training and fueling plan. Achieve your goals in endurance racing with the detailed training advice and perfectly tailored recipes in this new must-have manual and cookbook. Fueling your body is just as important as training it, but different phases of training and racing require different combinations of nutrients. Written by one of the world’s leading triathlon coaches, The Endurance Training Diet & Cookbook includes in-depth advice to boost your performance and seventy recipes that will help you reach your personal best. Inside, you’ll find: • the best nutrition information to support your body when exercising at intense levels whether you’re a distance runner, cyclist, or triathloner • guidelines for fueling during preworkout, postworkout, and recovery windows • a game plan for what to eat and drink during workouts and on race day • delicious, nutrient-rich recipes made with fresh, whole foods for every meal of the day The Endurance Training Diet & Cookbook has everything you need to help you break through in your racing.

Bill Katovsky was a two-time Hawaii Ironman finisher, a guy who bicycled solo across the U.S., an endurance athlete who competed in a three-day race mountain bike race across Costa Rica. But through a series of misfortunes, including depression, losing his dog, death in his family, and debilitating health problems, Katovsky went from being a multisport junkie to complete couch potato. He stopped working out. For almost ten years! By the time he hit fifty, he decided it was time for a change. How he fought his way back to fitness is not only a riveting, brutally honest, and ultimately inspiring story, it is also a hands-on guide to help anyone reclaim health and well-being. Katovsky supplements his personal story with those of others successfully making a return to fitness - an astronaut who spent five months in space; a former Wall Street trader who lost seventy-five pounds and became Hawaii's Fittest CEO; a retired two-time world-champion Hawaii Ironman triathlete with a bum hip that needed replacing, a Yosemite park employee who broke her spine in a hiking accident and is now back on the trails; and a sixty-something business educator who's had six heart bypasses but still backpacks and goes to the gym. With the advice of personal trainers, fitness experts, and multisport coaches, Katovsky offers a wealth of useful information, including: Diet and nutrition - what you need to know for a healthy body How aging, body fat, and motivation affect physical and mental health; and why exercise is good for depression Successfully building a proper aerobic and strength base - workouts you can do at home! Tips for injury prevention - from avoiding overtraining to why stretching isn't recommended.