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Ultra Marathon Books

MountainMaggie
MountainMaggie Posts: 104 Member
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I want to run ultras, and I am looking for book ideas. I am also interested in favorite training plans, but I really like the feel of a book in my hands.

Replies

  • jturnerx
    jturnerx Posts: 325 Member
    The ultra specific books I am aware of are Bryon Powell's Relentless Forward Progress and Hal Koerner's Field Guide to Ultrarunning.
  • MountainMaggie
    MountainMaggie Posts: 104 Member
    Thanks! I'll consider those.
  • der1004
    der1004 Posts: 2 Member
    There are many good books out there. I think I have 20+ they get a bit addictive. Finish one and onto the next. I have both of the books jturnerx mentions and agree they are both good. Another popular is Ultra Marathon Training by Wolfgang Oibrich.

    If you want to know more about the big Ultra races and the Ultra seen you could try any of the books by Dean Karnazes, Scott Jurek or Killian Jornet.

    For a more down to earth, i.e. not a natural runner, there is also 'Running and Stuff' by James Adams, which I quite enjoyed.

    All available on Amazon as paper (or if you change your mind, kindle format)
  • MountainMaggie
    MountainMaggie Posts: 104 Member
    Thanks! I'm sure some will end up on Kindle, but I need at least one paper version to hold and keep me wrm at night. I'm generally pretty "green" person, but I have a thing about books.
  • lolsupkerstin
    lolsupkerstin Posts: 6
    Ultra running books are amazing. I really love Born to Run and Running on Empty. They're not necessarily training plan books, but they're inspiring.
  • DonPendergraft
    DonPendergraft Posts: 520 Member
    I'm with JTURNERX. Both would be at the top of my list of recommendations.
  • JustWant2Run
    JustWant2Run Posts: 286 Member
    I really liked Relentless Forward Progress. :)
  • MountainMaggie
    MountainMaggie Posts: 104 Member
    I ordered Born to Run, though I'm sure I'll order more. Decided to go with inspirational versus training plans, as planning is really not my style in any aspect of life. I will consult online training guides, I think Powell has one, but everything I've done so far has been a mix of loose ideas of plans and whatever I actually get around to doing with my insane schedule.
  • JustWant2Run
    JustWant2Run Posts: 286 Member
    I'm currently reading Running Through the Wall: Personal Encounters with the Ultramarathon. It's a collection of short stories, written by regular people. It feels like you are reading their blog. I'm enjoying it. Some stories are better written than others, but they are all interesting so far. It's a different perspective than most inspirational books out their written by the ''elites''.
  • DonPendergraft
    DonPendergraft Posts: 520 Member
    lolsupkerstin wrote: »
    Ultra running books are amazing. I really love Born to Run and Running on Empty. They're not necessarily training plan books, but they're inspiring.

    How could I forget Marshall's book? Loved it!
  • sinister2014
    sinister2014 Posts: 92 Member
    i really enjoyed Eat and Run by Scott Jurek. Run or Die by Kilian wasn't a very good read at all.
  • MountainMaggie
    MountainMaggie Posts: 104 Member
    It was a very difficult decision to choose one book out of your suggestions. I will read more, so by all means, keep throwing them my way.
  • chemlabdoc
    chemlabdoc Posts: 30 Member
    Brain training for runners by Matt Fitzgerald. I have that on kindle.
  • DonPendergraft
    DonPendergraft Posts: 520 Member
    chemlabdoc wrote: »
    Brain training for runners by Matt Fitzgerald. I have that on kindle.

    I just picked that up yesterday for Kindle along with Racing Weight. But I first need to finish "Run Faster" by Brad Hudson and Matt Fitzgerald. I'm stoked!
  • Curtruns
    Curtruns Posts: 510 Member
    I will second the vote for Hal Koerner's Field Guide to Ultrarunning
  • Diver_Adolph
    Diver_Adolph Posts: 6 Member
    Never Wipe Your *kitten* with a Squirrel: A trail running, ultramarathon, and wilderness survival guide for weird folks by Jason Robillard. It has some really funny stuff. He describes himself as a lazy ultra runner.

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