Endure: Thoughts, Physique, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Efficiency
$0.99
Worth: $0.99
(as of Nov 07, 2024 20:06:43 UTC – Particulars)
That includes a foreword by Malcolm Gladwell
Writing from each the chopping fringe of scientific discovery and the front-lines of elite athletic efficiency, Nationwide Journal Award-winning science journalist Alex Hutchinson presents a revolutionary account of the dynamic and controversial new science of endurance.
The capability to endure is maybe the important thing trait that separates champions and determines nice efficiency in any subject – from a 100-meter dash to a 100-mile ultramarathon, from summiting Everest to acing finals. However what if every little thing we have been taught about endurance was incorrect? What if all of us have extra potential than we predict to go farther, push more durable, and obtain extra?
Mixing cutting-edge science and gripping storytelling within the vein of Malcolm Gladwell – who forewords the e-book – Hutchinson reveals {that a} wave of paradigm-altering analysis over the previous decade means that the seemingly bodily limitations you encounter are mediated as a lot by your mind as by your physique. Nevertheless it’s not “all in your head.” For every of the bodily limits that Hutchinson explores – ache, muscle, oxygen, warmth, thirst, gas – he fastidiously disentangles the fragile interaction of thoughts and muscle by telling the riveting tales of women and men who’ve approached (and typically surpassed) their very own final limits.
Because the longtime “Sweat Science” columnist for Exterior and Runner’s World in addition to a frequent contributor to The New Yorker and New York Instances, Hutchinson attracts on his background as a former national-team long-distance runner and Cambridge-trained physicist. However the classes he attracts from touring to labs world wide and making an attempt out new endurance-boosting strategies like electrical mind stimulation and mind endurance coaching are surprisingly common. Endurance, he writes, is “the battle to proceed in opposition to a mounting want to cease” – and we’re all the time able to pushing somewhat farther.
Clients say
Clients discover the e-book fascinating, gratifying, and enjoyable to learn. They recognize the analysis, examples, and nice ideas. Readers describe the writing high quality as detailed and well-written.
AI-generated from the textual content of buyer opinions
11 reviews for Endure: Thoughts, Physique, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Efficiency
Add a review
Related Products
$0.99
C. Rodman –
Fascinating insights about human physiology at the limits
This is one of the most fascinating books I have read in recent memory. Hutchinson, writing in a style reminiscent of Malcolm Gladwell (who actually wrote the book’s foreword) or Freakonomics investigates how the human body works and how it can be pushed to its limits – or beyond what we often perceive as our limits. The book was initially inspired by the chase to run a marathon in under two hours – a conquest many believe to be beyond the limits of human capability. The record has since been broken, but only in a very controlled and optimized setting, leaving questions remaining, but opening the door for the possibility much wider than previously considered. This is one of many principles Hutchinson looks at to bridge where psychology and physiology interrelate to define our limits. Once something is proven to be possible, it suddenly becomes attainable to a far wider audience; this is one of the clear psychological barriers. While the book does not definitively conclude how much is mind vs how much is body in defining limits, it clearly uncovers that the mind plays a much larger role than we like to give credit. Hutchinson references, and indeed observes, many ingenious studies aimed to identify what the true physiological limits are – from explorers in wild conditions, to elite athletes, to living and dead animals having their muscles stimulated by electrical currents. One of the central pillars is that the human body has many self-regulatory systems that act as a governor to keep us from approaching anywhere near our actual limit. As one of many examples, he considers the limits of oxygen deprivation. By looking at ultra free divers, a familiar pattern emerges that they must psychologically manage. Holding one’s breath for an extended time begins with discomfort, a signal to the brain that oxygen is needed. If one continues to avoid breathing, the diaphragm will begin to spasm to try to force a breath. If one continues to refrain the task actually becomes easier for a time and a second wave occurs allowing the extension of holding one’s breath. This is because the spleen sequesters a cache of oxygenated blood to be released in case of emergency. The true limit is far beyond what most people consider because few will willingly push themselves to the point of the spleen anticipating death and offering a final boost (clearly, this is not something a normal person should strive for). There are obviously much more pedestrian examples like how, if racers are running all out in an olympic race, is it possible that most are able to increase their pace in the last stages of the race? Or why, if access to glycogen stores is critically important, do most top marathoners allow their glycogen stores to deplete over the course of the race rather than keep them topped up? Or, more psychologically, it has been revealed that rinsing one’s mouth with carbohydrate rich solution and spitting it out has a nearly identical impact on performance to actually drinking it (the suspicion here is that there is an as-yet unidentified pathway from the mouth that signals to the brain carbohydrates are coming, allowing an override of the governor that would otherwise signal you to reduce your effort). There are dozens of studies, real world examples, and fascinating stories, backed up by the biology and chemistry of how it works, that reveal so much about how our bodies work in the everyday and in the extreme limits of exertion. All of it is remarkably digestible and written almost like a series of mysteries to resolve. Simply put: this is a brilliant, enlightening, and entertaining book that will teach you about the limits of that which we’re capable and why, even if it doesn’t necessarily provide all of the answers.
Duane Schneider –
Well-Researched but Maybe TOO Well-Researched?
I’ve come to know Alex Hutchinson’s writing through his fantastic articles in “Runner’s World.” He had some serious chops as a Canadian runner but he’s equally (if not more) accomplished as a journalist. Hutchinson’s interests tend toward the science-y, geeky side of running, and those interests are on full display in “Endure.” It’s likely I came into the book with a bias, being a distance runner and having heard “Endure” mentioned on various ultra-running podcasts. I assumed the focus would be on long-distance running, but Hutchinson touches on endurance sports of various types, including mountain climbing, cycling, free diving, marathoning, ultra-running, exploration, etc. A real strength of the book is that the author is able to tie these sports together, along with a wealth of scientific findings and summaries of clinical studies, so seamlessly. He moves effortlessly between Nike’s 2-hour marathon project, Roger Bannister’s 4-minute mile, record free diving attempts, Everest ascents, Antarctic treks, and “The Hour” (an all-out one-hour bike sprint that leaves its participants flailing in a pool of their own saddle sores, sweat, and tears). Hutchinson paints such a vivid picture of these efforts that you almost start to struggle for air along with the free diver or mountain climber. A lot of the book is arranged around these limits to human endurance, such as oxygen, heat, and fuel. The book springs to life when Hutchinson is describing mountain ascents or cycling races, but then just as quickly we’re back in the lab for…another study. There were many studies summarized in this book, studies where athletes were poked, prodded, given pills and placebos, denied oxygen, given pure oxygen, denied carbs, given extra carbs, EKGs, and on and on. I tried to keep everything straight, but after awhile it was difficult to determine what I was supposed to take from all this, other than that people often push themselves to the brink of exhaustion but rarely does anyone die due to a “central governor” in the brain that starts shutting things down if we stray too far into dangerous territory. By the time Hutchinson got to the study about the cyclists shown a video of an Asian woman who forces herself to vomit and then eats it, I was ready to be done with studies. I think Hutchinson accomplished what he set out to do, which was to provide a survey of various extreme endurance achievements and explain the science behind them, and despite my own bias toward running I thought the stories about mountaineering, antarctic exploration, and cycling were fascinating. I just wish the author would’ve focused more on the details of these events, maybe focusing on four or five, describing them in-depth, and scaling back all the studies, which for me just blended together anyway. I also have a feeling these studies are going to make “Endure” seem really dated in about five or ten years. I ultimately came away thinking the book was interesting but not always a page-turner, and there’s also not a huge amount you can easily take from it and apply to your own training/racing if that’s your goal for “Endure.”
Kent R. Spillner –
Well-written and fascinating to read
This book is very well-written and easy to read. The author interspersed gripping anecdotes with explanations of the latest scientific research into different aspects of the potential limits of human physical achievement. The author is very honest that this book is not prescriptive, there’s no one tried & true solution or answer that will help people improve their performance, but there’s still a wealth of knowledge in this book and a lot for any reader to chew on. Absolutely fascinating!
Michael P Preston –
Running!
This a great book about running and other endurance sports and the mindset of the athletes and what helps them preform at their highest level . A must read for any runners. But you don’t have to take my word for it!
Angela –
Excellent writing, pages turn
Took a chance on this and so glad I did. Very well written and researched. It reads like a story and I feel like I learned a lot. I only run casually but I feel this has changed me entire perspective on life and all forms of physical activity. Thanks to the author!
RTM –
Interesting Ideas About the Limits of Human Performance
During the past century, humans have continually pushed the limits on endurance and athletic performance. However, it remains largely a mystery about what exact mix of preparation and circumstances makes these breakthroughs possible. The author, an elite competitive runner, gives the reader an interesting overview about this subject, and includes stories about diverse individuals, including world class athletes from different sports, plus the latest findings from scientific research. Overall, I found the book well-written, but perhaps tried to cover too many different sports and topics. This is not a “How to Become a Better Runner” manual, nor is it an academic treatise.
Janis Vaitkevics –
Excellent book for every sportsman to find extra motivation to suffer more in training and competitions
ali –
This book is very dense and it does sometimes have so much information that it’s hard to remember it all. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it (at the gym no less) and learnt a lot about endurance.
AndreaMB –
Libro ottimo di approccio al mondo della resistenza. La fatica mentale, le grandi imprese di resilienza riportate come esempio sono di grande ispirazione. Ottimo libro per conoscere i limiti del nostro corpo e fino a dove esso può arrivare. Chissà !
Luiz Gustavo M C Manso –
Ãtimo livro, de leitura fácil e com muitos dados técnicos, principalmente experimentos feitos aos longos dos anos na área de endurance. A leitura é perfeira para corredores e ciclistas. O livro elenca os principais fatores fÃsicos que afetam o endurance, cita aspectos psicológicos e no fim fala sobre como treinar e tentar educar seu cérebro a ir mais longe ou mais rápido de forma âmenos doloridaâ. Li durante um ciclo de maratona e me ajudou muito e encarar de forma mais leve os treinos, impactando diretamente nos resultados que obtive.
Adriana –
Es un gran libro que habla sobre como el cuerpo y la mente pueden llevarnos a lograr cosas extraordinarias. Lo que me gustó es que divide el libro en diferentes capÃtulos que hablan de cosas especÃficas que nos afectan cómo atletas y qué parte juega el cuerpo y cuál la mente. Gran libro si buscas entender los distintos factores que pueden afectar tus desempeño deportivo.